The Spice Girls
Royal Mail celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Spice Girls, the most successful girl group in pop music history, with a set of 15 stamps on January 11.
Ten gummed designs in counter sheets feature photographs from live performances across the years, while a self-adhesive miniature sheet adds individual studio photographs of the five members.
Their catchy hits and ‘girl power’ attitude made the Spice Girls feminist icons, and they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide. Nine of their 11 singles went to No1 in the UK charts.
The group formed in 1994, after a management company looking for ‘streetwise, outgoing, ambitious and dedicated’ young singers and dancers selected Victoria Adams, Melanie Brown (Mel B), Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm (Mel C) and Geri Halliwell as an all-female line-up to disrupt the male-dominated music scene.
They didn’t play instruments, but they worked hard at choreography and shared song-writing credits with several collaborators.
After a change of management and two name changes, their 1996 debut single, Wannabe, topped the charts in 37 countries. Later hits included 2 Become 1 in 1996, Who Do You Think You Are in 1997, and Stop and Viva Forever in 1998.
Spicemania (a deliberate comparison with the Beatlemania of the 1960s) reached fever pitch in 1997, and the members of the group became best known by the nicknames given to them by journalists emphasising their contrasting personalities: Baby, Ginger, Posh, Scary and Sporty.
Their heyday was over very quickly, however. They made only two studio albums as a five-piece before Geri left in 1998, and one as a four-piece in 2000 before diverting to solo projects.
They subsequently reunited for a tour in 2007, a famous one-off performance at the Olympic Games closing ceremony in London in 2012, and another tour in 2019, this time without Victoria.
The issue was designed by Supple Studio and printed in litho by Cartor. The counter sheet stamps come in se tenant strips of five.
1st class BRIT AWARDS, 1997
The Spice Girls performing on stage at the Brit Awards at Earls Court in London in 1997.
1st class MELANIE CHISHOLM
Melanie Chisholm performing at the Brit Awards at the London Arena in 1998.
1st class OLYMPIC CEREMONY, 2012
The Spice Girls performing during the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games.
1st class GERI HALLIWELL
Geri Halliwell performing at the Brit Awards at Earls Court in London in 1997.
1st class SAN JOSE, 2007
The Spice Girls performing on stage in San Jose, California, USA, in 2007.
1st class EMMA BUNTON
Emma Bunton performing at Wembley Arena in London in 1998.
1st class ISTANBUL, 1997
The Spice Girls performing on stage in Istanbul, Turkey, in 1997.
1st class VICTORIA BECKHAM
Victoria Beckham performing at Madison Square Garden in New York City, USA, in 2008.
1st class DUBLIN, 1998
The Spice Girls performing on stage in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, in 1998.
1st class MELANIE BROWN
Melanie Brown performing at the Brit Awards at Earls Court in London in 1997.
MINIATURE SHEET
1st class POSH SPICE
Studio photograph of Victoria Adams.
1st class SCARY SPICE
Studio photograph of Melanie Brown.
1st class BABY SPICE
Studio photograph of Emma Bunton.
1st class GINGER SPICE
Studio photograph of Geri Halliwell.
1st class SPORTY SPICE
Studio photograph of Melanie Chisholm.
ADDITIONAL PRODUCTS
The presentation pack gives an overview of the Spice Girls’ career, and a press sheet of 12 uncut miniature sheets is available in a limited edition of 200.
First day covers and stamp cards are offered as usual, along with a range of merchandise.
PRICES
Set of 10 stamps £12.50
Miniature sheet £6.25
Presentation pack £19.65
First day cover (stamps) £15.65
First day cover (mini sheet) £8.15
Press sheet £75.00
Stamp cards £7.20
VERDICT
COMMEMORATIVE WORTH 3/5
This pop phenomenon enjoyed great success, but not longevity
QUALITY OF DESIGN 2/5
All the images are photographic, albeit with a fair degree of variety
WOW FACTOR 2/5
Will Royal Mail find out that Spice Girl fans are not stamp collectors?
