Brand new Agatha Christie £2 celebrates 100 years of mystery!

Agatha Christie’s first novel The Mysterious Affair at Styles was published in 1920 and it kick-started the nation’s love of her detective novels and murder mysteries.

In 2020, to mark 100 years since her first publication, The Royal Mint celebrates the world’s best-selling novelist with this brand new 2020 UK Agatha Christie £2.

2020 UK Agatha Christie £2

David Lawrence’s design of this coin pays homage to Christie’s crime novels, with a piece of a jigsaw slotting into place and her signature at the bottom.

The coin also features the edge inscription ‘100 years of mystery 1920’-2020’ to mark this very special anniversary.

Issued initially as part of the 2020 Commemorative Coin Set, this brand new £2 coin has just been individually released and is available in Brilliant Uncirculated quality for JUST £8.99 (+p&p)

Murder, Mystery, and Masterpieces

Agatha Christie. Credit: Biography.com

After the end of the First World War, Christie published her first novel The Mysterious Affair at Styles. This incredibly popular story introduced readers to one of Christie’s most famous characters – Belgian detective Hercule Poirot*.

Writing well into her later years, Christie wrote more than 70 detective novels as well as short fiction. Her books have been made into films, television, and radio programmes. In 1971, she was made a Dame of the British Empire for her outstanding contribution to Literature.

In 2020, she is celebrated once more with this brand new £2 coin and she becomes another UK author to be commemorated on UK coinage…

2016 Shakespeare £2 Series

2016 Shakespeare £2 Series

William Shakespeare is the most influential literary figure in British history and his works are an important part of Britain’s cultural heritage.

In 2016, a series of three £2 coins were issued to mark the 400th anniversary since his death and to celebrate his greatest works.

Each coin’s design takes inspiration from some of Shakespeare’s greatest works, including Macbeth (pictured right), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (central) and his most-famous love tragedy (pictured left).

All three coins entered circulation but the Comedy £2 has the lowest circulating mintage – just 4,355,000!

2017 Jane Austen

2017 Jane Austen £2

In 2017, to celebrate the life and works of one of Britain’s best-loved authors, The Royal Mint issued this Jane Austen £2.

Jane Austen is one of the best-loved English novelists from the 19th century. Her novels were revolutionary and from her first novel, Sense and Sensibility, readers began a love affair with her fiction that has lasted two centuries.

Designed by Dominique Evans, a portrait of Jane Austen features on the reverse of this coin. It did not enter general circulation and was issued in collector quality only.

2019 Sherlock Holmes 50p

2019 Sherlock Holmes 50p

In 2019, to mark 160 years since the birth of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Royal Mint issued this 50p coin.

The prolific writer is best known for his incredibly popular detective stories featuring the fictional Sherlock Holmes™. It is said his works revolutionised the crime genre, and despite Doyle sharing an ambivalent relationship with his famous character, Holmes’ popularity resulted in Doyle becoming one of the best-paid authors of the time.

The reverse has been designed by Stephen Raw and features a silhouette of Sherlock smoking a pipe, surrounded by a few of his most-famous story titles.

It entered general circulation but the exact mintage figures have not been confirmed yet!

2012 Charles Dickens £2

2012 Charles Dickens £2

The Charles Dickens £2 coin was issued by The Royal Mint in 2012 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of one of Britain’s most famous and beloved writers.

His enchanting stories, vivid characters and depiction of Victorian life are widely acknowledged across the world by critics and scholars alike and his novels and short stories continue to be widely popular.

The design features Dickens’ recognisable profile crafted from the titles of his most famous works and is a favourite amongst collectors.

This coin was released into general circulation and has a mintage of 8,190,000.

2018 Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein £2

2018 Frankenstein £2

This £2 coin was issued by The Royal Mint to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the publication of Mary Shelley’s famous novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus.

Whilst on holiday in Geneva Mary Shelley and her poet friends, including Lord Byron and future Husband Percy Shelley, decided to have a competition to see who could write the best horror story. Out of this Mary Shelley created Frankenstein, a story about a scientist’s scary act at playing God and creating life. It went on to become one of the best loved gothic novels.

The reverse of this gothic coin was designed by Thomas Doherty and features the words ‘Frankenstein’ in an electric gothic font. It features the edge inscription, Bicentenary of Mary Shelley’s The Modern Prometheus.

It did not enter general circulation.

2016 Beatrix Potter Anniversary 50p

2016 Beatrix Potter Anniversary Coin

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Beatrix Potter, the Royal Mint have released this 50p to celebrate Beatrix herself.

Designed by Emma Noble, the coin includes elements that celebrate Beatrix as the artist behind some of the best-loved characters in children’s literature along with the nostalgic font used for the inscription.

This coin entered general circulation and has a mintage of 6,900,000.


We love seeing Britain’s best-loved authors come to life on our UK coins, but which author coin is your favourite? Comment below!


Secure the 2020 UK Agatha Christie £2 to your collection today!

To secure yours in Brilliant Uncirculated quality for just £8.99 (+p&p) click here >>

* AGATHA CHRISTIE, POIROT and the Agatha Christie Signature are registered trademarks of Agatha Christie Limited in the UK and elsewhere. All rights reserved.

6 Comments

  1. TONY on September 16, 2020 at 12:10 pm

    I think the Agatha Christie £2 is a nice looking coin, but everyone bought the 2020 annual set for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic 50p which was not issued for circulation , and so most people have this coin already before it was released in their set, the same goes for the mayflower £2,nice coin but everyone already has it.



    • Alexandra Siddons on September 17, 2020 at 8:14 am

      Hi there,

      There has certainly been a lot of interest for the 2020 Annual Set because of that Tokyo Olympics 50p, however, for £2 collectors and historians alike, the individual coins are released too.
      Thanks,
      Alex



  2. TJ on September 15, 2020 at 11:08 am

    Hi there.Actually i Haven’t Received my Change Checker Trading Cards which i won in the Change Checker Olympic Games. Can you figure out How long it Will take☺?.



    • Alexandra Siddons on September 15, 2020 at 4:41 pm

      Hi there,

      Apologies about this. I’ll look into this for you!

      Thanks,
      Alex



  3. Philip Yates on September 14, 2020 at 4:32 pm

    Hey Change checkers, it so nice to see you are back in the studio doing video’s together again. my favourite Agatha Christie novel is Death on the Nile. The way a rich heiress is murdered on the river Nile and Hercule Poirot has to find the murderer, as some of the suspects also find their demise.
    I hope to see more of your video’s now you are back together.



    • Alexandra Siddons on September 15, 2020 at 4:43 pm

      Hi Philip,

      Thank you so much for your kind words. It’s great to be back in the studio together! My favourite is also Death on the Nile 🙂

      We’ll be posting more videos back in the studio now that it is safe to do so, so keep an eye on our channel!

      Best regards,
      Alex