Coin News
‘The Father of Science Fiction’, H. G. Wells, celebrated on NEW UK £2 coin…
In the late 1800s, Herbert George Wells created a new breed of novel, pioneering the genre that would later be defined as science fiction.
His creative and forward-thinking novels provide a window to the future and have become famous all over the world, with his audience spanning across generations.
In the year marking the 75th anniversary of his death, a brand new £2 coin has been issued, featuring a design which pays a fitting tribute to his famous novels, Time Machine, The Invisible Man, and War of the Worlds.
2021 UK H. G. Wells £2
Chris Costello’s design of this brand new coin takes inspiration from these world-famous novels, with a depiction of the Invisible Man and a Martian encircled by clock numerals.
Issued initially as part of the 2021 Annual Coin Set, this is the first time collectors will have the chance to secure the individual coin in Brilliant Uncirculated quality.
To add this coin to your collection for JUST £8.99 (+p&p), simply click here >>
Have you ever seen a four-legged tripod?
Arguably one of the most controversial and talked about coin designs of the year, the BRAND NEW H. G. Wells £2 pays tribute to the Father of Science-Fiction’s best known works and includes a design featuring the Invisible Man as well as a four-legged ‘tripod’.
This unusual design hit the headlines this year when eagle-eyed collectors picked up on the additional leg featured on the Martian from Well’s famed War of the Worlds when the coin was issued in the 2021 Annual Coin Set.
The coin hit the headlines once more this year for another reason, after another supposed ‘error’ was spotted on the version issued as part of the 2021 Annual Coin Set. Continue reading our blog to find out more…
H.G. Wells £2 – Blank ‘Error’
This £2 coin was issued as part of the 2021 UK Commemorative Coin set and it marks the 75th anniversary of the death of science fiction novelist, H. G. Wells.
With the clue in the name, this bi-metallic coin is made up of a combination of a silver coloured cupro-nickel disc and an outer yellow nickel-brass ring.
In the case of this H.G. Wells £2 coin however, it appears that the blank used has a thicker yellow ring, much wider than what we’d see on normal £2 coins.
When striking £2 coins, the first step is to punch a hole through a blank planchet to create the outer section. The inner core is taken from a different metal, sized to fit inside the outer ring.
There have already been estimations that if this coin was to be sold at auction, it could fetch over £1,000! We’re going to be eagerly awaiting confirmation from The Royal Mint whether this error is genuine or not. Nonetheless, it certainly makes for interesting collecting!
The Father of Science Fiction
After the publication of his first novel, The Time Machine, in 1895, H. G. Wells became an overnight sensation. He began to write a series of science fiction novels that would define him as a truly original writer.
The War of the Worlds (1898) and The Invisible Man (1897) joined The Time Machine as H. G. Wells most celebrated and well-known novels .
Wells was described by his contemporaries as undeviating and fearless in his efforts for social equality, world peace, and what he considered to be the future good of humanity.
In the 75th anniversary of his death, H. G. Wells‘ remarkable life and works have been commemorated on this brand new UK £2, acting as a lasting tribute to this world-famous author.
Will you be securing this brand new UK £2 coin to your collection? Let us know in the comments below!
Add the 2021 UK H. G. Wells £2 to your collection today!
You can secure the brand new 2021 UK H. G. Wells £2 to your collection today for JUST £8.99 (+p&p) by clicking here >>
Your coin has been struck to a superior Brilliant Uncirculated quality and comes protectively encapsulated in Official Change Checker packaging with that all-important hologram to guarantee its superior quality.
Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’ celebrated on official UK £5 coins!
“When I used to read fairy-tales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened, and now here I am in the middle of one!”
Alice, from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.
We feel like we’re in the middle of a fairy-tale too, Alice, as in 2021 The Royal issued two £5 coins which left us feeling curiouser and curiouser!
Lewis Carroll’s tales of a girl’s discovery of a wacky world of impossibilities have become arguably some of the best known stories in the world.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was first published in 1865 and was so popular that its sequel, Through the Looking-Glass followed closely in 1871.
With their fantastical tales and riddles, Carroll’s stories became some of the most popular works of English-language fiction, with their popularity spanning across generations.
In 2021, to celebrate over 150 years of madness, curiosity, and dreams, The Royal Mint issued two BRAND NEW £5 coins, featuring Sir John Tenniel’s original illustrations from Carroll’s original tales.
2021 UK Through the Looking-Glass £5
The second coin to be issued in the collection features an image of Alice, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, and eagle-eyed collectors and literature fans alike may also spot the umbrella that the twins bustle around with in their first meeting with Alice.
This £5 coin celebrates the sequel to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Through the Looking-Glass, with Ffion Gwillim’s design once again taking inspiration from the original illustrations.
2021 UK Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland £5
The first coin to be issued by The Royal Mint features John Tenniel’s original illustrations from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – the first book in the series.
Alice and one of the most mischievous characters from the book, the Cheshire Cat, can be seen on the reverse design of this coin, by Ffion Gwillim, with the title of the world-famous story to the right.
Excitingly for collectors, this was the VERY FIRST TIME that this timeless tale has been commemorated on a UK coin, which has left literature fans and collectors grinning like the Cheshire Cat himself.
This £5 coin is available to order in Brilliant Uncirculated quality for JUST £10.99 (+p&p) in Official Change Checker packaging. To secure yours simply click here >>
Both of your coins have been struck to a superior Brilliant Uncirculated quality and come protectively encapsulated in Official Change Checker packaging with that all-important hologram to guarantee its superior quality.
Secure both of these coins for your collection here >>
Character themed coins are some of the most popular issues of recent years, so i’m sure fans of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and coin collectors alike are sure to be quick to add this coin to their collections!
Here are some of our favourite character themed £5 coins released in recent years…
2021 UK Mr. Men and Little Miss £5 Series
For 50 years, the Mr. Men and Little Misses have been delighting children and adults alike for generations with their charming, cheeky and, clever antics.
But earlier in 2021, we also saw them delighting the coin collecting world as well, as The Royal Mint revealed a new £5 coin series celebrating the inhabitants of Dillydale.
These £5 coin designs, by Adam Hargreaves, son of author Roger Hargreaves, feature images of Mr. Happy, Mr. Strong and Little Miss Giggles, and Little Miss Sunshine. It was the first time the characters featured on UK coinage and they’ve already proved incredibly popular with collectors!
You can find out more about the series here >>
2021 UK Peter Rabbit £5
The Tale of Peter Rabbit and other Beatrix Potter stories span across generations, with each and every one of us having fond childhood memories of these wonderful characters.
Inspired by the Beatrix Potter’s classics that have enchanted readers of all generations for more than 100 years, in 2021, The Royal Mint issued a new £5 coin.
The reverse design by Ffion Gwillim perfectly captures a heart-warming scene from the original, much-loved Beatrix Potter stories.
Since 2016, Peter Rabbit has encouraged a whole new generation to start collecting – featuring on not just one, but FIVE 50p coins in the Beatrix Potter series. And now the tale continues as Potter’s most famous character is celebrated on a UK £5 coin.
To find out more about this popular issue, head to our blog >>
With an incredibly popular theme, that spends across multiple generations, these brand new £5 coins are proving to be a real hit with collectors! Will you be securing them for your collection? Comment below!
Secure the brand new 2021 UK Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland £5 for your collection!
To secure the 2021 UK Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland £5 for JUST £10.99 (+p&p) for your collection, simply click here >>
Your coin has been struck to a superior Brilliant Uncirculated quality and comes protectively encapsulated in Official Change Checker packaging with that all-important hologram to guarantee its superior quality.
New UK £5 pays tribute to HRH Prince Philip
In commemoration of the life and achievements of HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, a UK £5 coin has just been issued.
Issued shortly after what would have been his 100th birthday and within just three months of his passing, this special tribute to Prince Philip features a portrait created by Ian Rank-Broadley FRBS that was personally approved by The Duke of Edinburgh himself.
As Britain’s longest serving Consort – the Queen’s “strength and stay” – and as former President of the Royal Mint Advisory Committee, it is only fitting that a new UK coin should be issued in his honour.
You can secure yours now in Brilliant Uncirculated quality for just £10.99 here >>
This new release become the sixth UK coin to feature HRH Prince Philip and in this blog we’ll take a look back at his life as celebrated on £5 coins, as well as the role the Duke played in shaping UK currency.
Prince Philip in Coins
The 1972 Crown issued to mark his Silver Wedding Anniversary was an understated affair. However, in 1997, the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary, and Prince Philip featured on a UK coin for the very first time as part of a conjoined effigy on the obverse of the commemorative £5 coin. 2007 saw a similar conjoined portrait before the recent 2017 Platinum Wedding Anniversary design, which featured the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh on horseback in what can only been seen as a nod to the original 1953 Coronation Crown as well as a third conjoined portrait.
Yet it was in 2011 that Prince Philip was finally granted the greatest privilege – his own £5 Coin to celebrate his 90th Birthday – a splendid close up portrait of the Duke by Mark Richards FRBS. This was followed in 2017, with a design of the young Prince Philip by Humphrey Paget to mark Prince Philip stepping down from public duties after 70 years of service.
First Job – new coin designs
Not only does the Duke feature on a number of UK coins, he also had a hand in the creation of new coins too!
On 21 March 1952, just weeks after the Queen’s accession to the throne, Prince Philip attended his first meeting as President of the Royal Mint Advisory Committee on the design of coins, medals, seals and decorations (RMAC); a role that he would hold for the next 47 years, until his retirement in 1999.
A keen artist himself, the Prince’s first job was to oversee the selection of the Queen’s portrait to ordain her new coins. An uncrowned Queen was chosen from a field of seventeen designs, giving Nottingham born sculptor, Mary Gillick, the honour of creating the most seen portrait of the new Queen.
Equally importantly, the young Prince oversaw the design of the most important coin of the moment – the Coronation Crown, featuring Gilbert Ledward’s Queen on horseback on the obverse and Edgar Fuller’s reverse design containing the Coats of Arms of the constituent nations of the United Kingdom.
The UK’s biggest ever currency change
Gillick’s design remained on pre-decimal coinage until 1970, when Prince Philip was involved in another huge coinage milestone – the introduction of decimalisation.
The process required a complete redesign of Britain’s coinage as well as an updated effigy of Her Majesty, designed to help the new denominations stand out.
The RMAC selected Royal Academician Arnold Machin to sculpt the Queen, this time wearing a tiara. However, it was the reverse coin designs that were perhaps more significant.
A “monstrous piece of metal”
Under Prince Philip’s presidency, the RMAC started to work in top secret on designs as early as 1962, before there was any official government announcement confirming decimalisation.
The final designs were created by Christopher Ironside and featured heraldic elements of the United Kingdom. But it was the new 50p coin – introduced to replace the 10/- note – that caused the greatest stir, with its unique heptagonal (7-sided) shape.
Now Britain’s most popular coin with collectors, that was certainly not the case on its launch with one newspaper calling it a “monstrous piece of metal” and a retired colonel even starting Anti-Heptagonist movement.
In the 28 years that followed Decimalisation, Prince Philip guided the RMAC through two more effigies, Raphael Maklouf (1985 – 1997) and Ian Rank-Broadly (1998 – 2015), as well as the launch of 20p, £1 and £2 coins into circulation and numerous commemorative issues.
Prince Philip will be remembered for many things – and among them we will remember him as the man who has had more influence over the nation’s coins than any other.
With the release of the new Prince Philip £5, his legacy continues to live on as we celebrate his incredible life and achievements.
Secure your Prince Philip £5 Set today!
Today, you have the opportunity to secure the brand new 2021 UK Prince Philip £5 in Brilliant Uncirculated quality, alongside the 2017 Prince Philip £5 and the 2017 Platinum Wedding £5 coins to make the perfect Prince Philip £5 Set.
Your coins have been struck to a Brilliant Uncirculated finish and protectively encapsulated in official Change Checker packaging to preserve for generations to come.
A real collector’s set, these coins pay a special tribute to the Prince who will forever be remembered as a treasured member of British royal history.