Matilda takes on Donald Trump as Roald Dahl book celebrated with statues

A statue of Donald Trump being stared down by Roald Dahl character Matilda has been unveiled near the author’s former home.

The statues, which depicts Matilda Wormwood looking defiant with hands on hips in the face of the US president, have been installed to mark the 30th anniversary of the publication of children’s book Matilda.

The idea for the statues came from a public survey by The Roald Dahl Story Company which sought to find out what people think Matilda would be doing if she was alive today and in her thirties — with 42% of people agreeing that President Trump was the person she would be standing up to.

In the novel, Matilda famously stands up to her cruel headmistress Miss Trunchbull.

Bernie Hall, from The Roald Dahl Story Company, said: “Matilda demonstrates that it’s possible for anyone, no matter how small and powerless they feel, to defeat the Trunchbulls in their own lives — a message that feels more relevant today than it did 30-years-ago.”

The statues stand in Great Missenden in Buckinghamshire, the town where the late author lived for 36 years.

Of those polled, 42% thought Trump would be Matilda’s most likely modern-day nemesis, with other popular suggestions for who she would be standing up to today including Theresa May (21%) and Piers Morgan (16%).

The statues will be available to be viewed at the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre for a few weeks.

The public also voted for who they think Matilda would be friends with and actress Emma Watson (24%), Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle (14%) and musician Ed Sheeran (9%) were the most popular picks.

The most plausible career choices for Matilda are school teacher (24%), UN ambassador (12%) or librarian (11%), according to the poll.

The original illustrator of the book, Sir Quentin Blake, has done several new drawings depicting Matilda in her thirties that will be published in a special anniversary edition of the book.