The latest news on GB stamps from Norvic Philatelics
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We are a 18 days through August but so far I have had no reports of new slogans. Mind you, with the low amount of stamped mail anyone receives these days - apart from dealers and other collectors - it's hardly surprising that we have had no reports yet, not even for the default British Heart Foundation (BHF) slogan. Mind you, the BHF slogan may not continue for much longer. John F reports seeing…
Conscious that they have issued pet stamps before, Royal Mail have expanded the range from cats and dogs and cats & dogs in one set, to show a range of ten pets including fish, reptiles, rodents and of course a cat and dog (kitten and puppy). Their write-up: For centuries pets have held a cherished place in our homes and hearts. From the soothing purr of a cat to the joyful wag of a dog’s tail,…
Aerogrammes have not been issued by Royal Mail for many years but they can still be used. Originally they could be purchased singly, or in packs of 10, or promotional packs of 6, some of which contained a surprise pictorial edition behind the five plain ones. I wrote about the inception and early history here . They all had a face value until Christmas 1988; after that most had a non-value…
My thanks to JohnH for alerting me to the availability of a new stock list which can be downloaded from Royal Mail's website here . Not so long ago we were told that there would be variable 'off-sale' dates depending on an issue's popularity, with more popular issues staying on sale for longer, while less popular issues could be taken off sale in less than 12 months and others might just stay…
You could argue, with some justification, that the Royal Air Force has had more than its fair share of stamp issues over the years, but Royal Mail is concentrating here in the evolution of jet aircraft with passenger jets being covered by a set of five in 2002. Of course 'RAF Jets' means some more repeat visits, notably the Avro Vulcan which gets the full treatment this time. One subject that…
Five years after I set it up I have made the first substantive post to my World Postal History blog . Read about the connection between a registered airmail cover from Soviet Russia to England and a famous Hollywood film star. Exploring Russian language, political place-name changing and industrial development, this story took an unexpected turn.
(From the Daily Express 12 July2026 ) At least 52 Post Office branches are expected to shut by early October, according to analysis of Post Office consultation documents by Better Retailing. Many of the affected branches are in southern England, although closures are also planned across the UK in locations including York and Glamorgan. The Post Office is understood to be looking for replacement…
We are a third of the way through July but so far I have had no reports of new slogans. Royal Mail has featured in many news articles about dog attacks on postal workers , and by now we would have expected to see a Dog Awareness slogan, but no. So once again we have the British Heart Foundation, and I can show both examples received here. Bristol Mail Centre 04/07/2026 and Norwich Mail Centre…
I was asked by a couple of collectors of Irish stamps to buy some of their Stamps on a Roll (SOAR) during my visit to Ireland last month. I had bought one batch previously, but this gave me the opportunity to look more closely and learn about the stamps and the machines. Aside from being a different format and type of machine to Royal Mail's Post and Go stamps, one important thing about these is…
Due to a cancelled order I can offer again some of the King Charles stamps which I offered back in the spring. There are two of each of these, in horizontal pairs which can be supplied as is, or split if nobody wants the pairs. Business Sheets M24L - 1st and 1st Large* - £19 (£38 for two) M25L - 1st class - £2.50 (£5) M26L - 2nd and 1st Large - £5 (£10) Counter Sheets M24L - 2nd Large, 1st Large…
According to Royal Mail "There are over 2,500 moth species recorded in the United Kingdom, compared with around 80 butterflies, and they exhibit astonishing diversity, which is largely hidden to us humans because moths are mostly nocturnal. Yet many moths do fly by day and are as beautiful as butterflies, including the emperor moth and the hedge beauty moth. Bizarrely, the female of the lesser…
The mail regulator OfCom announced this time last year that a major reform to the Universal Service Obligation (USO) would be take place which would allow Royal Mail (RM) to reduce the frequency of 2nd class letter delivery. After small area trials, RM said that this process would be rolled out across the country and that they would deliver 2nd class letters on alternate days only, Monday to…
In February 2009 Royal Mail issued the first self-adhesive definitive NVIs and high values stamps with new security features. This was the birth of the Machin Security Stamps which indirectly lead to the bulk of posts on this blog over the next decade. Then in November two surprise additions to the series were added, the Recorded Signed For 1st class and 1st class Large to “satisfy an operational…
Tomorrow, June 23rd, Royal Mail will issue a set of 10 stamps depicting Waterfalls across the United Kingdom. The set consists of 5 each of 2nd class and 1st class stamps. Normally, under the heading "Reason and Inspiration" in the information pack provided to dealers there are a couple of paragraphs explaining why this subject and why now, but in this case it is just one short sentence: A…
There should be some new slogans in June. but we can start off with the British Heart Foundation standard slogan from Edinburgh Mail Centre on 01-06-2026, thanks to JH. British Heart Foundation Edinburgh Mail Centre 01-06-2026 This will be interrupted in the next few days as Royal Mail honour our Armed Forces. Armed Forces Week should start on 19 June for deliveries on 20th - 23rd. Armed Forces…
I'm back now from nearly four weeks in Ireland (via Holyhead, Wales, this time) which accounts for the silence here - sorry I forgot to announce it. If you emailed you would have got an 'out of office' reply and if you posted a comment on the blog it would have been moderated as soon as we had good enough mobile data or wifi. As soon as I have dealt with household administration and sorted out our…
The latest Royal Mail celebration of the United Kingdom's Castles introduces some that we haven't seen before, except perhaps on the Castles series of Smilers Sheets. Information supplied: Across the extent of the British Isles, our landscape is studded with castles, great and small. Some survive as houses or visitor attractions, others as ruins, earthworks or just shadows traced in the lines and…
Royal Mail's second 'Celebrating Britain' Collector Sheet has been announced as celebrating the comedy double act Morecambe and Wise, and will be made available on 14 May 2026. The first, issued in November 2025, celebrated author Jane Austen. Information provided Morecambe & Wise—Eric Morecambe OBE (1926–1984) and Ernie Wise OBE (1925–1999)—were Britain’s most iconic comedy double act, celebrated…
We have been advised by Royal Mail that the following will be removed from sale on the dates shown. The very popular Warhammer stamps come off sale at the end of this month: 31st May 2026. Following this a further four stamp issues will come off sale on the 31st July 2026. • Weather Forecasting • Viking Britain Standard • The Age of the Dinosaurs • 100 Years of Commemorative Stamps
Wait, you say, it's still April! True, but the first May slogans will be in use very early, in fact the British Heart Foundation default slogan will have three phases by my calculation. As it is currently in use the standard BHF slogan will start the month. But with local elections long-planned for Scotland and Wales we can expect slogans encouraging the early sending of Postal Votes for the…
Queen Elizabeth II was born on 21 April 1926 and so this year marks the centenary of her birth. Royal Mail is marking the anniversary with a set of 8 stamp and a miniature sheet, plus a lot more merchandise. For a younger person's view on this and other stamps marking the centenary, see 13-year-old Xanthe's Stamp Magazine . The stamps feature a selection of carefully curated photographs taken…
It's now 13th April and there is no news yet on new slogans, although it has been suggested that there might be one for the local elections, such as the 'Post Early' for postal voters from July 2024. So please if you find anything new do get in touch. Meanwhile we will start off with the continuation of the British Heart Foundation standard slogan from Cornwall Mail Centre on 07/04/2026 . British…
Norfolk & Norwich Philatelic Society STAMP FAIR Saturday 11 April 2026 10 am to 3.30pm Middle School Hall - Hewett Academy Gate 1, Cecil Road (off Hall Road or Ipswich Road) NORWICH NR1 2PL I shall be there with a lot of bargains, especially foreign catalogues, postal history, postcards, and Norfolk material. If you're in the area do drop in and say hello. After everything is put away again next…
Printings of the King Charles definitives with 2023-2025 source codes are recorded in this post . This post is for M26L stamps and non-PSB stamps issued in 2026 with M25L codes are also included. As with Post and Go & SSKs, I have decided to have one post which will list all the news for the year, and then start another for next year. Reprinted 2026 counter sheets 2nd class green - 1st class deep…
My default browser is Firefox, but recent changes in the way Firefox displays this blog - but not the others - have restricted my ability to use it here, and may restrict your ability to see everything. Comments Comments are moderated by email, that is, I am notified by email and may allow comments, delete them or mark them as spam. On the desktop version of the blog I can see them, but I cannot…
The 2004 set of 10 Royal Mail stamps marked the 50th anniversary of the publication of the first books in the Lord of the Rings series . The stamps depicted drawings illustrating locations in the books. All the illustrations are by the author except for the map which is by his son Christopher. At the time we were producing first day covers for every stamp issue: the numbers varied according to our…
