Commonwealth Games: Birmingham 2022
Issued: 28 July 2022
Better Images When Available
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Is that a ping pong stamp? I love it!! 
(That’s the extent of my sporting prowess!) Wonderful!
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These are wonderful! Thanks for sharing 
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Hmm… someone on a stamp forum has suggested a price rise before December has been mooted…
I hope not! I don’t mind so much if things actually arrive, but I seem to be rather unlucky of late with missing mail and ghostcrossers.
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In case of help to anyone I went on the Royal mail site today and was able to purchase rolling stone and jubilee stamps still at £1.70
They will need 15p additional stamps but a good way of using up those small denominations before year end
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An interesting article about the new barcoded stamps (with a bit of added stamp history)
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We are definitely not amused!
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I was a bit disappointed to find when sending some postcards from my recent trip to Bath that the barcode bit on the book of purple first class stamps I bought didn’t yet allow me to add my own linked picture for recipients to access. A major “selling point” of these stamps that doesn’t work yet, that users have to grit our teeth and bear until it does. Of course when it eventually works it will likely rely on recipients having the Royal Mail app to read the things. The book is also so big that I can’t fit it in my wallet without having to bend it and some of the stamps inside. What happened to “Own a pocket Post Office - buy a book of stamps”?
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This could disrupt our Postcrossing 
Royal Mail managers to strike.
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How gloriously colourful!
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Love them or hate them!
The new regional country definitives with barcodes are up for pre-order, I personally will be getting a set/sheet.
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I do like the £1.85s. I don’t think I’ve seen those particular designs before (without the barcode, obviously).
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Oh Louise, these have been some of my favourites since I started postcrossing, they have always been well recieved.
I started with the 2018 stamp set, the last time a full set was issued, usually they only do the international rates.
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Hi all,
I have recently discovered the idea of postmark (better late than never lol). I have read the newest bulletin on Royal Mail’s website however I am still not 100% clear on how it works exactly.
Does anyone here have any experience with it by any chance?
First of all, I am after this Belfast postmark:
My understanding is that I can send a bunch of postcards to the Northern Centre in Edinburgh, they apply the postmarks on them for me and post the cards back to me. Is this correct? I believe I need to include at least 1 x 1st class stamp for return postage. Also, they will need a note from me confirming which postmark I want but is there anything else you would include?
Can I stick £1.85 stamp on the cards first and have the postmark apply on them? I am worried that if they do this, it means the stamp will be cancelled and therefore Royal Mail won’t accept it should I wish to post it to someone. However I saw the below card on Instagram recently and it looks to me like the stamp was cancelled but it could still be posted to someone… It’s probably a silly question but I can’t see to find postmarks FAQs on Royal Mail’s website.
Thanks!
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Hi Monika @moniage
I have some experience with the postmarking service, I will reply in detail in due course, alternatively send me a PM.
A few others here will probably share their experience too
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Hi Monika,
When I first started obtaining the special postmarks, I pretty much what you explained above, I requested the postmark on a blank stamped postcard and ask for them to be returned to me in a envelope undercover,
I would then write out the postcard and send it to its recipient in an envelope, as the stamp on the postcard is no longer valid for postage of the postcard.
Intially I did not think that the handstamp centres where able to forward to international addresses, but they do, all you need to do is apply the appropriate postage and leave plenty of space below the stamp(s) as the postmarks are quite big.
I usually send about five postcards, including one to myself in an envelope with the requested postmark number and date request (they will apply the postmark on any date, including Sundays, public holidays and Christmas). They are usually returned in a clear envelope to prevent further machine or pen cancellation and turnaround/forwarding times can vary between 7 days and three months.
Here is my example for a bunch of postcards, I sent back in April with the Southampton cancellation for the 110th year since the sinking of the Titanic.
This one was returned to me, others where forwarded.
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