The Snowman™ returns for 2019! New Christmas 50p released…

Christmas really has come early this year as the brand new The Snowman™ 50p coin has just been released!

So cosy up by the fire and bring out the mince pies as we take a look at this season’s must-have Christmas coin…

I’m sure we all have heart-warming memories of The Snowman story, and for me Christmas really doesn’t start until I’ve snuggled up on the sofa with all the family to watch the festive film.

Now that the new 50p has been released, I’m sure you’ll agree that this coin really has brought the magic of the loveable Snowman to life!

The reverse design has been created by Snowman Enterprises themselves to truly capture the festive magic of the story, and features The Snowman and James from Raymond Brigg’s classic tale.

Issued to continue the 40th anniversary of The Snowman celebrations, this new coin is the second Christmas 50p ever to be issued in the UK.

Last year’s Snowman 50p from The Royal Mint was incredibly popular with collectors and created a flurry of excitement surrounding the snowy coin.

In fact, the Silver Proof version completely SOLD OUT on the first day of issue!

2018 The Snowman 50p coins in BU and Silver Proof quality

Whilst the 2018 release marked the first time that The Snowman has appeared on a UK coin, it’s actually not the first time that this frosty friend has appeared on a 50p…

Over the years, The Snowman has featured on a number of different 50ps from The Isle of Man, some of which are incredibly sought after.

One such coin from 2003 featuring James and The Snowman recently sold for over £250 on the secondary market! Not a bad return on a 50p coin!

eBay sold listing for the 2003 Isle of Man Snowman 50p

But will the UK’s 2019 The Snowman 50p featuring these much loved characters be equally as popular with collectors?

Let us know what you think about this year’s Christmas coin in the comments below!


Secure this season’s must-have 50p!

This brand new UK 50p is a commemorative issue only which means you won’t be able to find one in your change!

So don’t miss out on your chance to add one to your collection and secure yours for JUST £4.50 (+p&p) today.

Vote for your favourite Paddington 50p!

In 2018 two Paddington 50p coins were issued to mark the 60th anniversary of Paddington’s first appearance in Michael Bond’s classic childhood tale.

Since then, we’ve seen four UK 50p coins feature the loveable character and now that all of the mintage figures have been revealed, we want to know which Paddington 50p coin is your favourite!

*** 2019 Vote ***

After the issue of the two 2019 Paddington 50p coins, Change Checker asked you to vote for your favourite and the 2018 Paddington at the Station 50p took 38% of the vote!

A very close second at 32% was the 2019 Paddington at St Paul’s 50p!

You can find out all the details about each of the Paddington 50ps below and let us know which one is your favourite in the comments.

2018 Paddington at the Station

2018 Paddington at the Station 50p. Find out more about this coin here.

This is the first UK 50p coin ever to feature Paddington Bear!

In 2018, The Royal Mint released this brand new 50p coin to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Paddington Bear featuring in Michael Bond’s much-loved book, ‘A Bear Called Paddington’.

The coin’s design by David Knapton is based on the modern adaptation from the CGI-live action movie, featuring Paddington on his suitcase in front of the station, wearing the famous tag around his neck, which reads ‘Please look after this bear. Thank you.’

It has a circulating mintage of 5,001,000.

2018 Paddington at the Palace

2018 Paddington at the Palace 50p. Find out more about this coin here.

Much to the delight of both coin collectors and Paddington fans, a second coin was issued as part of the 2018 Paddington 50p series.

This coin features Paddington Bear outside Buckingham palace, waving his Union Jack flag. It has a circulating mintage of 5,901,000.

The always polite Paddington Bear has long been a family favourite and this coin pays tribute to the bear from Darkest Peru.

2019 Paddington at the Tower

2019 Paddington at the Tower 50p. Find out more about this coin here.

Paddington’s London adventure continued into 2019 as two new UK Paddington 50p coins were issued that year.

This was the first coin in the 2019 series, which was released in August and it has a mintage of 9,001,000.

Paddington can be seen outside the Tower of London (former home of The Royal Mint). David Knapton’s design beautifully captures the day this very British bear brought marmalade sandwiches with him on a trip to the Tower – an iconic image I’m sure you’ll agree.

2019 Paddington at St Paul’s Cathedral

2019 Paddington at St Paul’s Cathedral

Whilst we know the design for this final coin in the 2019 Paddington series, we’ll have to wait a little while until the coin is released on the 12th September.

I’m sure collectors will be really keen to add this 2019 coin to their Paddington collection and continue his exploration around some of London’s most famous landmarks!

This coin shows the bear outside St Paul’s Cathedral and is inspired by Bond’s final book, “Paddington at St Paul’s” which was published last year to celebrate the 60th anniversary.

It has a circulating mintage of 9,001,000.

With four beautiful Paddington 50p coins to choose from, it’ll certainly be hard to pick a favourite, but we’re looking forward to seeing which design comes out on top when Change Checkers vote in our poll!


Secure The Paddington 50p Complete CERTIFIED BU Set!

This is your chance to get ahead of the crowd and own ALL FOUR Paddington 50p coins in Superior Brilliant Uncirculated quality for JUST £40.00 (+p&p) – a saving of OVER £11.00 compared to buying each coin individually as all four coins are now off sale at The Royal Mint. 

The Paddington 50p Complete CERTIFIED BU Set – Own it today for JUST £40.00 (+p&p) >>

SOLD OUT in TWO HOURS – The UK’s scarcest 50p just became even harder to get hold of!

To celebrate 50 years since the release of the first seven sided coin in 1969, today The Royal Mint has released a set of five carefully curated commemorative edition 50p coins, including the UK’s most sought-after 50p in circulation, the Kew Gardens.

But within just two hours since going on sale, the overwhelming response from collectors has seen the entire range of Base Proof, Silver Proof and Gold Proof sets completely sell out!

The highly anticipated 50 years of the 50p set is undeniably appealing to collectors and you can find out why these coins sold out so quickly below…

 

The UK’s first seven sided coin

It was in 1967 when the Deputy Master of The Royal Mint approached the Decimal Currency Board to discuss the introduction of a new coin as a more economical replacement for the 10 shilling note, which was only lasting five months in circulation at the time, compared to the fifty year lifespan of a coin. With much difficulty and debate to decide upon the best shape, the seven sided design was finally chosen and released as the first coin in the new decimal series.

The original reverse was designed by Christopher Ironside and featured the seated Britannia alongside a lion. This coin was issued between 1969 and 2008, after which The Royal Mint held a public competition to redesign the reverse of UK coins, with Matthew Dent’s winning shield design featuring on the reverse of definitive 50p coins since.

It seems only fitting therefore that the first 50p chosen to commemorate the coin’s 50th birthday is the ‘New Pence’ Britannia featuring Ironside’s design, a firm favourite for collectors, representing a numismatic milestone for Britain.

Britannia 50p

1969 Britannia ‘New Pence’ 50p

 

Alongside the definitive Britannia design, commemorative 50ps have been issued throughout the years to mark the various significant British anniversaries.

Within this set you can see not only the Britannia, but also the Girl Guides 50p which was issued in 2010 to celebrate 100 years of Girlguiding in the UK, the Scouting 50p which was issued in 2007 to mark 100 years of Scouting in the UK, the Kew Gardens 50p which was issued in 2009 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Roger Bannister 50p which was issued in 2004 to mark the 50th anniversary if the first four minute mile.

 

Base Proof set

 

50 years of the 50p Base Proof set – SOLD OUT WITHIN TWO HOURS OF LAUNCH

 

These retrospective reverse designs taken from the last 50 years create a wonderful set of coins to commemorate the 50p coin, however we all know that the coin collectors are most excited about is the re-issue of the Kew Gardens 50p.

 

UK’s scarcest 50p

 

Initially when the coin was released in 2009 its rarity was overlooked, however in 2014 The Royal Mint revealed just how scarce this coin really is, with only 210,000 coins being struck. From this moment, prices on the secondary market began to skyrocket and collectors have since been desperate to add the coin to their collection, regarding the coin as one of the biggest prizes in the collecting world.

And whilst the 2019 re-issue of the most highly collected UK coin could have been a chance for collectors who have not already got this coin in their collection to finally own one, the very limited number of sets available means that this coin has already been snapped up by those lucky enough to secure the collector’s edition of the coin in Proof quality as part of the five coin commemorative set.

 

Gold set

 

50 years of the 50p Gold Proof set – COMPLETELY SOLD OUT IN TWO HOURS!

 

The set has been made available in base Proof, Silver Proof and Gold Proof specifications, at a very limited number. In fact, the full range of 3,500 base Proof sets, 1,969 of the Silver and just 75 Gold sets have completely SOLD OUT!

It comes as no surprise that this set has been received so well, but what do you think about the coins featured and were you lucky enough to secure one for yourself?

 


 

Own the Masterpiece 50p Collection

 

 

The Masterpiece 50p Collection is a careful selection of some of the most sought-after 50p designs from the last 15 years, with themes ranging from the UK’s entry to the EEC to marking the 950th Anniversary of the Battle of Hastings.

Click here to secure your collection >>