Guernsey Stamps Philatelic Bulletin February 2015

GUERNSEY STAMPS

& COLLECTABLES BULLETIN

FEBRUARY 2015 VOL 9 No 17

THE LIFE OF WINSTON CHURCHILL LUNAR NEW YEAR: YEAR OF THE GOAT ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND GUERNSEY POST & GO

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Welcome Welcome to our first Philatelic News of 2015! On behalf of the team here at Guernsey Stamps we wish you a very Happy New Year.

New issues The Life of Winston Churchill Lunar New Year: Year of the Goat Alderney: Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

Our 2015 stamp programme opens with a look back at the Life of Winston Churchill on the 50th Anniversary of his death. Brave and courageous, he was revered by Islanders as the man who set Guernsey free from German occupation in May 1945. He was invited to visit Guernsey on two occasions after the War but was unable to take up either invitation. A copy of two of the letters can be seen in this bulletin.

We are celebrating the Chinese New Year with our second instalment of our Lunar New Year series: The Year of the Goat. This is another striking set of stamps beautifully illustrated once again by Chrissy Lau. Our first Alderney issue of 2015 celebrates the 150th Anniversary of the first publication of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. We commissioned artist Keith Robinson to create unique illustrations of the characters from Alice in Wonderland. We think they are delightful and hope that you like them too.

Once again we are visiting the Business Design Centre in Islington for StampEx in February so do come and see us at Stand 63. We will also be joining the Royal Mail family of Post & Go products with our very own Guernsey Post & Go issue. These are postage on demand labels and are not part of the 2015 stamp programme. Further details on Guernsey Post & Go can be found towards the back of this bulletin.

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How to Order By post Complete the order form and send to: Guernsey Philatelic Bureau FREEPOST GU267 Envoy House La Vrangue St Peter Port Guernsey Channel Islands GY1 5SS By phone Please call us on +44 (0) 1481 716486 between 8.30am and 5pm Monday to Friday Online You can also order securely online at www.guernseystamps.com

2014 Yearbook A beautiful hardback book containing all stamps, souvenir and miniature sheets of 2014 for both Guernsey and Alderney.

This price of the Yearbook is £62.84 - which is the face value of the stamps included.

You don’t pay any extra for the book.

FORTHCOMING 2015 STAMP ISSUES GUERNSEY 1 MAY 2015 EUROPA: OLD TOYS 1 MAY 2015 70th ANNIVERSARY OF LIBERATION 1 MAY 2015 175th ANNIVERSARY OF THE PENNY BLACK 22 JULY 2015 SEPAC: CULTURE 22 JULY 2015 SARK: 450 YEARS AS A FIEF OF THE CROWN 6 NOVEMBER 2015 GUERNSEY CHRISTMAS STAMPS 11 NOVEMBER 2015 STORIES FROM THE GREAT WAR: PART 2

ALDERNEY 1 MAY 2015 FLORA AND FAUNA OF ALDERNEY 22 JULY 2015 ALDERNEY FORTS 16 SEPTEMBER 2015 HER MAJESTY THE LONGEST REIGNING MONARCH 6 NOVEMBER 2015 CHRISTMAS STAMPS

2014 Davo and Lindner Album pages now available, please order on the stock sheet included or buy online.

Channel Islands Specialists Society

Anyone wishing to join the CISS, buy one of the Society’s excellent publications, or find out more, should write to: Moira Edwards 86 Hall Lane Sandon Chelmsford Essex CM2 7RQ www.ciss1950.org.uk

10 NOVEMBER 2015 70th ANNIVERSARY OF HOMECOMING

FREEPOST GU267 Guernsey Philatelic Bureau Envoy House La Vrangue St Peter Port Guernsey Channel Islands GY1 5SS Tel: +44 (0)1481 716486 Fax: +44 (0)1481 712082 E-mail: philatelic@guernseypost.com www.guernseystamps.com The Royal Philatelic Society If you wish to join or find out more contact: John Triggs Email: jtriggs@cwgsy.net Tel: 01481 725847

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Guernsey: The Life of Winston Churchill NEW ISSUE: Miniature Sheet: £3.00 Issue date: 22nd January 2015

We are delighted to celebrate the life of politician, celebrated orator, painter and respected author Winston Churchill, 50 years following his death.

Few would argue that Churchill enjoyed a most fascinating life. From his birth at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire on November 30th, 1874, to his death at Hyde Park Gate in London on January 24, 1965, his life was one of action, controversy, setback and achievement.

Churchill’s ability to inspire was perhaps best displayed in the opening days of World War II. With his ‘can-do’ attitude, he would not contemplate discussions of reasonable terms with Adolf Hitler. His optimism is reflected in his famous speech to the House of Commons on June 4, 1940: “We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air... We shall fight on beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”

During the War the Channel Islands were the only part of the British Isles to be invaded and occupied by German forces. Then, after five long years, on 8 May 1945 at 10 o’clock, the people of Guernsey were informed by the German authorities that the war was over. Churchill made a radio broadcast at 3pm and announced that: ‘Hostilities will end officially at one minute after midnight tonight (Tuesday, May 8)... and our dear Channel Islands are also to be freed today.’

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After the War, Lieutenant Sir Philip Neame wrote to Churchill on two occasions, on 29 October 1947 and again on 21 March 1951, inviting him to visit Guernsey so that people could show him their warmth and gratitude for securing the Liberation of the Channel Islands.

Whilst Churchill was unable to accept either invitation the letters are nevertheless a delight to read.

Date of issue

Also available: First Day Cover: £4.20 Presentation Pack: £3.90

Designer

Two Degrees North

Printer

Lowe-Martin

Values

£1 x3

Process

Top left: A born orator Top right: Painting at Chartwell Bottom image: Churchill on VE Day

22 January 2015

Stamp size Paper Perforation Cylinder

Offset Lithography 30mm deep x 40mm wide (2 Stamps) 48mm deep x 60mm wide (1 Stamp) 110gsm unwatermarked PVA adhesive 14 x 15 A

Letters and quotes reproduced with the permission of Curtis Brown Group Ltd, on behalf of the Master, Fellows and scholars of Churchill College, Cambridge and The Estate of Winston S. Churchill.

Original documents held at The Churchill Archives Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge.

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Year of the Goat 2015 NEW ISSUE: Set of six stamps: £3.73 Issue date: 28 January 2015 According to the Chinese zodiac, 2015 is the Year of the Goat. It begins on 19 February 2015 and ends on February 7, 2016, and is the eighth of twelve animal signs.

The Zodiac stems from the similar concept in western astrology and means “circle of animals”. The Chinese zodiac is a systematic plan of future action that relates each year to an animal and its reputed attributes, according to a 12-year cycle. It remains popular in several East Asian countries including China and Japan.

Presentation Pack: £4.63

First Day Cover: £4.93

You can check whether your zodiac sign is the Goat; the dates for those born under this sign are as follows: 02/13/1907 to 02/01/1908 (Fire), 02/01/1919 to 02/19/1920 (Earth), 02/17/1931 to 02/05/1932 (Metal), 02/05/1943 to 01/24/1944 (Water), 01/24/1955 to 02/11/1956 (Wood), 02/09/1967 to 01/29/1968 (Fire), 01/28/1979 to 02/15/1980 (Earth), 02/15/1991 to 02/03/1992 (Metal), 02/01/2003 to 01/21/2004 (Water), 02/19/2015 to 02/07/2016 (Wood).

As the eighth animal in the lunar cycle, the goat is considered lucky, since the number eight symbolises peace and prosperity in Chinese culture.

It is thought that people born in the Year of the Goat are generous and sympathetic to others’ misfortunes.

They are also considered to be clever, artistic, kind and happy, as well as being reserved, insecure and dependent. They enjoy living life in their own quiet, individual way and, whilst enjoying the company of other people, they prefer not to take the lead but be part of the crowd.

Also available: Souvenir Sheet: £3.73 First Day Cover Souvenir Sheet: £4.93 Limited Edition Uncut Press Sheet: £23.00 Limited Edition Gold Foil Souvenir Sheet: £95.00

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Quiet and calm, these people enjoy cultural things and are often focused on hobbies with an artistic focus.They have fantastic luck in life and their peacefulness and happiness means they suffer from few health problems.

Sheets of 10: ÂŁ37.30

Those born under the Goat sign are considered nurturing, kind hearted - and they enjoy caring for other people. They have deep feelings towards their parents and take good care of them. As well as being good housekeepers, they are also fond of children and pets. They are mild in disposition and, when upset or angry, would react with silent fury rather than visibly show their anger.

Many people born under this sign have good marriages and attach great importance to their families.

Did you know?

Famous Sheep People include Michelangelo, the English novelist Jane Austen and the American author Mark Twain.

According to Chinese astrology, the lucky numbers of people born in the Year of the Goat are 3, 4 and 9. The colours green, purple and red are all said to the lucky.

Date of issue Designer

28 January 2015 Chrissy Lau

Printer

Lowe-Martin

Values

41p, 54p, 55p, 66p, 74p, 83p

Process Stamp size

Offset Lithography 30.5mm deep x 40mm wide

S/Sheet

100mm deep x 140mm wide

Paper

110gsm unwatermarked PVA

Sheets

10

Block

7

Perforation Cylinder

13.3 A

41p Stamp: Peony Pattern 54p Stamp: Ceramic Pattern 55p Stamp: Traditional Pattern 66p Stamp: Chrysanthemum Pattern 74p Stamp: Lotus Pattern 83p Stamp: Spring Blossom Pattern

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Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland NEW ISSUE: Set of six stamps: £3.73 Issue date: 22nd February 2015 2015 marks the 150th anniversary of the classic children’s novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and, to celebrate this literary milestone we commissioned artist Keith Robinson to create a set of stamps..

Keith’s amazing imagination and brilliant illustration skills have resulted in a truly outstanding stamp set which brings to life many of the famous and fascinating characters created by Lewis Carroll that have enthralled children and adults across the decades.

We spoke to Keith about his inspiration for the stamps and how he brought his own unique style to this project.

Explaining his love of the book and admiration of the various illustrators who have already explored this subject he told us: “There have been so many wonderful illustrated interpretations of Alice over the decades, from Tenniel’s iconic originals, through to the more recent versions and of course, many people are familiar with the Disney images; and so with that in mind it can be difficult to approach the subject with fresh eyes.

First Day Cover: £4.93

Also available: First Day Cover Miniature Sheet: £4.20 Presentation Pack Miniature Sheet: £3.90

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“The great thing about Alice is that there’s so much room for interpretation and reinvention. The book is tremendously vivid, but quite light on description so there’s actually a lot to play with. One challenge with the stamps is that the characters have to be instantly recognisable, but still look fresh in some way.

“With this issue produced to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the original publication, I looked at postage stamps from around that time and found that many had beautiful decorative borders. I thought using borders would be a good way to incorporate details from the story to tell a little bit more about the characters. So, Alice’s border features the cake and potion that make her shrink and grow and the Hatter’s border has a tea set, cakes and leaves of the tea plant.

“When working on the characters, I looked at ways in which to subtlety modernise them; for example Alice’s outfit, hairband and hairstyle were updated.

Sheets of 10: £37.30

“Finally, the use of colour was really important to make the stamps vibrant with the sort of heightened reality of Wonderland and also to make them distinctive when at postage stamp size.”

We think this marvellous commemorative set is hugely collectable and we hope you agree!

Presentation Pack: £4.63

Miniature Sheet: £3.00

Date of issue Designer

5 February 2015 Keith Robinson

Printer

Cartor Security Printing

Values

41p, 54p, 55p, 66p, 74p, 83p

41p Stamp: Modern Day Alice

Offset Lithography

54p Stamp: White Rabbit

Process Stamp size M/Sheet size M/Sheet stamp Paper Sheets Perforation Cylinder

40.64mm deep x 36.85mm wide 70mm deep x 110mm wide

55p Stamp: Caterpillar

42mm deep x 28mm wide

66p Stamp: Cheshire Cat

110gsm unwatermarked PVA adhesive

74p Stamp: Mad Hatter

10

83p Stamp: Queen of Hearts

Stamps 13 x 13.25 M/Sheet 13.25 x 13.5 A

www.guernseystamps.com

Guernsey Post and Go Powered by Royal Mail NEW ISSUE: Set of 6 £3.73 Issue date: 18th February 2015

Royal Mail first trialled a new generation of selfservice postage machines in 2008. The first selfadhesive Post & Go stamps, which are overprinted with the postage on demand, featured the profile of The Queen created by Arnold Machin and used on UK definitive stamps. In 2010 pictorial Post & Go designs were introduced and, in 2014, Jersey Post joined the Royal Mail family of Post & Go products by offering self-adhesive postage on demand.

Now, Guernsey Post is delighted to offer the next instalment of postage on demand, with its first series of Guernsey Post & Go to be released on 18th February 2015 featuring the Guernsey Flag.

The Guernsey Post & Go stamps are available in six tariff weight steps: Local letter, Local large letter, UK letter, UK large letter, International letter up to 20g and International letter up to 40g.

www.guernseystamps.com

Guernsey Post & Go stamps will be launched at StampeX, in London, on 18th February 2015.

As with Royal Mail, Guernsey Post & Go stamps will carry unique identification numbers depending on the machine and session number of where they were issued.

All Guernsey Post & Go exhibition stamps will be printed on a Royal Mail Series II machine and carry a G series session number. Guernsey Post & Go stamps purchased directly from the Guernsey Philatelic Bureau will be printed on a ‘B Series’ Back Office machine.

The products available are: Mint and CTO sets, Presentation Packs, First Day Covers.

First Day Cover: ÂŁ4.93

Presentation Pack: ÂŁ4.63

Date of issue Designer

18 February 2015 Two Degrees North

Printer

Walsall Security Printing

Values

GY Letter, GY Large Letter, UK Letter, INT Letter 20g, UK Large Letter, INT Letter 40g Four colour gravure in coil strips.

Value & location identifier printed in thermography within a Royal Mail Series II machine

Process

Stamp size Paper Perforation

25mm deep x 56mm wide Self-adhesive Simulated

www.guernseystamps.com

Islington Design Centre

18 - 21 February 2015 Guernsey Post Office

Come and say hello at our Guernsey Post stand (no 63).

View our latest stamps and other collectable items.

You can also find us on the Royal Mail Post & Go stand as we launch the first in the series of Guernsey Post & Go. More details inside.

FREEPOST GU267 Guernsey Philatelic Bureau Envoy House La Vrangue St Peter Port Guernsey Channel Islands GY1 5SS Tel: +44 (0)1481 716486 Fax: +44 (0)1481 712082 E-mail: philatelic@guernseypost.com www.guernseystamps.com

www,guernseystamps.com