With everybody having sent all their cards in the third week of September (send a card slogan), slogans reverted to the default and stayed that way into October.
Thank you to RW and JH for sending early examples of the British Heart Foundation slogan in the two formats, Home Counties North 01-10-2024 and Sheffield Mail Centre 04/10/2024.
British Heart Foundation slogan from Home Counties North 01-10-2024
British Heart Foundation slogan from Sheffield Mail Centre 04/10/2024
Other postmarks, postal markings etc.
We should get a Movember slogan this month, so if you receive or come across that or any other
interesting postal markings from any period or place, please send them to the email address in
the top right of this blog. Thank you.
Remember, all postmarks appearing in October will be added to this post, so check
here before you spend time scanning and emailing.
Royal Mail's latest musical extravaganza features the 1960s rock band The Who, which really is my generation. Formed in 1964, they celebrate their 60th anniversary this year (like Porridge).
Royal Mail's write-up
Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, John Entwistle and Keith Moon formed The Who in 1964. Within five years, they went from performing club shows to headlining the Woodstock festival and becoming the biggest box-office draw in the world. The group changed the way rock music was presented live and produced records that were often intelligent and challenging in content while pushing technological boundaries – both on the stage and in the studio.
The band embraced different genres of music, from proto-punk to soft rock, mock opera to rock opera, and heavy rock to orchestrated rock. They produced songs that spoke for the disaffected youth and, as The Who themselves grew older, the middle-aged. Pete Townshend, as chief songwriter, became the voice of his generation. Along their 60-year journey, The Who lost Keith Moon (in 1978) and John Entwistle (in 2002), but Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend continue to thrill audiences with some of the best rock music ever written.
They also support a host of charities, for which they have raised millions of pounds in funding over the years. There has never been another band quite like The Who. Having sold over 100 million records worldwide, and now celebrating their 60th anniversary, the group are among the most innovative and influential bands of the rock and roll era.
Set of 8 stamps celebrating the 60th anniversary of rock band The Who, issued 17 October 2024.
The set consists of 4 x 1st class stamps and 4 x £2 stamps which, as many have said, do not satisfy any particular postage rate.
The stamps - album covers.
1st Class: My Generation Released in the UK in December 1965 and reaching number five in the charts, My Generation is one of the best debut albums. in history. Mixing cover versions with original material, the record highlights The Who’s unique song writing and performing abilities, not least on its title track and lead single – a rallying call to the disaffected youth of Britain.
1st Class: Tommy The Who’s career-making double album, 1969’s Tommy was a tour de force that peaked at number two in the UK and redrew the boundaries of what could be achieved in rock music. Centred on a narrative that has since been adapted for stage and screen, it included the transatlantic hit ‘Pinball Wizard’ and continues to enthrall audiences around the world.
1st Class: Who’s Next Following Tommy was never going to be easy, but The Who managed it with Who’s Next, which topped the UK charts in 1971. Featuring songs such as ‘Baba O’Riley’ and ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’, it proved the group could deliver anthems outside of a conceptual framework and made The Who one of the first bands capable of filling stadium venues.
1st Class: Quadrophenia Telling the story of Jimmy, a mod seeking his place in the world in the mid- 1960s, Quadrophenia continued Pete Townshend’s exploration of spiritual fulfilment. Issued in late 1973 and reaching number two on both sides of the Atlantic, the double album featured a complex narrative that proved to be difficult to perform live, even for The Who.
£2.00: Who Are You Released at the height of the punk era in Aug 78, Who Are You picked up where The Who By Numbers left off, its title track railing against the machinations of the music business. An ailing Keith Moon died three weeks after the album’s release, just as it peaked at number 6 in the UK charts.
£2.00: Face Dances The Who’s first album with new recruits Kenney Jones (drums) and John ‘Rabbit’ Bundrick (keyboards), Face Dances was released in March 1981 and heralded the band’s biggest UK tour for many years. Lead single ‘You Better You Bet’ took the group into the UK top ten for the first time since the mid- 1970s, helping its parent album hit number two.
£2.00: Endless Wire Having paid tribute to bassist John Entwistle on the song ‘Old Red Wine’, written and recorded for the 2004 compilation Then and Now, Townshend and Daltrey, with Pino Palladino (bass) and Zak Starkey (drums), released The Who’s 11th album, Endless Wire, in October 2006. Based on a story by Townshend, it was hailed by critics as a return to form.
£2.00: WHO In no hurry to return to the studio, The Who issued WHO 13 years after Endless Wire, in December 2019. Reaching number three in the UK, the album proved that Pete Townshend had become the ultimate cross- generational spokesman and revealed Roger Daltrey to be the epitome of a rock god, helping to steer the group’s survival through the ages.
Miniature sheet
The ms also contains a mix of 1st class and £2 stamps. To use the latter as basic letter rate stamps, 20p more is required for international surface mail outside Europe, and 50p for international airmail; or 10p for an inland large letter under 100g.
The above paragraph was written in August before the new postage rates were announced. So here's a rewrite:
The ms also contains a mix of 1st class and £2 stamps. To use the
latter as basic letter rate stamps, 60p (ie two stamps) more is required for
international surface mail outside Europe, and 80p (at least 3 stamps) for international
airmail.
Miniature sheet of 4 stamps celebrating the 60th anniversary of rock band The Who, issued 17 October 2024. 1st class: The Who in 1968; The Who at the Marquee Club in 1967; £2 The Who at Kings Hall, Belle Vue, Manchester 1973; The Who c.1965.
This 24-book is written by music photographer and writer Matt Kent. Panes 1 & 2 (the sheet stamps) are on gummed paper; Panes 3 & 4 (miniature sheet and definitives) are self-adhesive. The defnitive pane contains just two x £2 definitives, and three labels.
The Who Prestige Stamp Book Cover
The Who Prestige Stamp Book
Collectors Sheet
Unusually in recent times this is gummed as the self-adhesive format was not possible because the die-cutter was not available for the 'Album Covers' format. So the same as the sheet stamps (although the phosphor may turn out to be different: time will tell).
The Who Collectors Sheet issued 17 October 2024
Retail booklet
No retail booklets have been issued since the introduction of barcoded definitives due to the change of size and difficulty accommodating the mix. Royal Mail are now pleased to be able to introduce these again this time with 4 x 1st Class The Who stamps in a specially designed stamp booklet.
The book features a graphic background of The Who roundel or ‘target’ and includes the 4 x 1st Class album cover stamps of: My Generation, Tommy, Who’s Next and Quadrophenia in a folded book. Print: these self-adhesive booklets are printed in gravure (presumably by the Walsall end of Cartor Security Printers) and so make 4 different stamps.
Retail booklet of 4 x 1st class The Who stamps, printed gravure on self-adhesive paper, issued 17 October 2024.
Products
Set of 8 stamps, miniature sheet, presentation pack, first day covers (2), stamp cards (13), press sheet of 8 miniature sheets, collectors sheet, prestige stamp book, limited edition prestige stamp book, retail booklet, fan sheets (2), medal covers (2), platinum stamp set, framed products.
Fans of the US television forensic crime series CSI will know that four tracks from The Who have been used as the theme tunes since the middle of series 1. The original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation used Who Are You; CSI: Miami used Won't Get Fooled Again; CSI:NY - Baba O'Riley; CSI: Cyber - I Can See For Miles; and CSI: Vegas - Who Are You.
Once again Royal Mail chose to announce new postage rates while we were away, so by now most of the headline news is well known.
Royal Mail Press Release extract 6 September 2024
From 7 October 2024, the price of First Class stamps will increase to £1.65 and the price of Second Class stamps will remain unchanged at 85p.
Royal Mail has sought to keep price increases as low as possible in the face of declining letter volumes, inflationary pressures and the costs associated with maintaining the Universal Service. The new price of First and Second Class stamps remain below European average prices of £1.73 for First Class and £1.33 for Second Class.
Letter volumes have fallen from 20 billion in 2004/5 to around 6.7 billion a year in 2023/4. As a result, the average household now receives just four letters per week, compared to 14 per week in 2004/5. The number of addresses Royal Mail must deliver to has risen by four million in the same period meaning the cost of each delivery continues to rise.
At the same time the opportunity has been taken to increase the basic airmail rate, which is unaffected by the above factors.
The new rate chart can be downloaded here. New prices in bold, unchanged rates in italics. The 1st class £3.50 rate now covers Large Letters over 100g to 750g.
1st
2nd
Letter
1.65
1.35
0.85
0.85
Large Letter – 100g
2.60
2.10
1.55
1.55
- 250g
3.50
2.90
2.10
2.10
- 500g
3.50
3.50
2.50
2.50
- 750g
3.50
3.50
2.70
2.70
Small Parcel 2kg
4.79
4.59
3.75
3.69
Medium Parcel 2kg
6.99
6.69
6.15
5.89
- 10kg
8.69
8.39
7.65
7.39
- 20kg
13.19
12.49
11.55
10.99
Special Delivery rates are also increased. The 100g rate rises by 40p from £7.95 to £8.35, the 500g rate by 40p to £9.35.
UK Tracked rates see minor increases. The basic 1st class Large Letter rate is raised by 10p to £3.60, the Small Parcel rate by 20p to £4.99. The 2nd class rates by 10p to £2.80, the Small Parcel by 6p to £3.95.
UK Signed rates rise broadly in line with the basic letter rates.
International rates. The basic letter rates are increased, but not the Large Letter and Parcel rates. The airmail rate is increased from £2.50 to £2.80, and the surface rate from £2.20 to £2.60. Premium services - International Tracked, Signed, and Tracked & Signed all see changes.
Unlike last April, when the new airmail stamp was issued after the rate increased, the new £2.80 stamp will be issued on 1 October. However, there may be problems obtaining it in Post Offices until the day of the increase (7 October).
Royal Mail's advice to dealers was "The new £2.80 rate will be live and available in Post Offices from Monday 7th October, the date that the new Tariff comes into force", so read what you will into that.
UPDATE: I confirmed in Dereham Crown Office this morning that the £2.80 was available to sell; the Horizon system has that and the presentation pack already available.
As usual the 39 x 30 mm self-adhesive stamps are printed by Cartor Security Printers in sheets of 25, and a presentation pack has been produced.
£2.80 slate-blue King Charles III definitive stamp issued for airmail letters and cards worldwide 1 October 2024
UPDATE: An interesting point has been raised in the Comments, that the new 1st class rate is higher than the 2nd class Large Letter rate of £1.55 as this is unchanged. This means that a 1st class commemorative or current definitive can be used to send a Large Letter (up to 100g) at 2nd class.
As might have been expected new slogan postmarks - absent in August - made a return in September. Several readers sent examples and if I fail to acknowledge your contribution, please accept my apologies now.
The default British Heart Foundation slogan continued for the first week - thanks to KD for this example from Bristol Mail Centre dated 06/09/2024 and the other format from Inverness dated 05-09-2024.
British Heart Foundation slogan from Inverness Mail Centre 05-09-2024
British Heart Foundation slogan from BA,BS,GL,TA (Bristol) Mail Centre 06/09/2024
The first new slogan marked Air Ambulances Week (9-15 September 2024). (Two different organisations' wesbites: Air Ambulances UK and The Air Ambulance Service which seems a bit odd.)
First used on Saturday 7 September for delivery on 9th (thanks AB for a N&W Yorkshire example). few of the impressions received have been clear, sadly, the one from Glasgow Mail Centre 11-09-2024 being the best by a country mile (thanks to JF).
AIR AMBULANCES UK
Air Ambulance Week September 9th - 15th
Air Ambulances UK slogan, Glasgow Mail Centre 11-09-2024
Air Ambulances UK slogan, North & West Yorkshire 13/09/2024
Other examples from South East Anglia on 10th (RW), Croydon (MM & KD), and a particularly poor one from Chester & N Wales (KD)
This was followed by another in aid of the Greetings Card Industry, marking Thinking of You Week which this year ran from 16th - 22nd September.
The slogan repeats theformat from previous years.
Send A Card Deliver A Smile for Thinking of You Week 16th-22nd September 2024
MM provided an example from North & West Yorkshire on (Saturday) 14/09/2024 for delivery on 16th, and KD sent the same format from Manchester dated 17/09/2024.
Thinking of You Week slogan used at North & West Yorkshire 14/09/2024
It seems unlikely that there will be any more?
Other postmarks, postal markings etc.
Our Canadian correspondent (SS) has sent a selection of postmarks including a second counter date stamp from Littlehampton's Wick News, first reported in February. That one had the B ident, and this one is the A, dated 20 SE 24.
Wick News A counter date stamp, 20 SE 24.
SS also sent an image of a cover postmarked with the HEATON MOOR STOCKPORT E counter date stamp from 30 AU 22
Heaton Moor Stockport E cds 30 AU 22
The branch has been in the same location for some years but comparison of Google streetview in 2023 with 2012 shows the changing face of the high street as companies reinvent their appearance with not only the Post Office, but also The Plough and the Co-op supermarket having changed.
Heaton Moor Post Office 2015 (top) and 2023 (Google Streetview)
We also have two packet stamps, Sheffield Mail Centre of 09 SEP 2021 from SS, and Enquiry Office Norwich 27 SEP 2024 from JH who asks whether it is normal to have postmarks at the EO.
At one stage one of Norwich's two EOs housed a Post and Go machine which enabled stamps to be sold without large stocks of sheets being held behind the counter and sold for cash. The idea was also that Customs and other penalty charges could be made through the machines but I don't think this ever worked in practice.) The EO also accepted mail - predominently from businesses which also collected their mail from PO Boxes - and cancelled the stamps.
Sheffield Mail Centre S9 2XX packet stamp 09 SEP 2021
Our holiday in Ireland concentrated on enjoying the views, eating out, and relaxing. Nonetheless I felt compelled to take some photos related to the postal system. Here are a few postboxes. It took a while to get used to seeing them: Irish streets are so colourful that the green boxes do not stand out quite as much as our red ones do. And I don't think I saw any pillar boxes, although many exist in the cities, and there is a Penfold in Skibereen which I missed through not knowing about it until we had left the area.
The smart but tinny wall boxes stand out quite well, this one from Union Hall, a small fishing village in Co. Cork.
An Post wall mounted box in Union Hall, Co Cork September 2024
This one in Goleen, on the Mizen Head peninsula in Co. Cork was not as well cared for.
An Post wall mounted box at Goleen, Co Cork, September 2024.
A good - and unexpected - find, was this wall-encased box surrounded by ivy in Co. Donegal. It's on the border of the townlands of Mullanmore and Buncroobog, east of Glenties. Much repainted it is difficult to see the shape of the harp, but the SE letters are clear, dating this to the 1922-24 period. These are said to be rare but a few are pictured on the web which also have the E R cypher at the very top (hidden by the ivy in this picture).
An Post Edward VII wallbox with door adapted to show the Saor Stat Eireann logo; dating from the 1920 this one is east of Glenties, Co. Galway in Buncroobog.
Lastly, this Victorian wall box is at The Glen Tavern or Dinny's in Co Donegal. This is a house, which also contains a small shop, and a much larger public bar, where music is frequently played, and a good pint is served!
An Post Victorian wallbox in the Glen Tavern, Greenans Townland, Co Donegal.
The Glen Tavern.
That's all on postmarks etc for this month. October should bring some more slogans if only to start the Movember campaign rolling.
I know this isn't on the list in my previous post but it's timely and brings attention back to the Post Office Ltd failings, and the unchanged culture.
Two reports, one about the computer system used at PO branches before Horizon was introduced, and the other about Fujitsu's reaction to POL asking for a witness statement and evidence this year for a further prosecution. A third report covers continuing waste on NBIT, delays to which mean that Horizon will keep being used.
Report 1
In the week after Sir Alan Bates received his knighthood at Windsor Castle, Computer Weekly reveals failings similar to those in the Horizon case with its predecessor, Capture. Capture was a PC-based accounting system, referred to as 'a glorified spreadsheet'. There was no centralisation of data, and as with Horizon, too little training if any.
Here's the Computer Weekly article by Karl Flinders (links are to CW and WhatDoTheyKnow websites).
Post Office dramatically increased the number of investigations into subpostmasters after Capture Software was introduced
A change in Post Office behaviour after it introduced software to
computerise branch accounts in 1993 mirrors an increase in prosecutions
six years later, when the controversial Horizon system was introduced.
Lives were destroyed as the Post Office blamed subpostmasters for
unexplained accounting shortfalls that only existed on the error-prone
Horizon accounting system used in branches. Former users of Horizon
predecessor, Capture, have been campaigning since January when ITV’s dramatisation of the Post Office scandal revealed parallels to problems they experienced.
Data on Post Office prosecutions has revealed worrying similarities
to how the Post Office treated Horizon and Capture users who suffered
unexplained losses.
According to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request,
in the six years before Capture was introduced by the Post Office to
automate manual processes, fewer than five subpostmasters were
investigated over account shortfalls in four of the years, seven
investigations were carried out in 1992, and 11 investigations took
place in 1993. But in the following six years, the number of
investigations increased dramatically to an average of 191 a year,
reaching 378 in 1998.
This mirrors a dramatic change that followed the introduction of the
Horizon system to branches in 1999, in relation to the number of
subpostmasters convicted of financial crimes. According to a separate FOI request from 2020, in the seven years between 1991 and the year before Horizon’s introduction, an average of six subpostmasters were convicted per year,
compared with an average of 52 a year in the 13 years following its
introduction, until the Post Office stopped prosecuting in 2013.
After Capture was introduced, prosecutions increased, but to a much
smaller extent than investigations. However, the Post Office contract
meant subpostmasters who had unexplained shortfalls, which the
investigations typically related to, had to cover those shortfalls with
their own money or face the termination of their contracts or
prosecution.
The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009,
revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they
suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most
widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.
Horizon is a large, complex, networked system connected to
centralised services with links to Post Office systems, which all
subpostmasters have to use. In contrast, the Capture system was a
PC-based application developed by the Post Office
and uploaded to a personal computer by subpostmasters to carry out
their accounts. The software – referred to by some users as a “glorified
spreadsheet” – was a standalone system, which was used by more than
1,500 subpostmasters.
After pressure, the government commissioned an investigation of Capture
to be carried out by forensic specialists Kroll. This report is now in
the hands of the government and its publication is expected soon.
Neil Hudgell, a solicitor at Hudgell Solicitors, which has about 40
former Capture users as clients, said he is confident that the content
of the report will be supportive of his clients’ claims.
Steve Marston was prosecuted in 1996 for theft and false accounting
following an unexplained shortfall of nearly £80,000 in his branch in
Bury, Lancashire. He said he had never had any problems using the
paper-based accounting system. This changed when his branch, which he
ran from 1973, began using Capture.
He covered the losses with his own money, but it kept getting worse.
After an audit revealed a loss he couldn’t fully cover out of his own
pocket, he was advised to plead guilty to theft and fraud to avoid jail.
The judge took into account two bravery awards Marston had received for
standing up to armed robbers, saving him a jail sentence. He was given a
12-month suspended sentence, lost his home and business, and went
bankrupt.
Marston said the stats in the latest FOI response provide a damning
indictment of the effects that the introduction of Capture had. “Are we
really expected to believe that, all of a sudden, honest and
hard-working postmasters who have substantial amounts of money invested
in their businesses have all gone rogue at the same time?
“Surely someone at the Post Office should have seen that the numbers
[of investigations] literally exploded after the introduction of
Capture, which we know to be unfit for purpose and, in my opinion,
should never have been made public.”
Marston, who will meet the government next week to discuss the
Capture controversy, said he hopes to get justice. The government is
expected to publish the Kroll report on Capture soon.
In June, Computer Weekly revealed another similarity between Capture and Horizon
in terms of inadequate training. Subpostmasters used pre-Horizon
Capture software without any training from the Post Office, a failing
that mirrors one of the causes of the Post Office Horizon scandal.
Despite a Post Office document from 1995
outlining the training users received, former subpostmasters, who
encountered serious problems with Capture, have come forward revealing
they had no training. One of the major problems with the controversial
Horizon system was the lack of adequate training on using the system.
Computer Weekly has contacted the Post Office for comment.
The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009,
revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they
suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most
widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.
Report 2
The Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry resumed while we were away: I'm not going to have time to comment on what I haven't even started to watch/listen to, but this report from Mark Sweney of The Guardian shows that, whilst PO CEO Nick Read thinks he has changed the business structure, he really doesn't understand at all.
Post Office asked to use Horizon IT data to support criminal case this year, inquiry hears
The Post Office attempted to use Horizon IT data to support a
criminal case against a post office owner earlier this year, despite
hundreds of post office operators being wrongfully prosecuted for theft, fraud and false accounting because of bugs in the system.
A chain of email correspondence between the Post Office
and the Horizon developer, Fujitsu, relating to a police investigation
into a potential criminal case involving a “large sum of money” against a
sub-post office operator was shown at the public inquiry into the
scandal on Tuesday.
An email was sent by John Bartlett, the head of investigations at the Post Office, to Fujitsu
describing the Post Office as the “potential victim” and asking for the
software company to provide a witness statement to the police or the
case would not be able to progress.
The issue was rapidly
escalated to Paul Patterson, the chief executive of Fujitsu Europe, who
wrote directly to the Post Office chief executive, Nick Read.
“I
am writing to you directly in order to raise serious concerns that have
come to my attention which indicate the Post Office continues to pursue
enforcement against postmasters and expects Fujitsu to support such
actions,” he said in an email in May.
“We are concerned by the
behaviour of the Post Office investigation team on this matter. That
team maintains the approach of the Post Office as a ‘victim’ and
requires Fujitsu to provide a witness statement as to the reliability of
Horizon data stating that without such statement the case will not
progress. For the investigations team to act in this manner seems to
disregard the serious criticism raised in multiple judicial findings and
indeed exhibits a lack of respect to the ongoing inquiry.”
Read
responded by saying that there had been a “fundamental misunderstanding”
at Fujitsu about the “Post Office’s current day culture and
activities”.
He said that the Post Office was not continuing its
pursuit of post office operators in private prosecutions – “including
providing supporting data from the Horizon system” for cases – and that
it was to help a potential police investigation.
Patterson
responded saying that he considered the request to be “entirely
inappropriate”, adding that the Post Office is “well aware there have
been and there continue to be bugs, errors and defects in the Horizon
system”.
“It seems clear that the Post Office continues to have
significant cultural issues,” he said. “[It] sees itself as a ‘victim’
with the enforcement and prosecution of postmasters considered as a
business as usual activity. Fujitsu finds the language and the suggested
behaviour unacceptable from Post Office investigators.”
Between
1999 and 2015, the Post Office relentlessly pursued and wrongfully
prosecuted more than 700 operators using faulty Horizon IT data.
The
email request to Fujitsu came after ITV aired Mr Bates vs the Post
Office, which brought the plight of the post office operators and use of
the flawed data in legal actions to national attention.
UPDATE 2 October - REPORT 3
Post Office spending £80,000+ a week on engineers who can’t work, as IT project burns cash
In another Karl Flinders Computer Weekly report, it turns out that Horizon replacement NBIT isn't doing so well either.
The Post Office has been paying more than £80,000 per week for
contracted IT engineers to sit idle due to major delays in rolling out
hardware for its New Business IT (NBIT) project.
In yet another example of taxpayers’ money being wasted, as the Post Office tries to rid itself of the system at the centre of a scandal,
Computer Weekly can reveal that £1.6m could be spent on IT staff who
are unable to do work they were contracted to do. This is as a result of
issues with power supply units that can’t be used in the project to
replace the controversial Horizon system. The NBIT project has already
gone from a costing of £180m to £1bn.*
The latest waste was revealed as the Post Office scandal public
inquiry was told by two former Post Office executives – chairman Henry
Staunton and chief financial officer (CFO) Alisdair Cameron – this week
that the NBIT project lacks governance.
According to an internal Post Office NBIT progress update, under the
heading “high level issues”, tech engineers from IT supplier DXC, who
were contracted in mid-June, have no work to do due to the issues with
power supply units. The engineers will have to wait 16 to 20 weeks
before replacement units are available, allowing them to complete the
work they were contracted to do.
Greetings everybody, we're back from Ireland where the weather was much better than it has been, and remains, here in the UK. A taste of this was the yellow alert issued for the eastern side of Northern Ireland after we sailed to Scotland on Wednesday, and what we had for a considerable time in Co Durham and the north east yesterday which continues today- after a sunny interlude across Lincolnshire yesterday afternoon - in Norfolk.
It's happened before that important announcements are made when we take a break, so this is a quick acknowledgement to the many people who have written in the last three weeks.
The following topics will be covered in blog posts soon:
- September slogan postmarks
- Postage rate increase meaning a new airmail rate stamp (and Royal Mail have confirmed that there will be no more airmail rate country definitives.
- outstanding orders: sorry I forgot to shut the shop so a few orders have been delayed.
- forgeries and how Royal Mail is dealing with them
- amazingly incorrect information being supplied by Post Office branches including Crown Offices. (You don't have to use old stamps before the price increase!)
- I'll also be writing about blog comments which have not been published. Comments must be relevant to the post they are on.
- the person who wrote about Universal Mail will get a reply eventually!
Described by Wikipedia as "air-breathing arthropods that have eight limbs, chelicerae
with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude
silk; the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total
species diversity among all orders of organisms" Royal Mail's next stamp issue features a set of ten spiders.
Of the 48,000 or so species of spiders found worldwide, around 680 are recorded in the United Kingdom. They can be found in almost every habitat – from windswept mountain tops to domestic dwellings. The set of ten stamps includes 5 each of 2nd class and 1st class.
Five 2nd class and five 1st class Spider stamps in se-tenant strips issued 26 September 2024
The stamp designs
2nd class: Sand bear spider, Cucumber spider, Woodland jumping spider, Four-spotted orb web*spider, Nurseryweb spider; (*not orb weaver as originally published - the issued stamp will be correct.)
The 37 x 35 mm stamps were designed by Richard Lewington and printed on gummed paper by Cartor Security Printers in litho. Perforations are 14 x 14½. Sheets are of 60 (probably two panes of 30).
Products
Stamp set, first day cover, presentation pack, stamp cards.
Details from presentation pack
Of the 48,000 o or so species of spider found worldwide, around 680 are recorded in the United Kingdom. They represent 38 families from a world total of 115, which means that there is plenty of variety in the British spider fauna. Spiders can be found in almost every habitat – from windswept mountain tops to the deepest caves, and from ancient woodlands to domestic dwellings – each of which provides specific environments that suit particular spiders.
Spiders have eight legs and two parts to the body: the cephalothorax, covered with a shield-like carapace, and the abdomen, both of which may be quite colourful and have clear markings. Most British spiders have eight eyes, but those in four families have just six. Size, which relates to the body length and excludes the legs, varies from 2mm to 22mm. Females are generally larger than males, extravagantly so in a few cases.
Spiders found in the UK feed almost exclusively on invertebrates and play a vital role in controlling pests, particularly in domestic environments. Close observation of a large orb web of a garden spider in the early autumn will reveal the remains of countless greenfly entrapped, perhaps in a period of just one day. Four families, the Araneidae, Tetragnathidae, Uloboridae and Theridiosomatidae, spin orb webs. Other families, such as the Eresidae and Atypidae, weave tunnels of silk in burrows underground with exposed, camouflaged sections at the surface that entangle passing insects.
The Agelenidae, which include the familiar large house spiders, also incorporate tunnel-shaped retreats into their sheet-like webs, which can be quite extensive in outbuildings when left undisturbed.
But webs are not the only means of catching prey. Other spider families use different tactics to provide themselves with food. For example, wolf spiders (Lycosidae) do not spin a web; instead, they run rapidly over the ground, simply chasing down their prey.
Jumping spiders (Salticidae) also do not spin webs to catch food. Their excellent eyesight enables them to determine the location of potential prey nearby, before they position themselves to leap forward to capture it. Conversely, the crab spiders (Thomisidae) are quite sedentary and lie in wait, often in flowerheads, to ambush insects feeding on nectar and pollen.
However, their close relatives, the running crab spiders (Philodromidae), scuttle rapidly among the foliage of trees and bushes in their hunt for prey.
Spider silk is produced for different purposes, ranging from the creation of protective egg sacs or cocoons for newly hatched spiderlings to the spinning of the complicated structure of the orb web.
One of the most remarkable ways in which spiders use silk is a dispersal method known as ‘ballooning’. In suitable weather conditions, small adult ‘money spiders’ and immature individuals of larger species climb to an exposed position, such as the top of a fence post, and spin threads of silk that are then (with the spider attached) caught up in the wind. Considerable distances can be travelled in this way, and height seems to present no problem. In the Voyage of the Beagle, Charles Darwin reported seeing spiders ballooning on the rigging of the ship sailing 60 miles off the Argentinian coast. Recent research has shown that electrostatic forces in the Earth’s atmosphere may also have some part to play in this ‘flying’ adventure that many spiders undertake. The results of ballooning can sometimes be observed on clear autumn evenings.
Fields covered with a fine blanket of silken threads, or gossamer, attest to the presence of countless small spiders, all taking advantage of suitable weather conditions to balloon. It has been estimated that an acre of grassland could support up to 2.25 million individual spiders at this time of year, so the silken mantle can be quite substantial.
As collectors and other readers may know, the next stamp issue from Royal Mail features a selection of what Wikipedia describes as
... air-breathing arthropods that have eight limbs, chelicerae
with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude
silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total
species diversity among all orders of organisms.
In short, spiders.
So if you have an aversion to these creatures, I suggest you avoid the blog for the next couple of weeks because although this next post has been scheduled for publication on 12 September, we will be away from the office until 1 October - so there will be nothing to push it down the page.
The next scheduled blog post after that will be for the Music Giants X (The Who) issue on 3 October, although I shall try to squeeze in a post on September postmarks if anybody sends anything interesting for publication.
Royal Mail once again trawls through television's archives to find some memorable lines and the associated pictures for another set of stamps. But why does this one look so drab?
"Born free, till somebody caught me." - Fletcher, played by Ronnie Barker, in Porridge.
I suppose it is in keeping with the subject, and the general colouring of the setting. With few exceptions, life in Slade Prison is universally grey or otherwise dark - the prison clothes, the walls, and so on. And so for this set, unlike previous television-linked sets, the border, the King's profile, and the captions are all grey.
And unlike previous issues - Blackadder, Only Fools, Coronation Street, Dad's Army - the picture is set within the borders of an old-fashioned tv screen. [Question - which was the only other stamp issue to have the design set in an old-style tv-screen format as this one is? - answer at the foot of the post.]
Stamps featuring scenes from the television comedy Porridge issued 3 September 2024. Two each 2nd class, 1st class, £2 and £2.50
Royal Mail's write-up on this issue
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the iconic British TV comedy series Porridge Royal Mail is thrilled to release a commemorative stamp set and range of collectibles.
First broadcast by the BBC in 1974, Porridge has become a beloved classic, renowned for its witty dialogue, memorable characters, and the brilliant performance of Ronnie Barker as Norman Stanley Fletcher. The series, set within the confines of a prison, masterfully blends humour with poignant realism, capturing the hearts of millions. This special stamp collection pays tribute to the enduring legacy of Porridge, a show that continues to resonate with audiences, offering both nostalgia and a reminder of its timeless appeal.
The set features four horizontal se-tenant pairs and include memorable quotes and scenes featuring some of the most popular characters in the sitcom including Fletcher, Godber and Warden Mr Mackay.
2nd class: Fletcher, Godber and Heslop: "I read a book once, green it was." 2nd class: Mr Mackay: "I treat you all with equal contempt." 1st class: Fletcher: "Born free, till somebody caught me." 1st class Bunny, Fletcher and Lukewarm: "There is a thief among us." £2 Godber: "Little victories - you told me that." £2 Fletcher and McLaren: "Free range? More like half a dozen there mate'" £2.50 Fletcher and Doctor: "What, from here?" £2.50 Barrowclough: "I sometimes wish I was in here with you lot."
Stamp set, first day cover, presentation pack, postcards, collector sheet, framed set.
Collector sheet - includes 10 stamps (the full set plus a pair of 1st class extra) with labels depicting 5 classic scenes and five classic quotes from the series. The sheet is self-adhesiveso making the stamps different to those in counter sheets.
Porridge self-adhesive Collector Sheet.
Whilst Porridge is still repeated on UK television some overseas readers may not be familiar with it and this time Royal Mail have not provided the pack write-up for me to copy.
Some comments on the web
It all started on Sunday 1 April 1973. There was a series of programmes
to showcase the talent of Ronnie Barker entitled Seven of One. One of
these episodes concerned a prisoner being transferred to his new home,
Slade Prison in Cumbria. This episode inspired the series that became
Porridge which was to start life on our screens on 5 September 1974. (Unofficial Porridge site.)
Norman Stanley Fletcher is sentenced to 5 years at her Majesty's
pleasure at HM prison Slade in darkest Cumbria. His naive cell mate
Lenny Godber needs to learn the ropes, skives and scams and strict
prison officer Mr.Mackay tries to run the prison his own way. (IMDb)
While both Fletcher and Godber are the show's main characters, the series features two major supporting characters, both prison officers. The first is Mr Mackay,
a tough and austere Scotsman with a clear dislike of Fletcher, with
whom he often comes into conflict (and by whom he is often
surreptitiously mocked). The other is Mr Barrowclough,
Mackay's empathetic, progressively minded subordinate, who is prone to
manipulation by his charges because of his well-meaning character and
principles. (Wikipedia)
An American version entitled On the Rocks (1975–76) ran for a season, while a Dutch version Laat maar zitten
(a pun: the title has several meanings, like "Don't mention it" and
"Let it be", but in this case it can also be interpreted as "Let them do
time") ran from 1988 to 1991; later episodes of the Netherlands version
were original scripts, the series also had a very successful Portuguese
remake entitled Camilo na Prisão ("Camilo in Prison"). (Wikipedia)
I can't find any information on where the series were broadcast outside the UK.
The Royal Mail programme for the remainder of the year has
-3 September - Porridge
26 September - Spiders
17 October - Music Giants X - The Who
-5 November - Christmas
30 November - Winston Churchill
Comments on earlier blog posts reveal that
"Spiders 26/09/2024 is a set for £11 (5x 2nd, 5x 1st). - according to RM account advice note."
"The Porridge set at £13.40 seems like 4x 1st & 4 x £2 (or 2 each 2nd, 1st, £2, £2.50)"
Our office will be closed for the whole of September while we take the holiday that we missed last year.
New blog posts have been scheduled for 29 August for Porridge, 12 September for Spiders, and 3 October for The Who, the last of which will bring a product that has been missing from the schedules for some years.
If information is provided or our incoming mail is helpful a post about September slogan or other postmarks will appear around 1 October.
Christmas and Winston Churchill will be posted to the normal timescale.
News about British stamps - welcome to Norvic Philatelics' blog
News as we get it relies on what I find and what other people find, so please send your news! [email: ian@norphil.co.uk or wild1952@gmail.com
Tel: 08450 090939]
Visit Norvic Philatelics for background on stamp issues and postmarks from 2003-2018, and our web-shop for stamps, postal history, FDCs and postcards.
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