Spring Stampex 2013

On Wednesday 20th February 2013, the British National Stamp Exhibition Stampex will open its doors again to the philatelic community and anyone interested in stamps, postal history and other related items. The Friends of the BPMA will be there again at stand no. 55, near the Royal Mail stand, to talk about upcoming events and activities, and offer a great selection of products from the BPMA Shop.

Stalls at Stampex

Stampex takes place at the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, London N1 0QH from Wednesday 20th to Saturday 23rd February 2013, and will be open as follows:

Wednesday - 11.30am–7.00pm
Thursday & Friday - 10.00am–6.00pm
Saturday - 10.00am–5.00pm

Admission is free – so come along to visit the Friends of the BPMA who will have more information on the BPMA’s fundraising plans towards our new museum and archive.

New Postal Museum & Archive, Calthorpe House, London.

Visitors will also have the opportunity to buy tickets for the talk by stamp enthusiast Chris West on A History of Britain in 36 Postage Stamps which will take place on Thursday evening, 21st February 2013, at 7pm at the Phoenix Centre, next door to the Royal Mail Archive in Clerkenwell, only 20 minutes walk from the Business Design Centre.

There will be plenty of material on display showcasing items from our collections such as a replica of a large-size green Victorian Penfold pillar box, advertising the upcoming Pillar Box Perfection open day at our Museum Store in Debden, Essex on 6th April 2013.

Pillar boxes at the Museum Store.

We will be showing a selection of images of the Post Office Underground railway (Mail Rail) – a fascinating part of London’s postal heritage and ‘secret underground’ – as well as visuals of Post Office Magazine covers, which feature in our touring exhibition The Post Office in Pictures.

Post Office Underground Railway – train in tunnel. (POST 118/382)

As Royal Mail will be launching a set of Jane Austen stamps celebrating the 200th Anniversary of Pride and Prejudice, we will also display images of the stamp issues to celebrate the Bicentenary of Jane Austen’s birth in 1975. As part of our Stamp Artwork Project, which has been generously funded by the Aurelius Charitable Trust, the Leche Trust and The Charles Hayward Foundation, these stamps and more artwork from 1975-1985 have been digitised and provided with fully researched stamp histories and catalogue entries in order to enable public access to the BPMA’s extensive collection of British stamps. They will be added to our online catalogue in April.

Finally, there will be special offers on BPMA philatelic products and the latest newcomers to the BPMA product range such as the Telegram Messenger postcard set and Chris West’s book First Class – A History of Britain in 36 Postage Stamps.

New telegram messenger postcard set.

Autumn Stampex 2012

Stampex is starting again this Wednesday, 26 September 2012 and the Friends of the BPMA will be there to chat about upcoming events, activities and the latest postal heritage products.

Stalls at Stampex.

The Business Design Centre Islington in London N1 will open its doors for the popular stamp show on Wednesday at 11.30am and will be open until 7pm on that day, 10am to 6pm on Thursday and Friday and 10am to 5pm Saturday, 29 September 2012. Admission is free – so come along to visit the Friends at stand 20 and browse the various stands by stamp dealers, see the display on Australasian Philately or Royal Mail’s range of Olympic & Paralympics Games Memories, Post & Go stamp issues and much more.

There will also be information about the BPMA’s plans for the new museum & archive in Calthorpe House at the Friends’ stand as well as the opportunity to buy tickets for the talk by designer Kate Stephens and Royal Mail design manager Catharine Brandy, in which they share the journey through the working process behind the Diamond Jubilee Stamps. The talk is taking place on Thursday, 27 September 2012 at 7pm in the Phoenix Centre, next door to The Royal Mail Archive.

Stamps from the recent Diamond Jubilee issue.

Fascinating images from our touring exhibition The Post Office in Pictures will also be on display at the stand as well as more material based on our collections.

There will be special offers on BPMA products and the chance to browse through the latest publications such as Bob Wilcock’s The London 1948 Olympic Games – A Collectors Guide book, or a beautiful edition of the map of Mail Steamship routes, designed by MacDonald Gill in 1937, with an introduction by BPMA Curator Julian Stray. For the full selection of postal heritage products, see our online shop at www.postalheritage.org.uk/shop.

Friends of the BPMA stall.

The Friends of the BPMA are looking forward to meeting you there!

Final two Festival of Stamps stamp shows

The last of the special London 2010: Festival of Stamps regional stamp shows are coming up…

Cornex 2010 – Cornwall Stamp Show, 23 October 2010

Organised by Cornwall Philatelic Federation

Free Admission

Venue:

Liskeard School and Community College
Luxstowe
Liskeard
Cornwall
PL14 3EA

Features:

• Annual competition and fair
• Dealers stands (18 dealers expected)
• Competitive and non-competitive displays
• Collections valued

 

Postal map of Bolton, 1824, from the Royal Mail Archive (POST 21/111)

 

North Western Stamp Show, 30 October, 10am-5pm

Organised by North-Western Philatelic Federation

Free Admission

Venue:

St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic High School and Sports College
Chorley New Road
Horwich
BL6 6HW

Features:

• Dealers stands (16 dealers expected)
• Competitive and non-competitive displays
• Open competition voted for by the public for the BPMA Award

Find out about other London 2010: Festival of Stamps events at www.london2010.org.uk

Stamp Shows in Sussex and Hampshire

Philatelists in the South East of England have two stamp shows to choose from over the next two weekends…

The South of England Stamp Fair and Sussex Convention

9th October 2010, 10am to 4.30pm

Norfolk Pavilion
The South of England Centre
Ardingly
West Sussex
RH17 6TL

Presented by the Association of Sussex Philatelic Societies

Admission free

Free parking

The Association of Sussex Philatelic Societies’ annual exhibition and fair coincides with World Post Day. More than 30 dealers are expected and Cavendish Auctions are offering valuations. In addition there will be competitive and non-competitive displays (including an invited display by Pacific Islands Study Circle) and a meeting of the Pacific Islands Study Circle (1.30pm to 4.30pm).

Customers queue to use the Mobile Post Office which is situated in the grounds of an agricultural show in West Sussex, 1938.

Hampshire Stamp Show – HAMPEX 2010

16th October 2010, 10am to 4.30pm

Wickham Community Centre
Mill Lane
Wickham
Hampshire
PO17 5AL

Presented by Hampshire Philatelic Federation

Admission free

Free Parking

25 dealers are expected at this event, which will also feature competitive and non-competitive displays, valuations by Stanley Gibbons, a Junior Workshop, society meetings (including the British Society of Australian Philately) and a 36 frame exhibition The Development of the Posts in Hampshire to the Present Day.

Further details at www.hpf.hampshire.org.uk/hpfhpx.htm

Upcoming stamp shows in Edinburgh and Newcastle

Autumn Stampex isn’t the only stamp show taking place this month; for those in Scotland and the North of England member Federations of the Association of British Philatelic Societies have organised two shows as part of London 2010: Festival of Stamps.

Festival of Stamps & Postcards in Edinburgh & Lothians

Organised by the Association of Scottish Philatelic Societies – Edinburgh Group, the show takes place this Saturday afternoon at St John’s Church Hall, 140 Princes Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4BJ. There will be displays from Edinburgh Philatelic Society, Edinburgh Stamp Group, Lothian Postcard Club and the Scottish Philatelic Society, stamps and postcards for sale, and experts on hand to give advice.

A postman delivers mail at Holyrood House, Edinburgh, 1934.

Nephilex 2010

Organised by the North-East of England Philatelic Federation this show will take place on Saturday 25 September at The Royal Station Hotel, Neville Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 5DH. Highlights include dealers stands, competitive and non-competitive displays, activities for young people and those wishing to start a collection, valuations and society meetings. Other events, will take place between 5pm on 24 September and 1pm on 26 September, including the awards dinner on Saturday night. The full programme is available from www.nephilex2010.org.uk.

Upcoming stamp shows in Amersham and Croydon

Over the next two weekends there will be two further special stamps shows organised by member Federations of the Association of British Philatelic Societies.

Middlesex Diamond Jubilee Stamp Show organised by the Middlesex Philatelic Federation takes place on Saturday 4th September at Amersham Community Centre. As well as dealers and displays there will be activities for young people, including hands-on activities, competitions and puzzles.

Surrey Stamp Show organised by the Federation of Surrey Philatelic Societies will take place at the United Reformed Church Hall, Croydon, on Saturday 11th September. There will be dealers and competitive and non-competitive displays.

Admission to both shows is free.

Croydon was once home to a major airport, which was a key hub in the early days of airmail. This photo from 1935 shows a Streamline airmail van beside an Imperial Airways plane at Croydon Airport.

There are many more special stamp shows to come, with one taking place every weekend between now and the end of October. Find the full list on www.london2010.org.uk.

KentPex 2010

There have been many special stamp shows held throughout the country this year, making London 2010: Festival of Stamps a truly national event. KentPex 2010, another of these special shows, will take place tomorrow, in Tonbridge, Kent.

Postman at Tonbridge Castle, 1935

Presented by the Kent Federation of Philatelic Societies and the Royal Tunbridge Wells Philatelic Society, KentPex 2010 will feature dealers, competitions, displays, advice and valuations, and much more.

The organisers hope to “increase the awareness of the general public to the joys and benefits of collecting stamps” as well as “show by the study of the postal history within Kent, and in other areas of GB, and indeed the world, how the world’s communications have developed over the centuries before arriving at the current age of immediate communication by e-mail and the web”.

We wish them the best of luck with that and hope those who attend enjoy the day.

Visit the London 2010: Festival of Stamps website to find out about stamp shows in your area.

Solihull Stamp Fair & Midland Philatelic Federation Spring Convention

by John H Barker, Solihull Philatelic Society

Visitors to this third Regional event organised by members of the Association of British Philatelic Societies came to Solihull on a warm sunny day to enjoy the spirit of London 2010: Festival of Stamps.

Brian Goodey, Chairman of the Trustees of the British Postal Museum & Archive opened the Fair with words of encouragement to collectors about the Festival of Stamps and how it is providing a stimulus for organised philately in the UK. Brian outlined some of the developments at the BPMA in its search for new premises. After much thought and careful evaluation, a decision has been made to focus on siting the new premises in the old chain testing works at Swindon.

John Smith, winner of the aerophilately class

19 competitive exhibits were on display, each of 16 sheets. Awards were presented by John Baron, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the ABPS to John Smith of Solihull who won best in show with his aerophilatelic exhibit of ‘DLH South America’ with Laurance Kimpton, also of Solihull, coming a close second with ‘The RAF Cairo – Baghdad Airmail Service’.

Clive Jones, who won the Postal History class with ‘Halifax Postal History’

Clive Jones, Solihull, won the Postal History class with ‘Halifax Postal History’, Chris Jackson, Redditch, won the Open class with ‘ The Fishing Industry in Redditch’, John Smith, Solihull, won the Traditional class with ‘British Somaliland’ and David Gabe, Loughborough, won the Thematic class with ‘Mathematics and Philately’.

Tony Whitehead won the popular vote with GB GV Postal Orders

A popular vote by visitors to the Fair for the BPMA Open Trophy resulted in Tony Whitehead of Solihull taking the Trophy with his entry on GB GV Postal Orders and Colin Searle, also of Solihull, coming second.

The British Thematic Association held a successful workshop during the morning and the Great Britain Philatelic Society and Midlands (GB) Postal History Society both held meetings in the afternoon. A steady stream of members of the public brought in collections for valuation by Tony Lester, Auctioneers who kindly supported the event.  John Davies provided a Stamp Active Network table for younger visitors attending the Fair.

The Solihull Philatelic Society starts a new season in September with meetings every Tuesday evening at the Solihull Cricket and Tennis Club, Marsh Lane, Solihull. Our excellent Library, club packets and auctions provide members with support for their collecting interests. New members and visitors are always welcome.

For further details visit www.solihullphilatelicsociety.org.uk or contact Paul Woodness on 01564 776879.

London 2010: International Stamp Exhibition

Last Saturday the London 2010: International Stamp Exhibition opened at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London.

Eagerly awaited by enthusiasts, and taking place just once every ten years, this 8-day stamp spectacular is one of the highlights of the London 2010 Festival of Stamps.

Royal Mail's stand at the London 2010: International Stamp Exhibition

There is much to see (and buy!) at the show, with over 200 stand holders, including many foreign postal administrations, plus numerous societies represented.

The centre piece is the impressive Royal Mail stand, surmounted by two arches of giant stamps. Around the exterior of the stand is a display put together by the British Postal Museum & Archive with unique items from both our collections and the security printers Enschedé.

Half the display deals with the low value stamps of King George V’s reign, including the Downey head stamps – the first stamps of George V’s reign – and declared a ‘disaster’! The display includes dies, rollers and printing plates, including some for unissued stamps.

The intaglio printing plate used to print The King's Stamps, alongside some examples

The other half of the display brings the story up to date with describing how the printers Enschedé produced the new 2010 stamps, based on the 1913 Seahorse and 1924 Wembley stamps.  This includes the actual intaglio printing plate.

Other things to look out for include the competitive displays. Over the 8 day show there will be 2400 frames of competitive exhibits on show. Each frame holds 16 stamp album sheets, so that’s a lot of stamps in total! There are many different entries on every conceivable subject, from the British Occupation stamp issues of Iraq (1917-1923) to ‘A Glimpse into the World of Beer’! The full list of entries can be seen here.

The world’s largest envelope

Hanging from the ceiling you might notice a large grey envelope. In fact it is officially the world’s largest envelope – sent by Stanley Gibbons to Brian Trotter, organiser of the show.

One of the rarest and most valuable stamps in the world is also on display; the only known example of a Swedish 3 skilling stamp inadvertently printed in yellow instead of green. It will be put up for auction after the exhibition.

The show lasts until Saturday 15 May.

BPMA Curator signs the Book of Scottish Philatelists

Douglas Muir, Curator of Philately at the BPMA, has become the 43rd signatory of the Book of Scottish Philatelists. The ceremony took place during the 81st Congress of The Association of Scottish Philatelic Societies at the Dewar’s Centre, Perth, on Friday 16th April.

The 81st Scottish Congress, Perth

The Scottish Congress is one of many special stamp shows being organised as part of London 2010: Festival of Stamps by member Federations of the Association of British Philatelic Societies. The next special stamp show will take place in Port Talbot, Wales.

A travelling exhibition put together by the BPMA appears at each special stamp show, but those visiting the Scottish Congress also had the opportunity to see some un-adopted Scottish-themed stamp designs from the BPMA collection.

Unadopted stamps designs with Scottish themes on display

Douglas Muir’s citation in the Book of Scottish Philatelists was as follows:

“In recognition of many years of research published in the form of displays at exhibitions, including Glasgow 2000; also for his initiation and encouragement of research into postal mechanisation, and in particular in respect of three major research monographs, firstly on the 19th century reforms surrounding the penny black, secondly on the evolution of the iconic Machin design and most recently on the George V issues of Great Britain”

Douglas Muir signs the Book of Scottish Philatelists

At the signing ceremony, Douglas Muir described himself as “dead chuffed”.

Douglas Muir’s book A Timeless Classic: The evolution of Machin’s icon is available from the BPMA Shop. Douglas Muir’s new book George V and the GPO: Stamps, Conflict & Creativity will be available from 7th May 2010.