[2] Plans for launching the crowdfunding part of the campaign in May 2020 were placed on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England, with the Mary Anning Rocks group selling t-shirts instead.

[3] In November 2020 the delayed public crowdfunding campaign was launched to raise the money to commission a statue of Mary Anning for her home town of Lyme Regis.

[4] Patrons and supporters of the campaign include Professor Alice Roberts, Sir David Attenborough, and novelist Tracy Chevalier.

[8] Planning permission for the statue, at a site overlooking Black Ven (where Mary made many of her discoveries), was lodged in November 2021[9] and granted by Dorset Council in January 2022.

[11][12] The event was attended by hundreds of supporters including Tracy Chevalier, Hugh Torrens, Anjana Khatwa, Dean Lomax, and Tori Herridge.