Philatelists know only too well the amount of effort that goes into building a great stamp collection.
It takes time and patience, as well as money.
They also know the importance of preserving and protecting their collections, in archive-quality sleeves and albums and in low-humidity rooms where they are not exposed to direct sunlight.
Royal Mail’s Working Horses special issue, to be released on February 4, salutes the contribution horses make to working life in the UK, from ceremonial functions to police work.
Besides the estimated 900,000 privately-owned horses in the UK, another 88,000 are owned and worked by professionals.
Royal Mail thinks of this set of six as a sequel to the Working Dogs issue of 2008, which it says was very popular.
Royal Mail’s first stamp issue of 2014, Classic Children’s TV, will celebrate much-loved animated characters drawn from more than 60 years of British television.
The release of 12 free-form self-adhesive stamps on January 7 roughly coincides with the 10th anniversary of Peppa Pig, the 40th anniversary of Bagpuss and the 50th anniversary of The Magic Roundabout.
Designed by the Interabang agency, the set was printed by International Security Printers (Walsall) in gravure.
For customers who would prefer secular stamps to religious stamps, Royal Mail has issued extra 1st class and 2nd class designs this Christmas, based on paintings by primary school children.
The winners of a competition launched in the summer were Molly Robson, aged 7, and Rosie Hargreaves, aged 10.
A staggering 240,000 entries were whittled down to 120 regional finalists and then a shortlist of 24 national finalists by a judging panel which included the Prince of Wales, Lauren Child, the author of the Charlie & Lola books, and Tasveer Shemza, who was six when she designed a stamp for Royal Mail’s first ever Christmas issue in 1966.
Royal Mail’s new Dinosaurs set, issued on October 10, features prehistoric reptile species whose fossilised remains have been discovered in Britain.
Specialist illustrator John Sibbick was commissioned to paint images of the ‘terrible lizards’ as they might have looked, with Dr Angela Milner of the Natural History Museum advising on their appearance.
The theme, which has not been covered on British stamps since 1991, ties in with the release of the 3D film version of the popular BBC television series Walking With Dinosaurs, which will be out in cinemas in December.
Royal Mail will issue a set of six stamps saluting the Merchant Navy on September 19, with an accompanying four-stamp miniature sheet honouring the achievements and the sacrifice of those who took part in the perilous Atlantic and Arctic convoys in World War II.
The history of Britain’s merchant fleet is intertwined with the fortunes of the nation.
The Empire was built on the carriage of goods, by private organisations such as the East India Company, and emigrants and mail, not least by Royal Mail ships.
Royal Mail is celebrating Andy Murray’s victory in the Wimbledon Men’s Singles Final with a miniature sheet issued on August 8.
By beating Novak Djokovic in straight sets, Murray became the first Briton to win the men’s singles in 77 years, since Fred Perry did so in 1936.
The four-stamp miniature sheet uses the colours of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, green and purple, to salute Murray as a ‘1st class sporting success’.
The British Auto Legends issue on August 13 celebrates some of the most stylish motor vehicles ever manufactured in Britain, and some of the most hard-working.
Timed to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Henry Royce (the co-founder of Rolls-Royce) and the centenary of Aston Martin, the issue highlights two very different kinds of legendary cars: the ‘thoroughbreds’ ofthe 1960s and 1970s on a set of sixsheet stamps, and the ‘workhorses’ ofthe public services on a four-stamp miniature sheet.
The images for the sheet stamps were shot in a studio by renowned car photographer James Mann, using specialist lighting to capture the classic lines of the vehicles.
Royal Mail will release a Butterflies set of 10 stamps on July 11, with delicate and detailed illustrations by Richard Lewington depicting these beautiful creatures to stunning effect.
The 10 species chosen are a mix of the endangered and the common, but three-quarters of species are in decline in the UK.
The Big Butterfly Count, an annual nationwide survey, takes place from July 20–August 1, just after the issue comes out.
Royal Mail issued a Royal Portraits set of six stamps on May 30 to mark the 60th anniversary of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, and the 1st class value reproduces a detail of a portrait which it commissioned specially.
The painting by Nicky Philipps is a full-length study showing the Queen in her Order of the Garter robes.
This is the first time Royal Mail has commissioned a painted portrait of the Queen.
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