Royal Mint bangs drum for Britain and cash

The Royal Mint has unveiled a collection of "quintessentially British" 10p coins.

The aim is to showcase an A to Z of what makes Britain great, from the Angel of the North to a zebra crossing. James Bond, fish and chips and fry-ups also feature. The collection will be rolling out into circulation across the country from today, and will be available at selected Post Offices from this week. A collectors’ folder, and silver proof and uncirculated versions of the 10p coins, will be available to purchase from The Royal Mint website. 

The launch comes ahead of the withdrawal of the old £10 note as legal tender, which will no longer be accepted in UK shops from 11.59pm today. A "great British coin hunt" app has also been created, where users can build up a digital collection of the coins they find. It features a heat map showing where these are being found and directs users to swap shops where they can trade with other collectors.

"These designs were selected because we feel they represent a diverse mix of elements that make up the country we all love,” says Anne Jessopp, Chief Executive at the Royal Mint. "There is a lot to be proud of in the UK - whether it's at the highest level, our Houses of Parliament representing democracy and freedom of speech, technological advancements such as Tim Berners-Lee's world wide web, or just a good cup of tea, it's all here in the designs. We hope the British public is inspired to take part in the great British coin hunt by checking their change for those miniature works of art that spell out just some of the many iconic themes that are quintessentially British."