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Special Poppy Coin to be used for 2021 FA Cup Final coin toss
A poppy coin, to mark the centenary of the Royal British Legion, will be used at this year’s FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Leicester City.
Watching the @EmiratesFACup final between @ChelseaFC and @LCFC? ⚽ Keep your eyes peeled for the coin toss featuring a limited edition 50 pence piece created by our partners @WestminsterGB to mark our centenary. #RBL100 #EmiratesFACup pic.twitter.com/h9UZeRhgwQ
— Royal British Legion (@PoppyLegion) May 15, 2021
On May 15, the day of the Final itself, the RBL celebrates its 100th anniversary and, more importantly, 100 years of support to those who have served with Her Majesty’s Armed Forces.
It all began in May 1921, in the aftermath of the First World War, when four national organisations of ex-Servicemen came together to give a unified voice to those facing the bleak reality of Britain after that deadly conflict.
In the years since, the RBL has adapted and enhanced its services and continues to support today’s serving and ex-serving personnel.
On behalf of the RBL, The Westminster Collection has produced a beautiful full-colour RBL Centenary 50p coin, which bears the image of Her Majesty the Queen on one side, and the two-petal poppy on the other.
Charles Byrne, Director General of the RBL, said: “We are grateful to the FA, as this bespoke commemorative coin from the RBL will be used for the coin toss at this year’s Emirates FA Cup final between Chelsea and Leicester City, to recognise both our support and the service of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces over the past century.”
You can watch the FA Cup Final between Leicester City FC and Chelsea FC live on BBC One on Saturday 15th May. Kick off is at 5:15pm with the coin toss shortly before.
Keep an eye on The Westminster Collection Facebook and Instagram for updates during the day, and follow The Royal British Legion on Twitter and Instagram.
If you’re interested…
You can see the full range of 2021 Poppy Coins here, and own your own limited edition featuring the same design as the coin used at the FA Cup Final… click here for details.
As if by magic…Mr Benn 50p coins appeared!
‘As if by magic the shopkeeper appeared…’
For the generation of children who watched Mr Benn, those words heralded the beginning of yet another magical adventure for Mr Benn.
Incredibly it’s been 50 years since the postman first arrived at No 52 Festive Road with Mr Benn’s invitation to a fancy dress party… and so started his first adventure. Since then Mr Benn has fascinated millions of children with his adventures as he walked through that magical changing room doorway.
And so, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary year, a special set of British Isles 50p coins have been released by Guernsey Treasury and fully approved by Her Majesty the Queen.
Check out the coins below and all the information you will need to order. They are certainly something that Mr Benn would have been sure to “keep carefully just to remind me”.
The Complete Brilliant Uncirculated 50p Set
This stunning collection features all five new 50p coins, each struck to a Brilliant Uncirculated quality and featuring Mr Benn on four of his most popular adventures – the Red Night, Clown, Cook and Spaceman. These go perfectly with the official Mr Benn centrepiece coin.
What’s more, the coins will come protectively housed in bespoke presentation pack that has also been designed specifically for your coins.
This complete set is a must-have for anyone who grew up watching Mr Benn, so if you’d like to secure one for your collection for JUST £31.25 (+p&p) then click here >>
The STRICTLY LIMITED Mr Benn Silver 50p Coin
The Silver Proof version of the 50p coin features a nostalgic design of Mr Benn, alongside a stylised ’50’ with colours inspired by Festive Road. The obverse features the Queen’s effigy by Jody Clark.
The coin has been struck to a flawless Proof finish from .925 Sterling Silver with selective vivid colour printing to bring the design to life – this really is a must-have for any Mr Benn fans.
The Silver Proof editions are without a doubt the collector’s favourite and almost always acquire fast sell-outs and with an edition limit of JUST 4,995 coins, time is short to secure one for your collection…
Click here to guarantee yours >>
The ULTIMATE Mr Benn Silver Proof 50p Collection
One of the most limited way to own these brand new coins is the Silver Proof Collection. With only 1,995 available to collectors worldwide, a sell-out in inevitable. In fact, it’s the same edition as the first Peter Pan Silver Proof 50p Set which completely SOLD OUT.
Each coin is struck from .925 Silver, to a Proof finish, with the addition of colour and comes ready to present in case with numbered Certificate of Authenticity.
Don’t miss out on yours… Click here >>
The Complete Brilliant Uncirculated 50p Cover Collection – JUST 495 available
If you are looking for something truly special and unique, look no further than the Complete Mr Benn Cover Collection. Limited strictly to just 495, each collection features all five Mr Benn Brilliant Uncirculated 50p coins alongside specially licensed philatelic label from Royal Mail on individual covers.
Almost certainly, this is the smallest edition presentation of the new 50p coins that you’re likely to see and they are exclusively available from The Westminster Collection.
From a collector’s point of view, the decision is obvious. Click here to secure yours >>
Prince Philip (1921 – 2021) – a Life in Coins
Over the coming days and weeks much will be written about Prince Philip. The dashing naval officer who married a Princess and has since provided steadfast support to the Queen as Britain’s longest serving Consort. But few of the many obituaries will dwell deeply on his key involvement in Britain’s coinage.
First Job – new coin designs
A new monarch means many things – one is a new coinage. 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.
The five UK Coins that feature Prince Philip
Of course, Prince Philip has also featured on UK coins himself. 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. We will remember Prince Philip for many things – but among them, spare some room for the man who has had more influence over the nation’s coins than any other. Surely the nation will do just that with a final memorial £5 Coin, in the same way we paid tribute to Princess Diana and HM Queen Mother.
Click here to view a number of new and previously issued numismatic and philatelic tributes to HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.