The ATMs in the United Kingdom. 2015, Post & Go issues

UNITED KINGDOM. 2015, the 'Post & Go' issues (1st part) >

The postal kiosk at The Royal Navy Submarine Museum - The RNSM

Royal Mail’s fifth permanent postal kiosk was installed in The Royal Navy Submarine Museum, completing the set of equipment in service within the four major museums that make up The National Museum of the Royal Navy.
(See the articles dedicated to the 'Post & Go' kiosks installed at The National Museum of the Royal Navy - see article, also published in VARIABLE 34, The Royal Marines Museum - article and VARIABLE 36, & The Fleet Air Arm Museum - article and VARIABLE 37).

The Royal Navy Submarine Museum is located at Gosport, on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour. Traveling by public transport, from Portsmouth, the trip includes a short pleasant ferry crossing through the Portsmouth Harbour channel.

The museum was created in 1963, and after some changes, got its current shape in August 1981. It is the only British museum dedicated to the history of the submarine, from the fourth century to the present day.

The Royal Navy Submarine Museum displays an important collection of documents, models and other related items, while the museum core consists of three historic submarines; Holland I, built in 1901 and the Royal Navy's first submarine; HMS X24, a midget submarine in service during World War 2: and HMS Alliance (left picture), the centrepiece of the museum. Launched in 1945, it is the only survivor of the fourteen 'A' class British submarines built for service in the Far East during World War 2. After an extensive restoration, the submarine was reopened to the public in April 2014.

The Intelligent AR postal kiosk was installed in the museum shop, located in the John Fieldhouse Building, a multifunctional building shaped like a submarine and opened in 2005.

	It is kiosk A004, first introduced at the London Spring Stampex 2014 (see article, and VARIABLE 32) and subsequently used, temporarily, at several philatelic events as well as the Bradford North Royal Mail Enquiry Office.

On the first day in service, July 28th 2015, the kiosk printed the stamps on rolls of postage labels with the two current definitive designs, the 'Machin' (2013 reprint) and the 'Union flag', in the original issue.

Like the other permanent kiosks installed in the other museums, Royal Mail decided to include an identifier below the face value or postal service indicator, on all stamps issued by the machine. In this case, 'The RNSM' (The Royal Navy Submarine Museum).

The machine is very well placed, being perfectly visible in the centre of the shop, next to the payment area. Moreover, in 2014, with the reopening to the public of HMS Alliance, after three years of restoration, the museum experienced a significant increase in visitor numbers, from less than 45,000 visitors in 2012 and 2013, to nearly 110,000 in 2014. But even so, it's difficult to see that its postal usage alone (mainly selling stamps for postcards) could cover its running costs. Like the other machines in small museums, only its possible philatelic use, with different special temporary releases scheduled throughout the year, might allow for its survival.

The 'Post&Go' services in SINGAPORE 2015 World Stamp Exhibition

In August 2015, Royal Mail promoted its 'Post & Go Services' at SINGAPORE 2015, the World Stamp Exhibition. This event was held from August 14th to 19th, in Halls B and C of the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, in the stunning Marina Bay Sands complex (More information, see article, also published in VARIABLE 38).
After the world exhibitions in Melbourne, 2013, and Seoul, 2014, SINGAPORE 2015 is the third location to display the 'Post & Go Services' by Royal Mail in a large philatelic event outside Europe.

Royal Mail's booth was located at the back of the large hall, at the opposite end to the main entrance, next to the Cartor Security Printing booth, and in front of the area shared by various Persian Gulf postal administrations, among them, Qatar Post (...).

	In a somewhat bare space, Royal Mail installed the two postal kiosks A006 and A008, as well as a small counter for the sale of philatelic products.

		As on previous occasions, Royal Mail programmed a special text into the two postal kiosks in service, related to the philatelic event. Over the six days, postal kiosks A006 & A008 issued stamps with the 'Machin' (2013 reprint), and 'Union flag' (original design) definitive designs, and the special imprint Singpex 2015 World Stamp Expo Since the issue was released in Singapore, the code at the bottom of the stamps, sold during the stamp exhibition, was B8SG15 A006- & B8SG15 A008-.

Unfortunately, Royal Mail did not prepare any special postmark for this type of issue and, unlike many other postal administrations, did not set up any letter box, where visitors could mail covers franked with UK stamps, for their later postmarking and mailing from Europe. However, a large size commemorative cachet or postal mark was available in the booth (images), to be used on philatelic passports and other souvenir material.



	Above. First day of issue receipt for the purchase of the set or Collectors Strip, printed on Machin definitive design labels, postal kiosk A006. Left. Phil, one of the SINGAPORE 2015 mascots, in the Royal Mail booth.

In addition to the stamps printed in Singapore, during the World Stamp Exhibition, Royal Mail sold sets or Collector Strips of the same definitive designs issued at the exhibition. These were printed in the United Kingdom by the desktop terminal B001, and the code at the bottom is B8GB15 B001-.

The postal kiosk at STEAM - Museum of the Great Western Railway

After postal kiosks were installed in The British Postal Museum & Archive, in London, and the four major museums that make up The National Museum of the Royal Navy, Royal Mail’s sixth permanent postal kiosk was installed at STEAM - the Museum of the Great Western Railway.

The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company founded in 1833 by engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The first trip was in 1838, and its extensive rail network, one of the largest engineering works in his time, linked London with the midlands, the south-west and west of England, and Wales. In 1947, the GWR was nationalized and became part of British Railways.

In 1841, the directors of GWR chose the city of Swindon, on the main railway line between London and Bristol, for the installation of the Swindon Railway Works, for the repair and maintenance of the new railway. Over 150 years, the railway complex grew, occupying over 120 hectares and employing over 12,000 people. The works were finally closed in 1986.

STEAM - Museum of the Great Western Railway is housed in various buildings of the former railway complex, and is fully restored. The museum opened in 2000, and tells the story of the company, its network and railway equipment, along with an interesting collection of locomotives, and shows the life of the people who worked for, and travelled, on the Great Western Railway.
The museum receives an average of just over 90,000 visitors a year, a third of who are school visits.

	The Intelligent AR postal kiosk, with the code 010, was installed on August 25th 2015, in the entrance to the museum, next to a postbox.
	Left. The new postal kiosk after the installation in the museum, still without the identifier plaque, and with the new user interface. (Photo: A. Aris) Right. First day receipt, session number 0002.

On the first day in service, the kiosk printed the stamps on rolls of postage labels with the two current definitive designs, the 'Machin' (2013 reprint) and the 'Union flag', in the original issue.
All the stamps issued by the machine have an identifier below the face value or postal service indicator - 'STEAM GWR'.

2016 marks 175 years since the birth of the Swindon Railway Works. Swindon175 is the collective name for all the celebrations in the town that will take place in 2016 to mark this anniversary. STEAM is involved in this commemoration, and we do not doubt that the postal kiosk will be involved in different special imprints.

The ATMs at AUTUMN STAMPEX 2015

With the recent London 2015 Europhilex, held in mid-May, still in our minds (see article, also published in VARIABLE 37), the Autumn London Stampex was held from Wednesday September 16th to Saturday 19th 2015, at its usual location, the Islington Business Design Centre.

The Autumn Stampex 2015 was organized by the Philatelic Traders' Society (PTS), in collaboration with Royal Mail. This great annual philatelic event brought together more than 100 booths, distributed over the two levels of the large exhibition hall and the gallery bays upstairs. Most of the booths were rented by major international philatelic dealers, auction houses, and a few specialist publications ... the only ones who can afford the high rental cost of the stands.
As usual, various philatelic associations took advantage of this stamp fair to organize meetings and small exhibitions.

The organization reserved the back of the exhibition hall for the large stand of Royal Mail, a must for all visitors, along with the national philatelic exhibition organized by The Association of British Philatelic Societies (ABPS).
Royal Mail was the only philatelic service attending Autumn Stampex 2015.

As in Europhilex 2015, the 'Post & Go' equipment was part of the stand of Royal Mail. On the left, the philatelic products exhibition and sales area. On the right, the 'Post & Go Services', with six Intelligent AR / Royal Mail Series II philatelic kiosks in service.

In the picture below, from left to right, the GI01 kiosk of Royal Gibraltar Post Office, the JE01 unit of Jersey Post, the GG01 of Guernsey Post, and the A006 and A008 kiosks of Royal Mail.
In addition, a new Royal Mail machine (A009) was installed next to the sales counter area (right picture). Visitors could use the kiosk not only to print the 'Post & Go' issues, but also for payment of the various bar-coded philatelic products displayed on the stand.

In a move, highly appreciated by collectors, Royal Mail decided to repeat the experience of Europhilex 2015 and arranged a booth for postmarking. Visitors could get the different exhibition postmarks on the spot, and talk to some of the professionals working in the London Handstamp Centre, who usually do a careful and excellent job.


	On September 9th 2015, a few days before the opening of Autumn Stampex, Queen Elizabeth II became the monarch with the longest reign in British history, surpassing the record of her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria. To mark this milestone in British monarchy, Royal Mail and philatelic services in most Commonwealth countries and territories, in the area of British influence, released commemorative philatelic issues. During Autumn Stampex 2015, five of the six philatelic kiosks issued stamps with the special overprint 'Queen Elizabeth II Longest Reign', in two of the Royal Mail machines, and 'HM The Queen Longest Reign' in Jersey, Guernsey, and Gibraltar kiosks.

	During the four days of Autumn Stampex 2015, the Royal Mail A006 and A008 kiosks issued ATMs with the Machin definitive design and the special overprint Queen Elizabeth II Longest Reign in one of the printers, and the new 'Sea Travel' series (see next section) in the other (left screen, below). The A009 kiosk issued stamps with the Heraldic Lion design, with no special overprint, and the new 'Sea Travel' series (right screen, below). After the Robin and Common Poppy issues, Heraldic Lion is the third design originally issued as part of a series of six images, which Royal Mail has also decided to release alone, on label rolls with this unique design. In this case, the picture was part of the Heraldic Beasts series, issued on May 13th 2015 (see article and VARIABLE 37).

The Jersey Post JE01 kiosk issued ATMs with the Jersey flag definitive design and the special overprint
HM The Queen
Longest Reign
on one of the reels, and the thematic 'Protected species' series with no special overprint in the other.

The stamps issued by this machine were sold with a 20% surcharge on the face value, because of the VAT on sales made by Jersey Post in the UK.

These issues are dealt with in more detail in the article dedicated to Jersey Post.

The Guernsey Post GG01 kiosk issued ATMs with the Guernsey flag definitive design and the special overprint
HM The Queen
Longest Reign
on one of the reels, and the UK Union flag design, with no special overprint, in the other printer.

Just like the Jersey kiosk, the stamps issued by this equipment were also sold with a 20% VAT surcharge on the face value.

These issues are dealt with in more detail in the article dedicated to Guernsey Post.

Finally, the Royal Gibraltar Post Office GI01 kiosk issued ATMs with the Gibraltar flag definitive design and the special overprint
HM The Queen
Longest Reign
on one of the reels, and the UK Union flag design on the other, with no special overprint.

These issues are dealt with in more detail in the article dedicated to Royal Gibraltar Post Office.

The first block of the code at the bottom of all the stamps issued by the six philatelic kiosks installed at the Autumn Stampex 2015, is B9GB15, followed by the machine code, transaction and stamp number.

In addition to these machines, large pre-orders of Collectors strips were printed by using the internal usage printers B001 (UK designs) and B002 (Jersey and Guernsey designs), sold by their respective philatelic services.

2015. Sea Travel 'Post & Go' series

The third thematic 'Post & Go' series issued in 2015 was available from September 16th, coinciding with the opening of Autumn Stampex 2015. The series celebrates the British love for sea travel, and features six iconic seaborne views from around the world.

On the date of issue, the new series could be obtained at many of the NCR postal kiosks installed in post offices across the country, and also from the three Royal Mail Series II philatelic kiosks (A006, A008 & A009), installed at London Stampex. The large pre-orders were printed using internal-use equipment, with the code B001.
Royal Mail released its usual presentation pack with the six designs (right image), printed by the internal-use C002 printer.

	The series features six sea ports and destinations, from the point of view of a passenger in an ocean liner. Dover and its white cliffs, in the UK. Hong Kong and its skyscrapers. Sydney and the Opera House, in Australia. Ha Long Bay, in Vietnam. New York, with the Manhattan skyline and Statue of Liberty, in the US and lastly Venice, with the Doge's palace and the Piazza San Marco, in Italy.
	The rolls of labels were manufactured by International Security Printers, and have identical characteristics to previous issues. The label design is by Osborne Ross, from illustrations by Andy Tuohy.

	Pictorial first day of issue postmarks

The images below show ATM strips with the different printing varieties and the face value indicators available for this set of designs, issued by the equipment used on the date of issue. From left to right,
(1) the C002 printer, used for advance printing of the stamps included in the presentation packs,
(2) the Intelligent AR equipment (A006, A008 & A009), in service at Autumn Stampex 2015, and B001 for internal use,
(3) the NCR postal kiosks.

All the stamps included in the folders have the same face value '1st Class up to 100g', and the lower identification code is the same for all the stamps - In this case, B9GB15 C002-1840-020. In the first block, B is for 'philatelic' issue, 9 is for the month of issue (September), GB for the country, and 15 for the year of issue. In the second block, C002 is the code of the printer. Then follows 1840, the usual fictitious session number (year of issue of the Penny Black), and 020 indicates the number of the pictorial series, since the beginning of the 'Post & Go' issues.

First day of issue receipt for the purchase of one 'Collectors strip', the set with the six values programmed, in the A006 Intelligent AR postal kiosk

Printer C002	Intelligent AR A006 - A008 - A009 - B001	NCR postal kiosks

The 'Open value stamps' can be obtained from the NCR postal kiosks only, by selecting the 'Post an item' option from the main menu. These are variable value stamps, usually printed for immediate use, and include some details about the shipment type, postage rate, destination and weight of the item (see article, also published in VARIABLE 34). The six 'open value stamps' on the images correspond to the six face value indicators programmed in the 'Collectors strip'.

First day cover with the six designs and the special Autumn Stampex 2015 postmark.

The Heraldic Lion design at The British Postal Museum & Archive

	On September 16th 2015, coinciding with the opening of Autumn Stampex 2015 (and with the presence of thousands of collectors in London ...), Royal Mail also decided to introduce, for an indefinite period, new label rolls with the Heraldic Lion design in the 'Post & Go +' kiosk installed at The British Postal Museum & Archive.

	The new Heraldic Lion design was temporarily unavailable at the A001 kiosk from October 19th until November 15th 2015, when it was replaced by the Common Poppy design.

The museum produced and sold a limited printing special presentation pack, and an illustrated first day cover with two Heraldic Lion 'Post & Go' stamps (right image).

2015. The return of the 'Common Poppy' design

	As in 2014 (see article and VARIABLE 35), so in 2015 Royal Mail reintroduced the 'Common Poppy' design for the 'Post & Go' - NCR postal kiosks installed in post offices. They also supplied these for the Intelligent AR kiosks permanently installed in The British Postal Museum & Archive (images below), the four Royal Navy museums (next section), and its Enquiry Offices.
	Left image and below. postal kiosk M002 installed in the Royal Mail Enquiry Office, Mount Pleasant, London.

In 2015, this design was available from the postal machines from Monday October 19th to November 15th, in time for the celebrations of the 'Remembrance Day' or 'Poppy Day', held every year on November 11th.

New for 2015 was that all the rolls used corresponded to a reprinting of the original design. These reprints include the text ROYALMA15 in one of the lines of the security background.

Postal kiosks NCR (Post Offices)	Postal kiosks Intelligent AR (Royal Mail Enquiry Offices)	Kiosk Intelligent AR (The B.P.M.A.)

As has become customary, The British Postal Museum & Archive produced and sold a limited printing illustrated first day cover, with two '1st Class' stamps.

Changes in the kiosks installed in the museums of the Royal Navy

Coinciding with the dates of reintroduction and withdrawal of the 'Common Poppy' design, Royal Mail scheduled various important changes to the identifiers of the four Intelligent AR kiosks installed in the museums of the Royal Navy.

The first change was made on October 19th 2015. In the four museums, rolls with the 'Machin' definitive design were temporarily replaced by those of the 'Common Poppy'. In terms of programming, the four identifiers were, until that day, abbreviated with the acronym of the museum’s name and were modified by more specific texts corresponding to their location. In addition, over the next four weeks, the two kiosks, installed in the museums of Portsmouth and Southsea, included the special overprint 'Trafalgar Day' in the stamps issued with the 'Union flag' labels.

The second change took place on November 16th 2015. The 'Common Poppy' design was replaced by the 'Machin' labels. From that date, the stamps printed with this design include the new identifier plus the corresponding museum's graphic logo. The 'Union flag' design has a smaller free area on the left side of the label, which does not allow for the inclusion of the logo.

In less than a month, and only at these four museums, Royal Mail has created 14 new design-identifier combinations, and 84 new different stamps, in total (!!!).

The National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth
Until October 18th 2015 Machin - 'The NMRN' Union flag - 'The NMRN'
From October 19th to November 15th 2015 Common Poppy - 'Royal Navy' Union flag - 'Royal Navy Trafalgar Day'
From November 16th 2015 Machin - 'Royal Navy' + logo Union flag - 'Royal Navy'

The Royal Marines Museum, Southsea
Until October 18th 2015 Machin - 'The RMM' Union flag - 'The RMM'
From October 19th to November 15th 2015 Common Poppy - 'Royal Marines' Union flag - 'Royal Marines Trafalgar Day'
From November 16th 2015 Machin - 'Royal Marines' + logo Union flag - 'Royal Marines'

The Fleet Air Arm Museum, Ilchester
Until October 18th 2015 Machin - 'The FAAM' Union flag - 'The FAAM'
From October 19th to November 15th 2015 Common Poppy - 'Fleet Air Arm' Union flag - 'Fleet Air Arm'
From November 16th 2015 Machin - 'Fleet Air Arm' + logo Union flag - 'Fleet Air Arm'

The Royal Navy Submarine Museum, Gosport
Until October 18th 2015 Machin - 'The RNSM' Union flag - 'The RNSM'
From October 19th to November 15th 2015 Common Poppy - 'RN Submarine' Union flag - 'RN Submarine'
From November 16th 2015 Machin - 'RN Submarine' + logo Union flag - 'RN Submarine'

'Post & Go' at the Sindelfingen Internationale Briefmarken-Börse, in Germany

For the second time in 2015, the 'Post & Go Services' travelled to Germany, this time to the Sindelfingen Internationale Briefmarken-Börse. Along with the Essen Internationale Briefmarken-Messe (see article, also published in VARIABLE 37) these are the two major annual philatelic events held in Germany.

The Briefmarken-Börse was held from October 29th to 31st 2015 in Messe Sindelfingen, a large exhibition centre located east of the city, a few kilometers from Stuttgart.

The fair was a great measure of the current state of philately in Germany, bringing together major dealers and publications, plus 30 postal administrations. Upstairs, about 40 specialized study groups had the opportunity to show their work to visitors (image below). Various exhibitions, conferences, and a seminar on postal history took place during the three days.

One of the most visited booths was the large Deutsche Post stand, the German postal service, which took the opportunity to release various philatelic products.
As in Essen, they installed a Sielaff postal kiosk (right image), issuing the two definitive designs ‘Brandenburg Gate’ and ‘Post Tower’ (see article, also published in VARIABLE 11).

In the area occupied by postal administrations, the United Kingdom booths were represented by the 'Post & Go Services'. Royal Mail installed three machines, in Sindelfingen. In the image below, from left to right, the new A013 and A014 kiosks of Royal Mail, used here for the first time, and the JE01 kiosk of Jersey Post.

As usual, both postal administrations programmed a special overprint for the kiosks, related to the philatelic event, 'Sindelfingen October 2015'.

Over the three days, the A013 machine of Royal Mail issued stamps with the 'Union flag' and 'Machin' definitive designs, and the A014 kiosk issued stamps with the 'Heraldic Lion' and 'Common Poppy' designs (2015 reprint) (screen images below). Since the issue was released in Germany, the code at the bottom of the stamps, issued during the stamp fair, was BODE15 A013- or BODE15 A014-.

For the first time in Europe, after taking into consideration suggestions received from dealers and collectors, Royal Mail has scheduled a new set of four values, or 'Euro Collector Strips', from its two kiosks. This set included the first four values of the usual 'Collector Strip', with the two values for
	domestic mail and the two postage rates to Europe, although the last two stamps switched their usual positions.

However, in Sindelfingen, the machines allowed buyers to obtain stamps with the two 'Worldwide' postage rates, not integrated into the programmed collecting set (see receipt). The '1st Class' stamps were also offered in strips of four stamps, the so called 'Euro 1st Class Strip' (see screen detail below).

Meanwhile, the JE01 postal kiosk of Jersey Post issued stamps with the 'Jersey flag' definitive design in one of the reels, and the thematic 'Protected species' set in the other. Because of a misunderstanding, the special overprint, which was, initially, only intended for the stamps issued with the 'Jersey flag' design, eventually appeared on all the stamps issued by the kiosk.
(These issues are dealt with in more detail in the article dedicated to Jersey Post).

'Post & Go' at the Paris 69th Salon Philatélique d'Automne

Just a week after the Sindelfingen Internationale Briefmarken-Börse, the Royal Mail 'Post & Go Services' participated in another philatelic fair in continental Europe, the Salon Philatélique d'Automne in Paris, France. Organized by the Chambre syndicale française des Négociants et Experts en Philatélie (CNEP), the 69th Salon Philatélique d'Automne was held from November 5th to 8th 2015 at the Espace Champerret, northwest of the French capital. (See article dedicated to the 69th Salon Philatélique d'Automne, also published in VARIABLE 39).
The United Kingdom was represented on a large booth promoting and selling its philatelic issues, including the 'Post & Go Services' of Royal Mail with kiosks A013 and A014 issuing UK variable value stamps.

During the four days of the Salon d'Automne, as in the Sindelfingen fair, the A013 machine issued stamps with the 'Union flag' and 'Machin' definitive designs, whilst the A014 kiosk issued stamps with the 'Heraldic Lion' and 'Common Poppy' designs (2015 reprint). All stamps issued by the two machines included the special overprint
Paris
November 2015
under the face value indicator.
Since the issue was released in France, the code at the bottom of the stamps, issued during this stamp fair, is BNFR15 A013- or BNFR15 A014-, followed by the session and stamp numbers.

Royal Mail did not prepare any special postmark for the show, but a postal mark was available at its booth. The mark featured the Paris Arc de Triomphe.

Unlike the Sindelfingen fair, the equipment installed at the Paris Autumn stamps fair offered stamp purchasers only four different postage rates making up the so called 'Euro Collectors Strip'. This set, more suited to the tastes of European collectors, includes four of the six values comprising the usual 'Collectors strip' in the UK, with the first value of domestic mail ('1st Class up to 100g'), the two postage rates to Europe ('Euro 20g World 10g' & 'Europe up to 100g'), and the rate to the rest of the world up to 20g ('Worldwide up to 20g') - (images at end of article).
	The '1st Class' stamps were also offered in strips of four stamps, the 'Euro 1st Class Strip' (screen, right image and receipt below).

Receipts corresponding to a four '1st Class' stamps strip or 'Euro 1st Class Strip', and the set with the four programmed values or 'Euro Collectors Strip'.

		The presence of the 'Post & Go' kiosks and their special issues aroused huge interest among the visitors to the Salon d'Automne. In France, there has been a long tradition of collecting vignettes LISA, the equivalent of the UK 'Post & Go' issues. Therefore, the decision to place the Royal Mail booth and its kiosks opposite the area with the LISA equipment of Phil@poste was good thinking. On one side, the latest equipment, fast and reliable, with great features and designed for philatelic use. On the other side, queues of angry visitors in front of equipment designed for postal usage, slow printing, with significant limitations for philatelic use and, in the case of the old Monétel machines, with serious technical problems and constant breakdowns. Undoubtedly, the visit of the 'Post & Go Services' to the Paris Salon was a great eye opener for French collectors, and hopefully also a lesson for Phil@poste.

2015. Winter Fur and Feathers

In a record year for 'Post & Go' issues, the fourth and final thematic set of 2015 was available from November 16th 2015. It was the second year that Royal Mail issued a 'Post & Go' set for the Christmas season. With the 2014 set dedicated to winter plants, the set for Winter 2015 features different animals that remain active during the winter in the UK, some of them with major changes to suit the colder months.

Like the 2014 set (see article, also published in VARIABLE 35), the new set also consists of four designs, two with the blue background for economic or '2nd Class' stamps, and two in grey for priority or '1st Class' mail. New for 2015, the text in the '2nd Class' designs security background includes, in alternating rows, the continuous text 'ROYALMAIL' and '2ndCLASS'.

The ‘Winter Fur and Feathers’ set could be obtained at many of the NCR - 'Post & Go' postal kiosks installed in post offices across the country, during the Christmas season. It was also available from the Intelligent AR kiosks permanently installed in The British Postal Museum & Archive (The B.P.M.A.), and the Royal Mail Enquiry Offices (images below).
Royal Mail released its usual presentation pack with the four designs (right image), printed by the C002 internal-usage printer.

The four designs of the set feature the Mountain hare (Lepus timidus), Redwing (Turdus iliacus), Red fox (Vulpes vulpes), and the Red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). Perhaps the mountain hare is the animal that undergoes the most major transformation since, in preparation for winter, it moults from brown to white.

	The rolls of labels were manufactured by International Security Printers, and have identical characteristics to previous issues. The four images are designs by Osborne Ross, based on illustrations by Robert Gillmor.

	Pictorial first day of issue postmarks (see the maximum cards at the end of the article).

Presentation packs include four stamps with face values corresponding to the two basic postage rates for domestic economic mail ('2nd Class' & '2nd Large') and priority mail ('1st Class' & '1st Large'). However, the lower identification code is the same for the four stamps - BNGB15 C002-1840-021. In the first block, B is for 'philatelic' issue, N is for the month of issue (November), GB for the country, and 15 for the year of issue. In the second block, C002 is the code of the printer. Then follows 1840, the usual fictitious session number, and 021 is the number of the pictorial series, from the beginning of the 'Post & Go' issues.

The following images show the 'Collectors strip', or the sets of stamps with the face value indicators available for this set, issued by the equipment in service on the date of issue. The '2nd Class Collectors Strip' includes two values for economic mail, and the 'Collectors strip' includes the six usual values for priority or '1st Class' mail.
First day of issue receipts for the two 'Collectors Strip', postal kiosk M002 installed in the Mount Pleasant Royal Mail Enquiry Office

Postal kiosks NCR (Post Offices)	Postal kiosks Intelligent AR (Royal Mail Enquiry Offices)	Kiosk Intelligent AR (The B.P.M.A.)

The 'Winter Fur and Feathers' set was available from the kiosk installed in The British Postal Museum & Archive until December 31st 2015, with the usual identifier 'The B.P.M.A.'. The museum put on sale a limited edition of first day covers and presentation packs.

	The 'Open value stamps' can be obtained from the NCR postal kiosks only, by selecting the 'Post an item' option from the main menu. These are variable value stamps, usually printed for immediate use, and include some details about the shipment type, postage rate, destination and weight of the item (see article, also published in VARIABLE 34). The four 'open value stamps' on the images correspond to the first postage rates for economic and priority mail, 2L - '2nd Class up to 100g' & 1L - '1st Class up to 100g'.



Despite strict and clear instructions by Royal Mail, as well as the major difference of colour in the background of the labels, (which even includes the words '2ndCLASS'), some NCR postal kiosks used rolls of '2nd Class' labels in the printers intended for '1st Class' stamps, resulting in the issue of priority stamps on labels reserved for economic mail (right).

'Post & Go' at HONG KONG 2015

Initially not included in the 2015 tour of 'Post & Go Services', Royal Mail announced, in September, its participation in another major philatelic event in Asia, the 31st Asian International Stamp Exhibition - HONG KONG 2015.

	With the theme 'Shopping and Dining', the exhibition was held from November 20th to 23rd 2015, in one of the exhibition halls of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, in Wai Chai North, on the island of Hong Kong. HONG KONG 2015 was organized by the Hong Kong Philatelic Society, in collaboration with Hong Kong Post.

The exhibition area was in front of the main entrance, with more than 800 frames displaying collections arranged in 13 competitive classes, as well as the Court of Honour.

In the central area, a small stage, and 40 booths occupied by philatelic dealers, postal administrations and companies related to the sector. At the back of the hall, the large stand of Hong Kong Post, with a temporary post office, and the 'Youth corner', an area dedicated to promoting philately among the young. During the exhibition, visitors could participate in philatelic seminars, signing sessions with stamp designers, and various other activities.


Photos: P. Pang

Royal Mail attended HONG KONG 2015 with two 'Post & Go' kiosks, in a booth shared with Cartor, the French security printing company.
During the four days of the event, the two kiosks, A008 and A009, issued variable value stamps printed on rolls of labels with the 'Union flag' definitive design and, in honour of the host city, the 'Hong Kong' design. All the stamps issued during the exhibition included the special imprint
Hong Kong
November 2015
and, since the issue was released in Hong Kong, the code at the bottom of the stamps is BNHK15 A008- or BNHK15 A009-.

After the 'Robin', 'Common Poppy' and 'Heraldic Lion' issues, 'Hong Kong' is the fourth design originally issued as part of a series of six images, which Royal Mail has also decided to release themselves, on label rolls with this unique design. In this case, the picture was part of the 'Sea Travel' series, issued for the first time on September 16th 2015 (see article and VARIABLE 38).
For the first time in the UK 'Post & Go' series, the printing of the rolls with the solo-'Hong Kong' design was digital. This system allow direct printing from a digital file to paper, an ideal choice for this type of impression, requiring a small quantity of rolls and fast production.
The images in detail show the difference in the label impressions. On the left, the original 'Hong Kong' design, included in the 'Sea Travel' series. On the right, the same design with digital imprint.

		In addition to the stamps issued in Hong Kong from the A008 (left strips) and A009 kiosks, Royal Mail sold 'Collectors strips' with both designs and the six programmed values, with the special overprint, printed with the internal use printer B001 (images below). After the summer of 2015, Royal Mail moved the pre-order production of the 'Collectors strip' to Tallents House, the philatelic service premises in Edinburgh (see receipt below). Due to a big mistake in programming the B001 equipment, the first 'Collectors Strip' with the 'Hong Kong' design sent to collectors did not include stamps with the usual six face value indicators for the UK, but the Gibraltar indicators ! (image below, taken from an online auction). Another incredible error to add to the list ...

Purchase receipts for two 'Collectors Strip', A008 kiosk installed in HONG KONG 2015, and B001 printer in Tallents House

Royal Mail did not prepare any postmark for HONG KONG 2015, but a group of collectors from Hong Kong sponsored a special postmark for the 'Post & Go' issues.