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This is a joint issue with USPS, but only 2 stamps, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Maisy, will feature in both the Royal Mail and the USPS stamp issue. There will be an official joint FDC (shown below) featuring these stamps, and we will produce pairs of covers with all 16 stamps from both countries, each cover having 4 stamps from each country.
Reason and inspiration for Stamp Issue:
It’s 100 years since Beatrix Potter’s Jeremy Fisher first leapt into children’s lives, but the amphibious fisherman is just one of many enchanting animal creations who have found their way onto the bookshelves of millions of homes. Animal Tales celebrates the enduring popularity and universal appeal of illustrated children’s books from both sides of the Atlantic in a special joint issue with the United States Postal Service (USPS).
Stamp Design and Background:
Both postal administrations chose seven home-grown books, plus an eighth from ‘across the pond’.
The British stamps are issued in four se-tenant pairs. From the American selection Royal Mail selected Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar, whose insatiable appetite has nibbled its way into 20 million homes worldwide. Fittingly, he has already taken bites out of the 68p stamp he appears on next to Maisy, Lucy Cousins’ lovable mouse, who was chosen to appear on the USPS issue.
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2nd class - The Tale of Mr Jeremy Fisher by Beatrix Potter, © Frederick Warne & Co. 1906, 2002
2nd class - Kipper by Mick Inkpen, reproduced by permission of Hodder and Stoughton Limited;
1st class - The Enormous Crocodile,by Roald Dahl, illustration © Quentin Blake;
1st class - Paddington Bear™ by Michael Bond, illustrated by Peggy Fortnum © Paddington and Company Ltd 2006. Licensed by Copyrights Group.
42p - Boots from the book Comic Adventures of Boots© 2002 by Satoshi Kitamura, first published by Andersen Press Ltd., London;
42p - The White Rabbit from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury © 1999. Licensed by Walker Books Ltd., London.
68p - The Very Hungry Caterpillar © Eric Carle LLC;
68p - Maisy™ Lucy Cousins 2006. Licensed by Copyrights Group.
If you would like to be contacted when this page is updated please email us.
The USPS has announced the subjects and designs for the American issue. All stamps are shown as 37c but as postage rates will rise in January these will be 39c. The stamps are issued in a self-adhesive sheets of 16 'se-tenant', ie the perforations are interlinked and unlike British self-adhesive stamps, it is not possible to cut a single stamp from a sheet. The First Day of Isssue Ceremony will be at the University of Findlay's Mazza Museum, Gardner Fine Arts Pavilion, Findlay, Ohio.
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- Click on the stamps to see the whole sheet
* Very Hungry Caterpillar
* Wilbur (from Charlotte's Web)
* Fox in Socks
* Maisy
* Wild Thing
* Curious George
* Olivia
* Frederick
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The Paddington Bear 1st class stamp will be issued in a self-adhesive Smilers Sheet of 20 stamps with labels featuring classic illustrations of Paddington from the original books. Click on the sheet to see a larger image.
Technical details:
The British stamps are printed in gravure by De La Rue Security Print,
perf 14.5, size 35mm square, with PVA gum. [Royal Mail have also said litho by DLR, we await confirmation.]
Smilers are printed in litho. This is said to be by DLR as well, though Smilers are usually printed by Walsall SP or their subsidiary Cartor.
Images of British stamps and postmarks
are Copyright 2005/06 by Royal Mail. Images of US stamps/postmarks
are from and are Copyright 2005/06 by United States Postal Service.
We will produce exclusive Norvic fdcs for these stamps, including pairs of covers carrying all 16 stamps (4 from each country on each cover).
Ref R2J Pair of GB stamps and pair of US stamps in common designs with relevant postmarks. Price £5.75
Only available as shown, with Mousehole, Cornwall and (whatever postmark USPS decides).
Not available with full set of GB stamps on.
Note: the images of the labels are very poor as we have not yet been sent a high resolution image of the sheet.
Ref P1 Single stamp and label from Paddington Bear Smilers Sheet on Norvic fdc with Paddington postmark.
Available with this postmark or the one shown on Ref P2 below. Price £3.50 (or one of each postmark for £6.50)
Ref P2 Pair of Norvic fdcs with complete set of 10 stamps and labels from Paddington Bear Smilers Sheet with Paddington postmark.
Available with this postmark or the one shown on Ref P1 above. Price £9.75 per pair with the same postmark.
Ref R1. Set of 8 GB stamps on Royal Mail fdc with any available postmark - Price £5.00.
(see Royal Mail publicity photo with postmark FD602 below.)
Ref R1J. Set of 8 GB stamps with any available postmark, and set of 8 US stamps with standard USPS postmark on pair of Royal Mail fdcs - Price £9.50.
Set of 8 stamps mint or vfu - Price £4.25 (US dealers please write for trade discount)
Set of 8 cards unused (PHQ cards) - Price £3.50
Set of 8 PHQ cards with stamps on front cancelled with relevant postmarks - Price £7.75
Presentation pack (as shown below) - Price £4.70
Any postmark on plain c6 envelope with stamp of your choice Price £1.20 plus cost of stamp; discounts available.
All prices exclude postage and packing.
Enquiries including prices in foreign
currencies and payment methods email us.
The special postmarks available on the Day of Issue are shown here. This may be all; the next Postark Bulletin is due on January 6th, just 4 days before the stamps are issued.
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| Ref FD601 Official Philatelic Bureau FD postmark |
Ref FD602 Official Mousehole, Penzance, Cornwall postmark featuring Maisy |
Ref FD602NP Official non-pictorial Mousehole, Penzance, Cornwall postmark |
Ref L9880 Animal Tales, London [br] |
Ref M9883 Animal Tales, Dogpool Lane, Birmingham [rm] |
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| Ref N9897 Animal Tales, Near Sawrey, Ambleside (Frog) |
Ref L9885 Animal Tales, Inkpen, Hungerford (Dog) |
Ref W9900 Animal Tales, Llandaff, Cardiff (Crocodile) |
Ref L9887 A Bear called Paddington, London W10 |
Ref L9886 Paddington, London W2 |
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| Ref M9893 Animal Tales, Catshill, Bromsgrove |
Ref N9895 Animal Tales, Daresbury, Warrington |
Ref M9894 Animal Tales, Stratford-Upon-Avon |
Ref W9901 Animal Tales, Mousehole, Penzance |
Ref L9889 The White Rabit, Maidstone, Kent (Hotel/Inn) |
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| Ref W9884 Animal Tales, Snapper, Barnstaple [so] |
Ref L9879 The Lost Bear, Windsor Gardens, London [so] |
Ref L9888 Animal Tales, Paddington London W2 [str] |
Ref W9902 Animal Tales, Crocky Trail, Waverton, Chester [ps] |
Ref N9896 Animal Tales, Paddington, Warrington |
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<<<< Ref L9890 Bletchley Park PO, Milton Keynes. |
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<<<< Ref N9898 First stamp issue 2006, Cotswold and Stuart Covers, York |
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| Postmark relevance: 9885 - Inkpen: village, and name of author; 9886, 9887, 9888 Paddington (station) after which the Bear was named. 9895 - Daresbury, birthplace of author Lewis Carroll; 9897 - Near Sawrey, first home of Beatrix Potter; 9900 - Llandaff, birthplace of author Roald Dahl; 9902 - Crocky Trail: see link above. 9883, 9893, 9901 place name loosely associated. | ||||
Illustrated here is the Royal Mail FDC for the British stamps.
The FDCs were designed by Rose Design with illustrations from Sara Fanelli and poems by Roger McGough.
The pack was designed by Rose Design and is fully illustrated by from Sara Fanelli with a narrative by Roger McGough.
Previous Joint Issues have featured a Joint Pack: no joint pack has been announced for this issue.
This page updated 8 January 2006
If you would like to be contacted when this page is updated please email us.
