Paddington Bear was even out-dated in my childhood but Warner Brothers today have announced plans to make a feature film out of Michael Bond’s beloved character. The film will be a LIVE-ACTION one, with the producer of Harry Potter on board and the writer of Mr. Bean’s Holiday.

Paddington is of course a talking bear who is adopted by a London family when he becomes lost at Paddington Station. He has journeyed to Peru, carrying a suitcase with a jar full of marmalade and although he means well, he is often one to be the center of mis-haps and accidents.

Producer David Heyman, said this to Variety…

“Paddington Bear is a universally loved character, and I have wanted to bring him to screen for some years. Michael Bond’s ‘Paddington’ books have such wit, wonder and charm. Essentially, Paddington’s story is that of an immigrant arriving in London and trying to find a home and a family. Above all, I love Paddington’s unique style of comedy.

Stuart Little meets Mr. Bean is how I would describe this project. Paddington Bear’s humor isn’t really all that different to Mr. Bean’s. They both end up in hilarious situations usually by awful bad luck or because they choose to do the wrong thing.

This project would seem to be aimed exclusively at kids. The charm of the original 70’s animated series is much loved, will a film adaptation in the year 2008/9 have the same effect in live-action?