Slogan postmarks for May 2026 - and other interesting postal markings.

Wait, you say, it's still April!  True, but the first May slogans will be in use very early, in fact the British Heart Foundation default slogan will have three phases by my calculation.

As it is currently in use the standard BHF slogan will start the month.  But with local elections long-planned for Scotland and Wales we can expect slogans encouraging the early sending of Postal Votes for the Scottish Parliament and Senned.  No slogans are planned for the on-off-on_again English local authority elections but that doesn't mean that residents of England will miss out.

IMP and iLSM explained.

IMP stands for Integrated Mail Processors and iLSM for Intelligent Letter Sorting Machines.  (You can see a brief video - and discussion about - the iLSM here.)

Although the iLSMs are 'intelligent', it is the IMPs which have the facility to determine (more or less) whether a particular slogan is applied, based on the destination address.  If a letter from Yorkshire is going to Wales it should get the Post Early slogan for the Senned elections.  If the letter is going to Scotland it should get the slogan for the elections to the Scottish Parliament.  Anywhere else and it should get the standard (in this case) BHF slogan.

However, all Scotland's mail centres are, ironically, equipped with iLSMs which means that if the Post Early slogan is invoked it is applied to ALL mail, including that to Wales, England, Northern Ireland, and internationally.  

Wales' mail centres only have IMPs so they should apply the 'appropriate' slogans.

2024 General Election voting publicity images

 

After the elections are over we will probably see a Mental Health Awareness Week slogan, but the BHF may fall in between, and afterwards.  (But who knows what will happen in Sheffield?) 

Last year's Mental Health slogan.

I'll be out of the country from mid-May to mid-June so I shan't be able to add any images but do keep sending them, 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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OTHER POSTMARKS AND POSTAL MARKINGS

 

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Remember, slogan postmarks appearing in May will be added to this post (although some won't be added until mid-June), so check here before you spend time scanning and emailing.

A reminder of what these monthly listings are for.  

For each month I record the different slogans in use, plus the default slogan that is used when there is nothing else.

For each of these I try to record only one of each of the basic two types, plus any that are reversed on square envelopes, which normally only gives three or four.  

Occasionally a slogan appears with different line spacing in the same format.  

I do not record multiple versions of the same as any of these unless I later get a much better example of one that I showed purely for the record, but which is otherwise not very clear.

The only exception to this, which doesn't seem to happen much these days, is when a slogan is used well out of time.  

I mention this only to avoid readers unnecessarily duplicating what has already been provided. 

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Centenary of the Birth of Queen Elizabeth II, set, MS, PSB etc - 21 April 2026

Queen Elizabeth II was born on 21 April 1926 and so this year marks the centenary of her birth.  Royal Mail is marking the anniversary with a set of 8 stamp and a miniature sheet, plus a lot more merchandise.

For a younger person's view on this and other stamps marking the centenary, see 13-year-old Xanthe's Stamp Magazine. 

The stamps feature a selection of carefully curated photographs taken throughout her lifetime with the miniature sheet of four stamps reflecting her lifelong love of animals. 

The eight 1st class stamps are produced as a set of four se-tenant vertical pairs featuring black and white, and colour photographs spanning the decades of her life.  Each stamp has a portrait superimposed on a background image, some of which we may have seen before on stamps.

Details of the photographs were not provided in a form suitable for including here as text, but they can be seen on the FDC filler card here (click to enlarge).

UPDATE: My thanks to RB who has managed to process the data on the filler to reveal these details. We can't guarantee that it's 100% correct, but here goes:

Listed as portrait first then background.


Black & white stamps:  
Princess Elizabeth at the age of six, July 1932;  Members of the Royal Family with their dogs at Royal Windsor Lodge, June 1936. 
Princess Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, May 1944;  Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret giving their first Children's Hour radio broadcast from Windsor Castle during the Second World War, October 1940. 
Queen Elizabeth II in November 1955;  Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip after the Coronation, June 1953. 
Queen Elizabeth II during the Royal Tour of India, 1961;  Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles riding horses in the park of Windsor Castle.

Colour stamps:  Queen Elizabeth II during Trooping the Colour 1976;  Queen Elizabeth II during Trooping the Colour 1971. 
Queen Elizabeth II in the White Drawing Room, Windsor Castle, November 1987;  Queen Elizabeth II visiting Treherbert, Wales, April 1989. 
Queen Elizabeth II in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace, October 2001;  Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in the Gold State Coach during Golden Jubilee celebrations, June 2002. 
Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle, 2022;   Queen Elizabeth II and members of the Royal Family arriving at The Eden Project, Cornwall, during the G7 Summit, June 2021. 

Miniature Sheet:  Princess Elizabeth with her pet dog, London 1936; Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral Castle with one of her corgis, September 1952;  Queen Elizabeth II with a horse at Sandringham, 1964; 
Queen Elizabeth II at the Royal Windsor Horse Show, May 1997.

Part of FDC filler card showing details of photos on the stamps, etc. Click to enlarge.

Miniature Sheet

Technical details 

The 50 x 30 mm stamps, designed by Baxter & Bailey are printed in lithography in sheets of 60 by Cartor Security Printers, perf 14.   The stamps in the 115 x 89 mm miniature sheet are 35 x 35 mm (corrected) and perf 14.5.  All stamps have phosphor bands are on PVA-gummed paper.

Prestige stamp book

This 24 page publication, tells the story of the life of Queen Elizabeth II accompanied with beautiful photography throughout the decades. As Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II presided over a time of incredible change, acting as a constant source of comfort and stability to the nation. 100 years since the monarch was born, the Prestige Stamp Book pays tribute to Elizabeth II that reflects on her remarkable life and a record-breaking reign.

Prestige book cover and panes 1, 3, 4, 5.

 

Prestige stamp book pane 2 with two each 50p & £1 definitives coded M26L MPIL

 

Collector Sheet 

The collectors Sheet contains all 8 stamps from the stamp set and accompanying labels featuring carefully curated photography matching the time period of the paired stamp. The stamps and labels sit on a background of the official “100” logo.  The Collector Sheet is self-adhesive and lithography, making the stamps in the Collector Sheet different from those printed in the set.

Queen Elizabeth II Centenary Collector Sheet.

Products available 

Set of stamps, miniature sheet, first day covers (2), presentation pack, prestige stamp book, fdc of PSB definitive pane, collector sheet, stamp cards (13), press sheet of 16 miniature sheets, £5 coin covers (3 - gold, silver, and cupronickel), framed products (set, MS, collector sheet). 

All available from Royal Mail's website and some available from a Post Office branch quite near you if you are lucky.

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Slogan postmarks for April 2026 - and other interesting postal markings.

It's now 13th April and there is no news yet on new slogans, although it has been suggested that there might be one for the local elections, such as the 'Post Early' for postal voters from July 2024.

So please if you find anything new do get in touch.  Meanwhile we will start off with the continuation of the British Heart Foundation standard slogan from Cornwall Mail Centre on 07/04/2026. 

British Heart Foundation Cornwall Mail Centre 07/04/2026

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UPDATE 17 April.   Sheffield is having trouble again.  Thanks to LT for this example of the (February) National Apprenticeship Week slogan used on 16 April.  The BHF slogan was used there on 14th.

National Apprenticeship Week slogan used wrongly at Sheffield Mail Centre 16/04/2026

Update 29 April.  No more slogans have appeared in April, but I'm told that there will be Local election slogans in some places use in early May.

I'm going to prepare a May slogan postmark post NOW, so that you can be prepared to get your own or be on the lookout.  

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OTHER POSTMARKS AND POSTAL MARKINGS

Just over two years ago we showed the self-inking datestamp (with wavy edges) from Holmbush in the outskirts of St Austell in Cornwall.   Now JH has sent the newer 'Morse' type of SID that is in use now, used on 2 April 2026.  

Holmbush Post Office 'Morse' type SID 02 APR 2026.

Update 30 April.   RS has sent this Morse code handstamp from Richmond, Surrey used in February.

Richmond Post Office 'Morse' type SID 03 FEB 2026. (This is the Surrey Richmond.)

I also have this one from Drylaw (Shopping Centre), Edinburgh but I regret to say that I cannot find who sent it, so apologies to the reader who supplied it.  It should be 29 March but the reversed 5 has been mis-read as a 2, and it reads 59 MAR 2026.

Drylaw Post Office 'Morse' type SID 59 MAR 2026.

 

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Update 29 April.  SS in Canada has sent another gem from one of his suppliers. I wonder even if the Post Office Customer Service could tell without a lot of effort, just where this was posted even with the postcode in the handstamp?  STATION ROAD BR2 is actually 45 Station Approach, Hayes, Bromley, BR2 7EB.  This is the Google Streetview image from 2021. The branch is now a Morrisons Daily but the Streetview car passed by at 9.35pm so the 2025 image is very grainy!  

Post Office at 45 Station Approach, Hayes, Bromley, BR2 7EB now a Morrisons Daily

Fortunately it was sent by a tracked service and Royal Mail's Track and Trace webpage usually provides details of where barcoded letters were posted.

Station Road BR2 post office, SID 9 April 2026

SS also sent this image. In this case the branch staff did not cancel the stamps but fortunately the Exeter Mail Centre used their large rubber handstamp on it.  The Tracking webpage shows it was posted at Barton Road PO, TQ2 8HN.  

 

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Remember, slogan postmarks appearing in April will be added to this post, so check here before you spend time scanning and emailing.

A reminder of what these monthly listings are for.  

For each month I record the different slogans in use, plus the default slogan that is used when there is nothing else.

For each of these I try to record only one of each of the basic two types, plus any that are reversed on square envelopes, which normally only gives three or four.  

Occasionally a slogan appears with different line spacing in the same format.  

I do not record multiple versions of the same as any of these unless I later get a much better example of one that I showed purely for the record, but which is otherwise not very clear.

The only exception to this, which doesn't seem to happen much these days, is when a slogan is used well out of time.  

I mention this only to avoid readers unnecessarily duplicating what has already been provided.

 

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Norfolk & Norwich Philatelic Society

STAMP FAIR

Saturday 11 April 2026
10 am to 3.30pm

Middle School Hall - Hewett Academy
Gate 1, Cecil Road (off Hall Road or Ipswich Road)
NORWICH NR1 2PL

I shall be there with a lot of bargains, especially foreign catalogues, postal history, postcards, and Norfolk material.  If you're in the area do drop in and say hello.

After everything is put away again next week I shall get back to sending out orders, especially for the Visible Change business sheets and booklets. 

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