A row over a duck that threatened to derail the unveiling of a statue of a famous locomotive designer has been settled.

The statue to rail engineer Sir Nigel Gresley, who designed the Mallard locomotive as well as the Flying Scotsman, was to have also featured a duck next to the eminent engineer.

But Sir Nigel's family, and others, were not keen on the appearance of the duck with the bronze statue which is due to be unveiled at King's Cross station in London on April 5 2016 - the 75th anniversary of Sir Nigel's death.

And now the Gresley Society Trust, which commissioned sculptor Hazel Reeves to create the statue, has announced the duck will not appear.

The trust said: "After widespread consultation, including with our president, vice presidents, members and Sir Nigel's family, we have agreed to make some small alterations to the details of the scheme, among which are the removal of the mallard from the foot of the statue."

The trust's chairman David McIntosh told The Times: "It was quite clear if we persisted with the duck we ran the significant risk of falling out with people whose opinion we valued."

He added that Sir Nigel's two grandsons took the view that the duck "detracted from the dignity of the statue".

However, Robin Jones, editor of Heritage Railway magazine the symbolic addition of the mallard duck would have made it more memorable for passers-by.