More 18 codes and Harry Potter

1st Large with M18L MAIL counter sheet issue

SD 100g issue with M18L

SD 500g issue with M18L

Harry Potter Prestige Book pane

More 18 codes, some yellow fluor and missing security text

2p dark green M18L 8/5/18

5p ash pink M18L 9/2/18

20p light green, paler background, deeper head M18L 8/5/18

£1 wood brown, paler background, deeper head M18L 9/5/18

£1.25 holly green M18L 10/1/18

1p maroon M18L 9/5/18

1st Royal Mail deep red M18L MCIL, security print missing from head

1st Royal Mail red M18L MBIL 

1st red Litho M18L MPIL 1918 booklet

1st Large Royal Mail red M18L MFIL 

2nd Large bright blue M18L 14/2/18

These are all from Walsall. The 5p shows a yellow tinted fluor under UV light, the others mostly show a violet fluor.

More 18 codes and some shades of difference

£1.25 M18L in dull green shade

1st red Walsall M18L MSIL

1st red Walsall M18L MCIL deep red

1st red Walsall M18L MAIL pale red

2nd bright blue Walsall M18L MBIL

1st red Walsall M18L MTIL

1st red Walsall M18L MBIL

1st Large red Walsall M18L MBIL

That's the last month's new discoveries. Nothing terribly exciting really and my album pages are now bulging with so many 1st reds! It is actually quite difficult to recognise the differences at first with 'pale' and 'deep' having rather too indistinguishable meanings now for my liking!

As with many others in this series, I am going along with these less obvious 'different' stamps on the basis that it can't be many years before it ends and, having lasted so long now, I simply have to carry on! Indeed, I am now beginning to wonder whether I myself will survive to the end! Now that would be annoying - so I shall have to make a special effort and lose some weight and take some exercise perhaps.

Admirable as it is in many ways, I have to report that the September 2018 issue of Philatelic Bulletin is totally devoid of anything Machin, unless you count a mention in the content of the First World War 1918 booklet issues coming up in the New Issues panel on the back page. I think this issue takes the award for Least Machin Content, previously held, I believe by an issue which had none other than a photograph of an envelope bearing a 1st red in an advertisement.

More 18 codes

A few more to add to the Machin collection this month. These are all Walsall printings. We have had an MCIL already this year in a Unit 4+2 booklet but these seem to be a shade deeper red than before.

I am not sure how the catalogues will deal with the shades of red and lighter heads that have appeared and to what extent there may, eventually, turn out to be a pretty continuous spectrum of shades as we really do need to worry about them that much.

1st deep red M18L MCIL

£1 pale grey-brown  M18L MAIL with security back

20p green M18L MAIL with security backing paper

10p tan  M18L MAIL with security backing paper

2nd M18L MAIL with security backing paper

2nd M18L MTIL

1st M18L MAIL with security backing paper

1st M18L MSIL

2nd Large M18L MFIL

1st Large red M18L MAIL

1st large red M18L MFIL

Walsall do definitives again. Cartor fail.

[This post should have been published in April. Apologies for the delay]

A slightly more interesting bunch of definitives appearing this time. I'll start with a DLR M17L code 50p grey with security printed background. That first appeared in October 2017.

Then, at this time of year we get the latest requirements of rate increases and this year that brings us four new stamps and values. Not that we'll see many on envelopes as my own Post Office knew nothing of them at all and had hardly any real stamps either. They just stick those white 'Horizon' labels on everything now.

At the same time, and appearing to be part of the same set but it isn't, we have a £1.55 now with security backing print.

The above are all M18L and printed by Walsall (other than the 2017 50p). Also by Walsall is the M18L MCIL 1st Class red from the RAF Concrete and Clay book. The different shade of 2nd Class deeper brighter blue is M17L MTIL.

A new printing of the Special Delivery 100g stamp with an M17L code and security backing paper is also now to be found. This is from De La Rue.

For some reason, OK, to generate more income, we have had to purchase complete sets of the four regionals from each country once more, even though the 1st and 2nd Class are NVIs! We're told that it was considered necessary to make all the typefaces the same across the four sets. They had previously been a bit of an odd mixture, admittedly, but the new typeface seems even more difficult to decipher on many, especially the 2nd Class from England and the face value of the Northern Ireland basket weave, or whatever it is, is really difficult to figure.

So these are all new issues. Strangely, they are still gummed and not self-adhesive and I have to say that, with the grey or white now also replacing any silver ink, if it weren't for the fact that the designs themselves hadn't changed the set could easily have been a new issue from the Tokeleau Islands or somewhere similar, hardly ever to be used but generating some useful island revenue.

Just wait until we have a new extension to this set featuring scenes from each nation, changing every other month!

From Cartor we have the RAF Prestige book definitives, a 2p green, 5p brown and £1.17 orange. The standard of Cartor's printing is not particularly brilliant and they have almost failed to represent the security codes on these stamps. they should be M18L MPIL but that is not at all easy to see. Not that this matters a great deal. I am sure the only place you'll find them is in the booklet.

  

There's quite a lot here and you may well need several new pages in the album.