Paddington Bear: The Movie on its way "Paddington Bear is a universally loved character, treasured for his optimism, his sense of fair play, and his perfect manners - and, of course, for his unintentional talent for comic chaos," said Heyman. Michael Bond created Paddington in 1958 and the books have sold more than 35 million copies worldwide in 40 different languages. The little bear was discovered at Paddington Station by Mr and Mrs Brown, who noted the luggage label around his neck bearing the message: "Please Look After This Bear Thank You." He stowed away on a boat from Darkest Peru after his guardian, Aunt Lucy, had to go into a home fore retired bears. The Browns took him back to 32 Windsor Gardens, where they fed him on marmalade sandwiches and took him to a gentleman's outfitters to purchase pyjamas. Olivier Courson, chairman of StudioCanal, added: "Mr Bond's Paddington is beloved across generations throughout the world. And David Heyman has had tremendous success adapting great British literary works for cinema. Heyman played a key role in the Harry Potter phenomenon when he picked up a preview copy of JK Rowling's first instalment, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. His secretary read it one weekend and told him it would make a great film. Heyman optioned the rights and went on to produce the highest-grossing movie franchise of all time. Other literary adaptations from his Heyday Films company include The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, a Holocaust drama written by John Boyne. Heyman has optioned several other novels, including The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon.