Another break and an important announcement

I hope everybody in the UK had a good long weekend, and elsewhere that you enjoyed the normal weekend!   Now that the bank holiday weekend is over, we will be taking another week off.  There are no pictures in this post, partly because I wanted to get it out now on Monday night and deciding which images to use and aligning them just takes time. 

The office will be closed from this Friday until at least Saturday 8 June.  It may be possible to answer emails and accept blog comments in this time, but no promises.

Invalid Machins and Regionals - last chance

More importantly, when we return I shall arrange to take my remaining stock of Machins, Regional Machins, and Country definitives (and associated products like booklets and presentation packs) to another local dealer.  

When he has had his pick of anything he needs to replenish stocks, I shall prepare the rest to send to Royal Mail to exchange for what I suspect will be even more datamatrix Machins - not that the King Charles stamps are any better, I shall still need to get rid of them somehow.

So if you need anything at all to add to your collection that is in the current lists do please let me know as soon as possible.  You don't have to pay for everything in one go if it is a big order.  All you will be doing is stopping potential additions to your collections from going to the incinerator.

This is definitely your last chance!

Other GB collectables.

Keeping with the Machin/Country theme, over the years I have produced definitive first day covers, especially when Royal Mail did not.  Some of these are from booklets, especially prestige booklets when you really only want one of each of the new stamps, not the whole pane.  

Others are those which are not regarded as new by Royal Mail, such as the security definitives definitely first available at one of the London shows where Royal Mail had a presence (2010 Large letter booklets, for example).  

Lastly there are Machins and country definitives by different printers for which even Stanley Gibbons Concise declines to show the differences although they have been well written up.

I have spares of a few of these so if enough people are interested I'll produce a list of what is left.  None will be expensive, partly because the expensive stamps (like Special Delivery) were rarely first found in a way that we could be sure of an issue date.  (See the back of the Security Checklist for examples of what was produced - we don't have all of these in stock of course.)

And I am still working on a list of aerogrammes, including some thematic subjects, and this will be done more quickly if you tell me are interested.

Other other GB collectables.

Do people still collect first day covers and have gaps to fill?  If you do and would like some good quality unaddressed covers with special relevant postmarks, let me know.  This only applies to Queen Elizabeth issues and mainly from 1998 onwards.  We also have stocks of some of our own design FDCs which weren't promoted properly at the time for some reason (probably lack of time due to too many issues!), including some prestige book pane sets.

Special postmarks were once the thing that everybody had to have, and there was even a Postmark Club which could supply on a standing order basis.  These can be very useful for thematic interest so if you have a thematic collection, and want to know what exists, do ask - sport, military, trains, ships, coats of arms, etc.

Other non-GB collectables.

I can't profess to have much in the way of South America or Asia, but I do have worldwide postal history, picture postcards, some stamps mint and used, etc.  

If you collect particular countries or themes, or card subjects, let me know and I will try to find what we have.  There might be a delay because while I do know that I have many things, I don't always know where they are.  I've found a lot more whilst checking mixed random boxes for invalidated Machins etc, but when we moved four years ago(!) some part-full boxes were amalgamated for ease of stacking and moving, so there are things still to be found.

POLITICS - NOT HERE!

If you want to escape from pre-election turmoil, then I can promise you there will be nothing here about the UK's forthcoming general election (on 4 July for anybody who doesn't know) - unless there is some campaign literature or similar bearing interesting stamps or postal markings.  Given that candidates' promotions are delivered free by the postman, that is highly unlikely!

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Sales of Invalidated stamps - New NVI, airmail, double-head list

I wrote in January that this exercise was nearing its end.   The final list is a wrap-up of stamps in categories not included in the other lists.

The new list is List 12 - NVIs and miscellaneous. It tidies all the loose ends not covered by the X-, Y,- and U-numbered stamps. It extends to the double-headed (Queen Victoria) stamps including those with numerical face values, and the airmail stamps. 

This apparently simple set of 5 was printed by three printers, using two processes and two different perforation gauges.  At the time these were issued Royal Mail was trying various types of booklet production and whilst some books of 4/10 were normally perforated, some were guillotined (ie imperforate) on the two long sides, and some on three sides, producing stamps with one edge or two adjacent edges imperforate. 

So to the basic SG Concise listing of 13 can be added 20 perforation varieties. Later there were 20p and 1st class printings with elliptical perforations, so there are another 5 there.  Quite attractive are se-tenant pairs with top and bottom, or left and right imperforate.  (This type of collecting is very popular in Sweden.)

The list includes many stamps with either blue or yellow phosphor, and several different 1st & 2nd class coils, some available in strips of up to 20 (although folded at 5s).  

List 12 also includes the short-lived Pricing in Proportion stamps of 2006, and the five airmail NVIs including these two.

Some of these are also available in complete booklets and exist with many misplaced phosphor bands.

Also listed are three different 'Boots' labels.

 

The full list

List 1 Booklets for sale v13

List 2 Prestige Booklets v3 

List 3 Regional Machin definitives (not yet updated)

List 5 Pictorial Country definitives (not yet updated)

List 7 Machin X-list for sale v4 (updated 26 January)

List 8 Machin Y-list for sale v4 (updated 26 January)

List 9 Security Machins for sale 

List 10 - Smilers Sheets and singles for sale

List 11 - Castle High Values 1988-1997.

NEW: List 12 - NVIs, airmail, PIP and miscellaneous. (2 March 2024)

Some stocks are already lower than shown on these lists because I have returned to Royal Mail some hundreds of stamps, mainly where the quantities I had were excessive.  I've also broken up some Prestige Books - all those have been available here for long enough for anybody who needed them.

If the quantity is shown as zero 0 or - for sheet stamps, then please do not ask for these as we do not have any stock.  Zero quantities for booklet stamps may be sourced from booklets - please ask.

The next stocks I shall weed will be Regional and Country stamps (Lists 3 and 5) because there is very little interest in those now.   

If anybody would like a bulk lot of low-value stamps for crafting or other artistic purposes please contact me by email.  

Similarly if anybody would like any empty PSB books, or the gummed part of some panes, please also contact me.  There are some for which I have dozens, and I would gladly send them.

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We've made the Last Post 🎵🎵 🎺 - for invalidated Machins and Country definitives.

We posted the last packet bearing now invalidated Machin and Counry definitives to a customer in Canada today.  I'm pleased to say that, together with the stamps on the cover, that meant almost 250 more stamps not going to Royal Mail's incinerator!

Stamps on an International Tracked letter to Canada posted on the last day of validity of Machin and Country definitives 31 July 2023.

BUT!

This is by no means the end.  We will continue to sort the invalidated stamps until it seems that collectors have bought all they need to enhance their collections.  There will be some special offers, and some more unusual items.  For example, somewhere I have some of the Reader's Digest multi-value coils on or with the original card from RD.  Let me know if you are interested and I'll try to remember you when I find them.  There will also be some PSB panes which can look quite good on an album page.

The stock lists listed here will include many stamps, panes, booklets which are no longer available, Sorry, but we just haven't had time to keep the lists updated over the last few months.

So please send in your wants from our lists, and we'll let you know what we can supply.

UPDATE -in case you hadn't noticed a new surcharge rate has been slipped into Royal Mail's website. Rather than being treated as unpaid and being surcharged at £2.50, letters with non-barcoded definitive and country stamps will only be surcharged £1.10 - let us know your experience, especially if you have a surcharged letter with a mix of valid and invalid postage stamps on.

Examples of last day postings:

Two very clear postmarks from North and West Yorkshire on 31 July, one the packet stamp and one the British Heart Foundation slogan.

North and West Yorkshire packet handstamp 31JUL 2023

North & West Yorkshire British Heart Foundation slogan 31/07/2023

Colinton, Edinburgh counter date stamp 31.JL.23

Card sent from Dereham to Netherlands has 31 JY 23 counter datestamp and Norwich Mail Centre slogan. Delivered 5 August.

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Taking another break

As indicated earlier, we are taking a break for a week, to allow the batteries to recharge and see some different scenery.

The shop stays open and orders will be dealt with quickly on our return.  Don't forget the Booklets list - see below - orders have started already and for most we only have one example, so act now!

The next list is likely to be booklet panes, if I can work out a way to identify the ones not containing a mix of values (which are not listed by SG Concise), followed by regional Machins.  Again we have many of these, but very few of each. 

Please do not phone and leave messages until 2 June.  Thank you.

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Post and Go changes and weekend roundup

An interesting long weekend, with torrential rain on Saturday, and a clear but none-to-warm Monday when the village had a yard-sale, so enabling us to move out some of the things that had to be brought with us to the new place because local sale-rooms, charity shops, and the refuse tip were unavailable during lockdown, and even using Facebook and meeting people, or eBay to post things may have presented an unacceptable risk.

But now the embers of the year are with us - and with the autumn comes chilly mornings at least on the side of the house where the sun is late.  Thus my new office is exactly the same as the old one: breakfast on the patio in t-shirt and shorts, into the office and a change is definitely required!

And 1st September brings new postage rates mentioned at the end of July.  Something overlooked in that post was the effect on Post and Go.  My thanks to Malcolm B (who contributes a lot of Post and Go kiosk information) who alerted me to the impact, last week.  I wrote to Royal Mail seeking clarification:

With the change in postage rates from 1 September, we have two services with a single price, Europe 100g and World Zones 1-3 to 20g.   This doesn't necessarily matter in the short term but if the pattern continues this way it would be useful to know if RM plan to make any changes.

We also have the term 'Worldwide 100g' which is currently £2.42 but from Tuesday it is £2.50 for Zones 1 & 3, and £2.55 for Zone 2.   So naturally the question is, will 'Worldwide 100g' be accepted for both, and what price will it be sold at?   Or will changes be made to replace one of the £1.70 stamps with a £2.55 for Zone 3, changing the description on the £1.70 to something like 'Europe 100g/World 20g' as was done with the Europe 20/World 10g ?

In the meantime Brian has applied the paddles to the long-dormant postagelabelsuk blog, and has allowed me to reproduce the material here.  [And the price of 1st Large should be £1.15 not £1.25 in both columns.]

It is unfortunate that now Royal Mail Philatelic have stopped any new Post and Go designs, and the expansion of machines into any more museums and enquiry offices, there is almost no news provided in advance of events.  Whilst this might be explained by these only being 'operational changes', the fact that the Postal Museum, military museums and others on Royal Mail premises (if there are any now) are affected makes it philatelic news.  And they have let down dealers and collectors alike.

Brian also illustrates the new strip produced as a result of this new change in rate structure.  Personally I believe that the penumltimate one, reading 'Zone 1-3' is misleading: everybody thinks '1-3' means 'one to three' (ie, including two), not 'one and three'. (§ See note below.)

Post and Go collectors strip available from 1 September 2020 showing new Euro100/World 20, and World 100g zonal stamps.

Three values are no longer required -  “Euro 100g”, “Worldwide 20g”, and “Worldwide 100g” - and the last day of availability was theoretically Monday 31 August 2020 but with that being a public holiday in England, many machines were not available, so the last day was probably Saturday 29th.

UPDATE 24 September

§ I was told originally that the PO SSK machines did not show 'Zone 1+3' or 'Zone 1&3' because those characters were not available.  Stuart Leigh, who produces the catalogue of Post & Go stamps has sent me this Engineer's Test Print which demonstrates that this is clearly wrong.

 

 

Brian told me that "The WW100g stamps are only available via collectors strip*.

Some 'stamp' screen may have the wrong (old) prices but will transact the correct prices.

The postal museums were updated this morning (1 September).

* This is interesting and must mean that anybody posting a letter weighting 21-100g to a destination outside Europe will probably be sold an open value stamp.  Shown here the new £1.70 and £2.50 zones 1/3 stamps:

This is interesting from the collectors point of view.  When multi-design stamps were issued in sets of six, they could be collected in several ways.  The simple ways were 6 x 1st or the collectors strip of 6.

The more expensive ways were sets of 36 being either six x collectors strips with a different combination of stamps, or a strip of six designs in each of six values.  This last arrangement would seem to be no longer possible if Royal Mail choose to issue new multi-design sets.

As before, we are not stocking either Post & Go or Open Value, but Brian has some available via his blog.

UPDATE later the same day - more to come.
 
As mentioned before, the reason for the introduction of Zone 3 was the UPU changes to terminal dues which allowed countries to set their own rates for handling incoming mail from different countries.  If - for example and I have no information at present - Australia, Canada, China, or Brazil were to do something similar, that might mean similar but different changes to what Royal Mail has to pay.  This in turn could mean that - unless Royal Mail overcharged for some countries to reduce the number of different rates - different Zones for many different countries.

Then at the end of January the formal process of the UK leaving the European Union is complete, which means that VAT would no longer apply to the premium services on which it is currently charged.  Whilst this reduction in rates doesn't affect individual stamps or Post & Go stamps, it will affect Open Values from Post Office SSKs.

Indeed, we might see that only Open Values would be generated rather than more Post and Go services, unless Royal Mail adopted the same system as Gibraltar which at one time produced twelve standard values: Gibraltar 50, 100g; UK 20, 30, 40, 50g; Spain 50, 100g; EU 20, 30g; Worldwide 10, 20g (in two collectors strips). 

Whatever happens, it seems sensible for collectors who are still collecting Post and Go Faststamps to get the present arrangement while they can, from as many offices as they need to - and to remember for the rest of the year that the Poppy and whichever design is used for Christmas with whatever year codes - will all generate new strips, or at least new values.

Similarly if you want to collect the Machin definitive stamps, especially as postal history items, do so now!

FURTHER UPDATE:
Thanks to JE for sending the output from Chorley's SSK.  The 'g' in 100g is there on the World rates, but is obscured by the Game of Thrones design.

Game of Thrones Post and Go strip with 1 September 2020 rates.

Other weekend news from readers

Machin Forgeries
My thanks to Igor in Ukraine who sent these images of an old favourite forgery, still being used, and for international mail!  It's clearly a fraudulent use of two forged 1st class stamps to make last week's £1.68 rate to Europe.  But from a collector point of view, there is nothing wrong in owning it, and it makes a nice addition to the postal history collection.

Igor drew particular attention to the elliptical perforations.

UPDATE 9 SEPTEMBER
A UK reader has sent me this picture of a mint single (and a sheet although that doesn't show up the detail very well).  

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Observations from the far north 

Now that it is possible to venture further for holidays in the UK, MM has reported that country definitives in Scotland remain somewhat elusive. 

In the first office the lady knew of the 1st- and 2nd-class stamps. It was a surprise to her to find the thistle stamp and she had never heard of the tartan stamp.

In the second office the lady knew what I was talking about when I asked for the thistle stamp, but it turned out she thought I meant the saltire. It was a surprise to her when she DID find a thistle!

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Post-Covid postal system

MM also reports on his recent experiences with the postal system:

After my wife and I came out of lockdown purdah, I posted 10 items at once, late in the afternoon. EIGHT of those arrived the next day! The other two may have done, but the postman failed to provide a signature, even the COVID19 that they are supposed to enter themselves.

Since then, virtually EVERY posting has arrived the next day, including two that made it home from Scotland before I did!

What do you think this might mean? Has 1st-class posting dropped so much in volume that 2nd-class post no longer needs to be held back? Might we see the end of the two-tier system at some point in the future?

Food for thought indeed.  Many think that, with only one delivery a day, the two-tier system which saw 1st class delivered 1st post and 2nd class delivered (on the following day's) second post may no longer be necessary.  I think the regulator may have different ideas though, especially on pricing.

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What purpose do country definitives serve?

Country definitives were introduced as Regional Definitives in 1958 to appease the Welsh, Irish

and especially the Scots, who thought they should have their own stamps rather than national symbols on UK definitives and the occasional 'special stamp' issue with one stamp for each country.  This is quite well written up on Wikipedia where there are also many external references, for example to the BPMA or Postal Museum.  Their 50th anniversary was marked with the miniature sheet and a prestige stamp book in 2008.

From 1999-2001 the old-style regionals were replaced by a set of four 'Country Definitives', for 2nd class, 1st class, and the European and basic worldwide letter rates.

Initially issued with all-over colour, they were re-issued with white borders in October 2003. The designs have remained basically the same since then, although the values of the two airmail rate stamps have increased alongside the Machin definitives.  Various values have also appeared in miniature sheets and prestige stamp books, presenting an interesting collecting area.

But are they used - or even available - now?  The answer, it seems, is not very much.  Mike writes about his experience in Scotland.

In a post office in Deeside I was told they had NONE.   In another branch near Dundee didn’t know what I was talking about. Even when I mentioned the thistle and the tartan they were mystified, until they opened their stockbook and I showed them the £1.17 and the £1.40. They had no 1st or 2nd.

Last week the Western Mail carried a letter of which this is an extract:

I am writing to express profound dissatisfaction with the inability to buy or use the main Welsh definitive stamps, 1st and 2nd class, the green 1st class one with the dragon and the 2nd class brown one showing a wilting leek.

For some time now I have been unable to buy regularly these stamps, even at my local crown post office in Bridgend.

When my recent stock had run out, I visited the post office a couple of weeks ago only to be told they had none (and the assistant checked all the counter books) but that they were “on order.” Earlier this week, I went in - still not delivered, should be in a week on Friday (August 4). This is not only not good enough but at best seems a sign of inefficiency or, at worst, an attempt to rob Wales of its distinctive stamps on the grounds of “lack of use”.

Earlier this year, I was told by a post office assistant that the reason they had none was the customers preferred the peel-off UK ones. Even if this is true, the question arises: why are the Welsh stamps not available as peel-off stamps?

A follow-up letter reported on a reply from Royal Mail

I am told that for “cost and efficiency reasons”, the definitive stamps of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are still gummed stamps rather than self-adhesive. The quoted phrase is not in itself convincing, of course – merely an unsupported assertion.

The spokesman also said that all Welsh post offices, big and small, are at liberty to order the Welsh 1st- and 2nd-class stamps as they wish.

I have replied to Royal Mail that I am still dissatisfied, not least because someone somewhere in England might eventually assert, “Oh, there is so little demand for the Welsh definitive stamps, we’ll discontinue them”. The reality is that the Welsh stamps are perhaps less popular by virtue of being still gummed rather than the self-adhesive.  And the Welsh versions are so damned difficult to buy, most people are probably unaware they exist.

The writer has been on this campaign for at least a couple of years, but it does seem that this is not uncommon.  When I asked a Northern Ireland customer to send his cheque using a (maybe not as inspiring as the others) NI country definitive a few years ago he had to visit several branches to find one.  And with the vast number of 1st and 2nd class stamps sold in booklets (or 10 x 1st special issues) it's little wonder that many branches in England don't have the England lion definitives either.

I'll be happy to report some positive news - that you are regularly able to buy the country definitives (of any value) at your local Post Office branch.  Do let us know what you find and where.  We'll keep the reporter and branch anonymous!

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Cartor printings of Country Definitives - England 2nd leaks out!

Regular readers will recall the announcement in May that production of 1st & 2nd class Country Definitives was transferring to Cartor this year.   The Scotland stamps were duly issued on 27 June, and supplied by Tallents House enabling first day covers to be produced.

The England 2nd class has now been found in Post Office branches, without any prior announcement from Royal Mail Stamps.  The 1st class is not yet available.

So whilst we may be able to get the England 1st class on FDC if Royal Mail Tallents House make it available on a specific date before or as it is in Post Office branches, there is no known date of issue for the 2nd class.  Copies were first found in late August 2012.

We don't yet have stocks of these.  (Thanks to RP for the pictures of these.)

UPDATE: See also the next post above, which shows the Wales 1st, probably from the same printing run - see grid positions.

UPDATE 15/11/12: A printing date of 10/07/12 is also reported for the England and Wales stamps.

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Scotland 1st and 2nd class by Cartor - comparison with DLR.

We now have the new Scotland 1st and 2nd class stamps in stock, printed by Cartor and issued 27 June 2012 (first reported here)

The Cartor printings are shown on the right, original De La Rue at the left.

And in close-up

The printing date is on the plate, rather than being added by ink-jet, and so far only 24/04/12 has been seen - for both values.

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Diamond Blue 1st class Machin for Jubilee, and coin/banknote link

We can now show the stamps which will be issued next year to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.  The definitive will be 'diamond blue' and the preliminary images show the words 'DIAMOND JUBILEE' continuously in the style of the current security print, but on the background only.

If we have correctly understood the information provided the following will be issued on 6 February 2012:
Counter sheet, Business sheet x 100, 12 x 1st booklet. The booklet will be on sale throughout the year replacing the 1st gold definitive.  (Whether this applies also to the counter and business sheets isn't clear.)

In March the following will be issued:
4 x 1st Large letter, 1st Large counter sheet, 1st large x 50 business sheet.
There is no indication of any variation in the inscription to indicate the source of the stamps.  The stamps will have full security features.

Also on 6 February there is a Jubilee miniature sheet with 6 x 1st class stamps with designs taken from banknotes, coins and similar to the Wilding stamp:

The designs are:

• Wilding Definitve.
• £1 note portrait by Robert Austin first issued in 1960.
• £5 note portrait by Harry Eccleston first issued 1971.
• Pre-decimal coinage head by Mary Gillick.
• Arnold Machin’s decimal currency head first introduced in 1968.
• New Jubilee Machin Definitive Stamp.

I'm reminded, of course, that the bronze penny 1st class stamp is another Machin stamp, though not as we know it.  Thanks to MachinMania. By the way, the Gillick head on the old 6d coin is surely the source of the profile head used on GB commemoratives since the 1960s - and on the regional pictorial definitives, giving rise to the 'ribbon' variations on some stamps.
 

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