Coin News
Coming soon…The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 50p!
Excitingly, a brand new UK 50p coin will be issued to celebrate the beloved story, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was the first novel in the Chronicles of Narnia collection by fantasy author, C. S. Lewis. The story, first published in 1950, is beloved by many and considered an introduction to the fantasy literature genre.
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Coronation 50ps ENTER CIRCULATION!
On 10th August 2023, 5 million King Charles III Coronation 50ps entered circulation and we want to know where you’ve seen one! Click here to let us know and view our interactive Collector Map >>
Issued to commemorate the Coronation of King Charles III, the Coronation 50p is only the second 50p to enter circulation featuring the King on the obverse.
Uncrowned portrait
Unlike the collector version of the Coronation 50p, which features a special crowned portrait of the King on the obverse, the version entering circulation will feature the standard uncrowned portrait by Martin Jennings.
Typically, male monarchs don’t wear crowns on UK coinage, however as a special issue for the Coronation, the collector versions of the Coronation 50p and £5 both feature His Majesty wearing the Tudor Crown.
The circulation version of the Coronation 50p will feature the uncrowned portrait of King Charles – the same one that has appeared on all UK commemorative coins issued since the portrait was announced.
So, the hunt is on to find a Coronation 50p in your change with the uncrowned portrait and keep it next to your crowned collector version.
If you don’t already have the Coronation 50p in your collection, you can get yours in Brilliant Uncirculated quality here >>
The second EVER King Charles III circulating 50p
Back in December 2022, 4.9 million Queen Elizabeth II Memoriam 50ps entered circulation. As it was the first ever circulating coin to bear the King’s portrait, collectors raced to find it in their change.
We asked you to help us hunt down the first King Charles III 50p by entering your postcode into our map as soon as you found it. 113 locations were recorded on our collector map all the way from Inverness to Penzance, but it turned out the place where you’re most likely to find the first King Charles 50p in your change was Newcastle!
Have you found the Coronation 50p in your change?
We asked you to let us know where you found the Coronation 50p in your change so we could work out where you’re most likely to find one.
Submissions are now closed but you can view the collector map here to see where they’ve been popping up.
Secure the 2023 UK Certified BU Coronation 50p for your collection
Don’t miss out on securing the crowned collector version of the Coronation 50p, click here to get yours >>
The ‘enchantress of numbers’ celebrated on a UK coin – Ada Lovelace £2
A brand new £2 coin has just been issued, paying tribute to English mathematician and writer, Ada Lovelace. This new UK £2 coin is the 9th coin in The Royal Mint’s Innovation in Science series, which has previously featured coins dedicated to Stephen Hawking, Alan Turing, Edward Jenner and Alexander Graham Bell.
A discoverer of the hidden realities of nature
The Innovation in Science series has mainly comprised of 50p coins, however the 2023 UK Ada Lovelace £2 will be the third £2 in the series. It’s also only the second time a female has been celebrated on an Innovation in Science coin, preceded only by the 2020 Rosalind Franklin 50p.
The reverse design of the Ada Lovelace £2 by Osborne Ross takes inspiration from the original input cards used by Lovelace to programme the Analytical Engine, along with the inscription “a discoverer of the hidden realities of nature”. The quote is a self declared statement taken from a letter that Lovelace wrote to her mother.
Credit: Alfred Edward Chalon, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
The ‘enchantress of numbers’
Lovelace worked closely with Charles Babbage, who also featured on an Innovation in Science coin, on his Analytical Engine and saw limitless potential in the computer. She studied the technology meticulously and discovered there was much more to computers than just calculating mathematical equations. This lead to her being referred to as the first computer programmer. Charles Babbage himself even gave her the nickname the ‘enchantress of numbers’.
The 2023 Ada Lovelace £2 pays homage to Lovelace’s tenacity and her life as a visionary. The edge inscription of this coin reads ‘INNOVATION IN SCIENCE – LOVELACE’, reinforcing its ties to the other coins in the Innovation in Science series.
Secure yours 2023 UK Ada Lovelace CERTIFIED BU £2
Don’t miss out on adding the latest Innovation in Science coin to your collection. Click here to get yours >>