List of United Kingdom commemorative stamps

This list of United Kingdom commemorative stamps deals with commemorative stamps issued by Royal Mail, the postal administration of the United Kingdom.

## History

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Postage stamps were first used in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 6 May 1840, with the introduction of the world's first adhesive postage stamps, the Penny Black and Two Pence Blue. Until 1924, all British stamps depicted only the portrait of the reigning monarch, with the exception of the 'High Value' stamps (the so-called "Sea Horses" design) issued in 1913, which were twice the size of normal stamps with added pictorial design.

In 1924, the first commemorative stamp was issued for the British Empire Exhibition. There were then occasional issues over the next thirty years, when the frequency of new issues became more regular. From the mid-1960s, in most years, six to nine sets of commemorative stamps have been issued every year. The General Post Office introduced official First Day Covers and Presentation Packs in the mid-1960s and PHQ Cards, postcard sized reproductions of commemorative stamps, have also been issued to accompany every new set of stamps since the mid-1970s.

All of the stamps introduced down to April 1967 were printed on watermarked paper, as were some introduced later that year; from October 1967, all stamps were on unwatermarked paper.

Issue dates of the early British Commemorative stamps, 1924–1969  Issue date  | Commemorative Issue  | No. in set  | Designer(s)

|
|
|

1924
23 April 1924  | British Empire Exhibition (dated 1924)  | Two (1d, 1+1⁄2d)  | Harold Nelson[1]
1925
9 May 1925  | British Empire Exhibition (dated 1925)  | Two (1d, 1+1⁄2d)  | Harold Nelson[1]
1929
10 May 1929  | 9th UPU Congress, London  | Five (1⁄2d, 1d, 1+1⁄2d, 2+1⁄2d, £1)  | F W Farleigh, Ernest Linzell, Harold Nelson[2]
1935
7 May 1935  | Silver Jubilee of George V | Four (1⁄2d, 1d, 1+1⁄2d, 2+1⁄2d)  | Barnett Freedman[3]
1937
13 May 1937  | Coronation of George VI | One (1+1⁄2d)  |
1940
6 May 1940  | Centenary of First Adhesive Postage Stamp  | Six (1⁄2d, 1d, 1+1⁄2d, 2d, 2+1⁄2d, 3d)  |
1946
11 June 1946  | Victory  | Two (2+1⁄2d, 3d)  |
1948
26 April 1948  | Royal Silver Wedding  | Two (2+1⁄2d, £1)  |
29 July 1948  | Olympic Games  | Four (2+1⁄2d, 3d, 6d, 1s)  |
1949
10 October 1949  | 75th Anniversary of Universal Postal Union | Four (2+1⁄2d, 3d, 6d, 1s)  |
1951
3 May 1951  | Festival of Britain | Two (2+1⁄2d, 4d)  |
3 May 1951  | High Value Definitives George VI (This set is not a Commemorative issue, it is the first set of 'Pictorial' High Value Definitives) | Four (2s 6d, 5s, 10s, £1)  |
1953
3 June 1953  | Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II | Four (2+1⁄2d, 4d, 1s 3d, 1s 6d)  |
1955
September 1955  | Castles (Not a Commemorative issue, the 2nd set of 'Pictorial' High Value Definitives) | Four (10s and £1 first issued 1 September, 2s 6d and 5s first issued 23 September)  |
1957
1 August 1957  | World Scout Jubilee Jamboree | Three (2+1⁄2d, 4d, 1s 3d)  |
12 September 1957  | 46th Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference  | One (4d)  |
1958
18 July 1958  | 6th British Empire & Commonwealth Games  | Three (3d, 6d, 1s 3d)  |
1960
7 July 1960  | Tercentenary of Establishment of General Letter Office | Two (3d, 1s 3d)  | Faith Jaques
19 September 1960  | 1st Anniversary of European Postal & Telecommunications Conference  | Two (6d, 1s 6d)  |
1961
28 August 1961  | Centenary of Post Office Savings Bank  | Three (2+1⁄2d, 3d, 1s 6d)  |
18 September 1961  | European Postal & Telecommunications (CEPT) Conference, Torquay  | Three (2d, 4d, 10d)  |
25 September 1961  | 7th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference  | Two (6d, 1s 3d)  | Faith Jaques
1962
14 November 1962  | (Introduction of the double issue: Phosphor and Ordinary sets)

National Productivity Year

| Three (2+1⁄2d, 3d, 1s 3d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | David Gentleman[4]
1963
21 March 1963  | (Introduction of GPO First Day of Issue Postmark)

Freedom From Hunger

| Two (2+1⁄2d, 1s 3d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
7 May 1963  | Paris Postal Conference Centenary  | One (6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
16 May 1963  | National Nature Week  | Two (3d, 4+1⁄2d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
31 May 1963  | 9th International Lifeboat Conference, Edinburgh | Three (2+1⁄2d, 4d, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | David Gentleman[4]
15 August 1963  | Red Cross Centenary Congress  | Three (3d, 1s 3d, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
3 December 1963  | Opening of COMPAC (Trans-Pacific Telephone Cable)  | One (1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
1964
23 April 1964  | (Introduction of GPO Presentation Pack)

Shakespeare Festival

| Five (3d, 6d, 1s 3d, 1s 6d, 2s 6d)

Four (3d, 6d, 1s 3d, 1s 6d) also issued in Phosphor set.

| David Gentleman[4]
1 July 1964  | 20th International Geographical Congress, London  | Four (2+1⁄2d, 4d, 8d, 1s 6d)

Also issued in Phosphor set.

5 August 1964  | 10th International Botanical Congress, Edinburgh  | Four (3d, 6d, 9d, 1s3d)

Also issued in Phosphor set.

4 September 1964  | Opening of Forth Road Bridge | Two (3d, 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | Andrew Restall
1965
8 July 1965  | Winston Churchill Commemoration  | Two (4d, 1s 3d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | David Gentleman[4]
19 July 1965  | 700th Anniversary of Simon de Montfort's Parliament  | Two (6d, 2s 6d)

One (6d) also issued in Phosphor .

| Stewart Black D.A
9 August 1965  | Salvation Army Centenary  | Two (3d, 1s6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
1 September 1965  | Centenary of Joseph Lister's discovery of Antiseptic Surgery  | Two (4d, 1s) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
1 September 1965  | Commonwealth Arts Festival  | Two (6s, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | David Gentleman[4]
13 September 1965  | 25th Anniversary of Battle of Britain | Eight (6 different stamps at 4d, 9d, 1s 3d)

Also issued in Phosphor set.

| David Gentleman and Rosalind Dease[5]
8 October 1965  | Post Office Tower  | Two (3d, 1s 3d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | Clive Abbott
25 October 1965  | 20th Anniversary of UNO and International Co-operation Year  | Two (3d, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
15 November 1965  | ITU Centenary  | Two (9d, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. |
1966
25 January 1966  | Burns Commemoration  | Two (4d, 1s 3d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | Gordon F. Huntley
28 February 1966  | 900th Anniversary of Westminster Abbey | Two (3d, 2s 6d) One (3d) also issued in Phosphor. | Sheila Robinson[6]
2 May 1966  | Landscapes  | Four (4d, 6d, 1s 3d, 1s 6d)  Also issued in Phosphor set. | Leonard Rosoman
1 June 1966  | World Cup Football Championship  | Three (4d, 6d, 1s 3d)  Also issued in Phosphor set. |
8 August 1966  | British Birds  | Four (Four different 4d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | J Norris Wood[7]
18 August 1966  | England's World Cup Football Victory
{4d value from the June set, with 'England Winners' added to design}  | One (4d)  | David Gentleman[4]
19 September 1966  | British Technology  | Four (4d, 6d, 1s 3d, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | D Gillespie[8]
14 October 1966  | 900th Anniversary of Battle of Hastings | Eight (Six different 4d, 6d, 1s 3d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | David Gentleman[4]
1 December 1966  | Christmas  | Two (3d, 1s 6d) Also issued in Phosphor set. | Tasveer Shemza and James Berry.[9] Shemza and Berry were six-year-old children whose stamp designs won a Blue Peter competition. Shemza was the daughter of the artist Anwar Shemza.[10]
1967
20 February 1967  | European Free Trade Association (EFTA)  | Two (Both with Watermark) |
24 April 1967  | British Wild Flowers  | Six (All with Watermark) |

* Mary Grierson (Two)
* W. Keble Martin (Four)

[11]
10 July 1967  | British Paintings  | Three (No watermark) |
24 July 1967  | Sir Francis Chichester's World Voyage  | One (No watermark) |
19 September 1967  | British Discovery and Invention  | Four (All with Watermark) |
18 October 1967  | Christmas (4d value)  | One (No watermark) |
27 November 1967  | Christmas (3d & 1s 6d values)  | Two (No watermark) |
1968
29 April 1968  | British Bridges  | Four  |
29 May 1968  | British Anniversaries  | Four  | David Gentleman[4]
12 August 1968  | British Paintings  | Four  |
25 November 1968  | Christmas  | Three  |
1969
15 January 1969  | British Ships  | Six (5d, 3 × 9d se-tenant, 2 × 1s se-tenant)  | David Gentleman[4]
3 March 1969  | First flight of Concorde | Three (4d, 9d, 1s 6d)  | Michael Goaman[12] & David Gentleman[4]
2 April 1969  | Anniversaries  | Five  |
28 May 1969  | British Architecture, Cathedrals  | Six  |
1 July 1969  | Investiture of HRH The Prince of Wales  | Five  |
13 August 1969  | Gandhi Centenary Year  | One  |
1 October 1969  | Post Office Technology Commemoration  | Four  | David Gentleman[4]
26 November 1969  | Christmas  | Three  |

## Other decades

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From 1965 onwards, in most years, there were between six and ten sets issued every year. The listings for the years after 1969 are set out in decades.

* United Kingdom commemorative stamps 1970–1979
* United Kingdom commemorative stamps 1980–1989
* United Kingdom commemorative stamps 1990–1999
* United Kingdom commemorative stamps 2000–2009
* United Kingdom commemorative stamps 2010–2019
* United Kingdom commemorative stamps 2020–2029

## See also

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* Philately portal

* Stamp collecting
* List of people on stamps
* Philately
* PHQ card

## References and sources

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Notes

1. ^ a b "George V Commemorative Issue: Wembley British Empire Exhibition". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 22 July 2009.
2. ^ "King George V Commemorative Issue: Postal Union Congress 1929". The Postal Museum. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
3. ^ "King George V Commemorative Issue: Silver Jubilee, 1910–1935". The Postal Museum. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "David Gentleman's 103 Issued Stamps - 1962–1969". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Archived from the original on 8 June 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2009.
5. ^ "World War 2 in Stamps". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 22 July 2009.
6. ^ "Westminster Abbey – Icons of England". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
7. ^ "Robin – Icons of England". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
8. ^ "Mini – Icons of England". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 23 July 2009.
9. ^ "First Christmas Stamps – The Post of Christmas Past". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 22 July 2009.
10. ^ "Christmas 1966 − Stamp name: King of the Orient". rmspecialstamps.com. Royal Mail. 2016. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
11. ^ "British Flora". Royal Mail. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
12. ^ "Stamp of the Month – January 2007". The British Postal Museum & Archive. Retrieved 23 July 2009.

Sources

* Stanley Gibbons Great Britain Concise Stamp Catalogue
* Gibbons Stamp Monthly
* Royal Mail Stamp Guide
* Royal Mail British Philatelic Bulletin

## External links

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* Pierron's Online Catalogue
* Royal Mail
* Stamp Artwork Project – stamps from the era of George V, Edward VIII, George VI and Elizabeth II on The British Postal Museum & Archive website
* PSG Postage Stamps Galore