Isambard Kingdom Brunel
In a public poll organized by the BBC in 2001, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was voted the second 'greatest' Brit in British history, after Sir Winston Churchill. And even ahead of celebrities like Princess Diana, Charles...
First day envelopes
Government leaders in Australia during the Second World War
In September 1939, Australia became involved in the Second World War when the mother country, Great Britain, declared war on Nazi Germany following the invasion of Poland. During the six years that the war lasted, Australia had no fewer than five different heads of government. On August 11...
Characteristic British coastlines (part 1)
Great Britain has the longest coastline of any country in Europe, approximately 12.000 kilometers. The country has more than 1.000 islands. The coastline is highly varied, ranging from steep cliffs to wide sandy beaches. Royal Mail has issued a series of ten stamps...
Classic British steam locomotives
Royal Mail issued a series of six stamps on January 13, 2004, in blocks and sheets. The stamps were designed by Roundel using photographs taken by John Wildgoose. The six locomotives are...
British dog breeds
Was it because of the 30th anniversary of the Kennel Club organization of the Crufts Dog Show, which was celebrated in the exhibition hall of Earls Court in London? Or was it because of the Crufts Dog Show that was founded in 1891? The British...
British lighthouses
The oldest surviving complete 'lighthouse' in Great Britain stands on the coast of the county of Yorkshire at Selwicks Bay between Filey and Bridlington on Flamborough Head. It is called the 'Chalk Tower', built in 1669 and is now enclosed by...
Spring flowers
We look forward to it every year: spring. Winter reveals little of nature's splendor, with hardly any flowers and even less green on the deciduous trees. But in spring, nature shakes off the winter...
British steam locomotives
Colin Gifford, employed as a photographer by publisher Ian Allan among others, took many photos of steam locomotives in the 60s, when steam was increasingly being replaced by diesel and electric locomotives. Delaney Design Consultants has made of a number of...
Historic buildings in Great Britain
Under the subtitle 'British Architecture', a series of four stamps and a block containing the four stamps featuring images of several notable buildings found in England, Wales, and Scotland was issued on March 1, 1978. Buildings that...
'Fishermen's Mission' for sea fishing
In 1881, the 'Fishermen's Mission' was founded by Ebenezer Joseph Mather to provide emotional, pastoral, and financial support to sea fishermen and their families in port towns. Mather was concerned about the poor conditions in which fishermen lived and worked at the time and found...
National Trust for Scotland
When I read the announcement that a series of five stamps dedicated to the fiftieth anniversary of the National Trust for Scotland would be issued on June 24, 1981, I expected to see beautiful stamps with images of historic country houses, castles and...
The British painter William Turner
In 1975, it was 200 years since Joseph Mallord William Turner was born on April 23 in London's Covent Garden. He would become one of the most famous British painters through his many landscapes and especially seascapes. But he...
1966 FIFA World Cup
I devoted attention to the 1966 FIFA World Cup on the Postzegelblog on May 3, 2016. But I have always wondered who took the photo for the image on the 4d stamp. In publications I had...
The 20th International Geographic Congress
How can one depict a congress, and an International Geographical Congress at that, on a series of four stamps? This is the question designer Dennis Bailey, born in Bognor Regis in 1931, grappled with regarding the design of the special stamps that...
The Greenwich Meridian
Everyone deals with time and place. Everyone deals with the time of another, wherever in the world that may be. Standardization is necessary for this; otherwise, one cannot agree on time or place. Meridians have been known for a very long time...
The oldest still existing post office in the world
Do you know where the oldest post office in the world can be found? Not even that far away. The little post office is located at 41 High Street, the A76, in the town of Sanquhar in the south of Scotland in the historic county of Dumfriesshire. The...
