James Mackay

James Mackay  |  Nov 30, 2010  |  0 comments

The exact date on which William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon is unknown, but tradition says it was on St George’s Day, April 23, 1564.

The Post Office’s long-standing refusal to countenance stamps in honour of famous people gave it a problem in 1964 when there was agitation for a special issue of stamps to mark the 400th anniversary.

But it found a way around its discomfort.

James Mackay  |  Nov 30, 2010  |  0 comments

Sir Winston Churchill was 90 years old when he died on January 24, 1965.

Remarkably, he had been a member of the House of Commons until as recently as the previous autumn.

As Britain’s greatest parliamentarian and war leader, not to mention a Nobel Prize-winning author, a journalist and an accomplished artist, he was an obvious subject for a set of stamps, but the Post Office established a new precedent in issuing them.

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