Newsletter - 2026-01-24

Saturday, 17th January 2026

Here we have an actual footballer called Roy, but as we were going to delve into the realms of imagination, we were thinking of Roy of the Rovers, who, sadly, I could not find on a card. 

Roy Race played for Melchester Rovers, and he took the field in 1954, in the "Tiger" comic. He was so popular that he ended up with his own comic. Then, for some reason, and rather shockingly for a children`s comic, he was injured in a helicopter crash and could no longer play football. The action then switched to his son who also played for Melchester Rovers, and took the field in his stead. This may well have been done to make the character younger, and not so out of touch with its also younger audience, but why not just retire our Roy, peacefully, to a bungalow in the country, overlooking a football field. Especially as our Roy did come back later, as manager of Melchester United, with his son still playing on. 

This card shows an actual Roy, Roy Thomas Frank Bentley, shown here in his Chelsea strip. 

In fact he played for several teams, starting with his local team, Bristol City in 1939, though, almost certainly due to the date, he made not a single appearance for them, and only took the field once football resumed in 1946, by which time he had been signed by Newcastle United, and become married. He had spent the Second World War in the Royal Navy. And he stayed with Newcastle United two years, during which he played in the F.A. Cup semi final for the first time.

He then moved to Chelsea in 1948, on advice from his doctor, and possibly inspired by Tommy Lawton, who had also moved there to ease a similar lung problem. It seems likely that this was a side effect of our man`s Royal Naval service, but not of Tommy Lawton`s who had served in the Army.  With Chelsea he made his first appearance on a cigarette card, Carreras "Turf"`s 1948 set of "Footballers".   most of his appearances on the field, some three hundred and twenty four matches, and he also got the nod to play for England, gathering twelve caps. 

In 1956 he moved again, but not that far away, for he went to Fulham. And he ended his career in 1962 after two years at Queen`s Park Rangers. 

After he retired from them, he became a manager, first with Reading and then to Swansea City. He moved to Essex after that, but came back to Reading, which is where he died, on the 20th of April, 2018, aged ninety-three, and the last surviving player from the 1950 World Cup Squad.

This set first appears in our British Trade Index part two, as just one set  : 

                                                  DAILY HERALD
Cards inscribed "Daily Herald Copyright". Issued about 1948-50

• FOOTBALLERS (A). Sm. 61 x 37. Black. Nd. (32) ... DAA-2 

There is an update in our British Trade Index part three, which tells us that special albums were issued for each of their three sets ("Cricketers",  "Footballers", and "Turf Personalities"). These were inscribed "Sporting Publicity (Leeds)", with the cards in the set enumerated on the inside front cover. 

Now by the time of our updated British Trade Index, all was changed. The three sets are now listed, with another title, as : 

• SPORT STARS. 61 x 37. Black. Nd. Issued in three series with special albums for each series inscribed "Sporting Publicity (Leeds), "Sport Stars", with titles of the three sets, Subjects listed on front cover of each album. ... DAI-180
   

1. Cricket Stars. Nd. (32). Two printings for numbers 1/22 : 
    
           1. Daily Herald Copyright" at base 
    
           2. As above, with "Sportfoto" added beneath
   
               Nos. 23/32 are anonymous, numbered, titled "Past Masters", and are black line drawings.
    
2. Racing Personalities. Nd. (32)
    
3. Soccer Stars. Nd. (32). Two printings. See also under "Sportfoto", SPO-130. All three issues are listed at HD-7 to illustrate the differences. 
   
              1. 1951/2. "Daily Herald Copyright" at base, player`s name in a) bold thick, b) thin letters. See HD-7.A
   
              2. 1953/4. As above, "SPORTFOTO" beneath, in a) bold, thick, b) thin letters. See HD-7.B

There could be a case for believing that the difference between the two versions of our set was simply lighter ink, but you can decide that for yourself, as we feature the b. version with the thin letters as our diary date this week for Saturday the 24th of January. 

Sunday, 18th January 2026

Now I have spoken of Robin Hood in passing, but not told of his tale. 

Something we all think we know was that he was an outlaw, but also a hero; loved by the poor, to whom he brought clothing, food, and money -  but hated by the rich, whose worldly goods those had been. 

It is said Robin Hood was first immortalised in folk ballads in the fourteenth century. That was "The Vision of Piers the Plowman", by William Langland, written in 1377 - but if you read that it clearly states that the tales of Robyn Hood were well known, and had been for some time. That leads credence to the belief that he was actually from a much earlier time, maybe even a Saxon Earl.  

As for what else we think he know about him, all is come from legend  - the green of the clothing he wore (which is unlikely), the fact that he was born in Lockersley (though there never was a place of that name), and that he was based in Sherwood Forest (possibly).

Even his band of outlaws and the love of his life, the noblewoman, Maid Marian were all embroidered into the story as it gathered momentum - Friar Tuck coming along in 1475, heedless of the fact that during the reign of King Richard the first all kinds of religion were banned - Maid Marian only appearing in the sixteenth century as a simple shepherdess.

At first his only companion is Little John, who began in "The Vision of Piers the Plowman", by William Langland, written in 1377, and we even think that this character was at first the hero of the story, with Robin Hood coming into the story, as an interloper, much later.

Robin Hood first appears on cards in 1924, as card number three of Carreras`s "Highwaymen". The text there tells us that he "Was the hero of a group of old English Ballads. Represented as an outlaw and a robber, but in reality of a gallant and generous nature. His familiar haunts were the Forests of Sherwood and Barnsdale. Unrivalled with the bow and quarterstaff, and generous to the poor, and all honest men in distress."

His next appearance is as the star of a set called "Robin Hood", a set of thirty cards issued by Typhoo Tea, in 1926. The text there tells us that he was "Born Locksley in Yorkshire, (or Notts.) about 1160. Reported to have been Earl of Huntingdon. His company consisted of 100 archers. He frequented Barnsdale and Sherwood Forests, and according to some, Plompton Park in Cumberland. He took from the rich only, and charitably fed the poor".

The following year, he can be found on card 9 of E. & S. C.W.S.` "Peeps into History", a humorous look into the past. The front shows the Merry Men, and Maid Marian, enjoying a tea break, with china cups. Maid Marian even has a saucer. The text there says "Robin Hood and His Merry Men. A.D. 1195. The name of Robin Hood even to-day suggests a picture of freedom and happiness. Whether this is true or not is a matter of conjecture, but we do know he contributed much to the history of "Merry England". How much merrier they might have been had they known the joys of C.W.S. Tea, and particularly "DIGESTIVE TEA TIPS" ! The cup that cheers."

Though Robin Hood had appeared in five silent films already, we think that the above sets were all inspired by the 1922 version which starred Douglas Fairbanks as the Earl of Huntingdon, with Enid Bennett as Lady Marian Fitzwalter. 

The set first appears in our British Trade Index part two, as : 

                                The MASTER Vending Co., Ltd., London, N.W.3 
or The Master Vending Machine Co. Cards issued 1958-60. Large size 95-96 x 65-66 m/m. Includes cards inscribed "Cardmaster" without firm`s name. Albums issued. 

• A BOMBSHELL FOR THE SHERIFF. Lg. Nd. (25) ... MCA-1

In our updated version, it appears as : 

• A BOMBSHELL FOR THE SHERIFF. 1959. Nd. (25) ... MAS-140

In fact since writing this I have discovered there were two Master Vending sets featuring Robin Hood, in a very similar style, the other set being called "Taxing The Sheriff", and being present in both Trade Indexes, just not linked to our set in any way, and, because the sets are listed in alphabetical order, some way further down. It was issued in the same year, and may even have come first. That is recorded in our original British Trade Index part two, without any mention of Robin Hood, which how I missed it, the entry simply reading : 

• TAXING THE SHERIFF. 1959. Nd. (25) ... MCA-6

And in our updated version, it appears as : 

• TAXING THE SHERIFF. 1959. Nd. (25) Backs are small sketches of Robin Hood ... MAS-190

Monday, 19th January 2026

Here we have the sirens, known to all Greek sailors, and feared, for their song could drive a man so mad that his only chance was to tie himself to the mast of his ship so that he could not jump in the sea and swim to be with them. And yet not only did they not exist, there were variations of what they looked like, where they lived, and even what their song sounded like. 

This card is especially apt, as it is the story of Homer`s Odyssey, and that was where the sirens first appeared in literature. It seems that he had heard the tales of them, but had no idea of what they were like, so he chose not to describe them. There is something very interesting though, because the root of the Greek word for sirens leads you back not to mean beautiful singing women, but to mean ropes, and bindings, such as Odysseus uses to tie himself to the mast, away from temptation.  

Unfortunately you cannot see on this card, but the Sirens were not mermaids, with curving fish-like tails, at least not until things got a bit confused in the Middle Ages. At that time pictures of sirens and mermaids both had fish tails, but sirens were associated with sin and lustful temptation (an association the word still has today) and mermaids were associated with luring sailors to their deaths at sea.

Actually, in Ancient Greek and Roman accounts the sirens were beautiful ladies on the top half, but with a bird`s wings, legs and tail, and claws on their scaly feet, and, especially in Greece, that bird was an owl. Strangely, this bird woman also appears in other cultures, Indian, Russian and Persian - and the Russians even called her Sirin. 

Both Ovid and Virgil said that they hung out on three small rocky islands that were therefore called Sirenum Scopuli. However it was never actually tied down as to where these islands were, other than somewhere in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Italy or Greece. 

The cards in this set, at least in the French version, are : 

1.  Fuite de l`ile des Cyclopes [Escape from the Island of the Cyclops]
2.  Hermes apportant l`herbe enchantee a Ulysse [Hermes bringing the enchanted herb to Ulysses
3.  Passage devant le rocher des sirenes [Passing by the Sirens' Rock]
4.  Ulysse construisant le radeau pour rentree dans son pays [Ulysses building a raft to return to his country]
5.  Ulysse sauve par Leucothee [Ulysses saved by Leucothea]
6. L`epreuve de l`arc d`Ulysse [The test of Odysseus' bow]

it is also available in Italian, as L'Odissea

Tuesday, 20th January 2026

As a nation, we have long been inspired by the tales of King Arthur, his Round Table, his valiant knights, his love for the Lady Guinevere.

However there is very little fact to these epics, and though there had been several early works attempting to tell the story of this land, not one had mention of his name. There is a tantalising clue in one of these though, a work called "De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae" (or On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain), for whilst it does not mention Arthur, and ascribes some of his deeds to several people, it does speak of a Romano-British leader called Ambrosius Aurelanius, nicknamed "Bear" from the bearskin he wore about him - and Bear, when translated to Latin, is arctus, though, in Celtic, it is a similar word, artos, and both of these are very close to Arthur. 

The earliest mention of an Arthur is only in passing, it is a Welsh poem called "Y Gododdin", which tells of a warrior called Gwawrddur who was skilled, "but no Arthur". However it does not elaborate on this Arthur, nor tell us why he was more skilled. Then, in another Welsh manuscript, we suddenly hear of how, during the Battle of Badon, Arthur had been victorious, and stopped the Saxon progress - which brings us back to Ambrosius Aurelianus all over again, as he was one of the staunchest fighters at the battle of Mount Badon. 

This Welsh connection is intriguing, though, and even reflected in our set, where card number one translates to "Arthur defends Wales, his Homeland".

Most of the things we think we know about King Arthur were not written down until the middle ages, when a cleric, Geoffrey of Monmouth, wrote a book called "Historia Regum Britanniae", which attempted to tell the stories of the Kings of England. And here is where we learn of Lady Guinevere,  Lancelot, and the wizard Merlin, as well as his birth, at Tintagel, his famed castle, though named as Caerleon, not Camelot, and his trusty sword, here called Caliburn, not Excalibur. And it also tells of his death, and removal to Avalon, though where Avalon is is unclear. 

As for the Round Table, that appears in a much later work, by Chrétien de Troyes, who also gave us the quest for the Holy Grail, in a separate poem, both written towards the end of the twelfth century This was expanded on by Thomas Malory, with his "Morte d`Arthur", published in 1486. He set Camelot in Winchester, and it was a very popular work, so much so that Henry VII`s new baby was christened Prince Arthur. It seems that Henry VII was much enamoured with the Arthurian legends, and told of them to both his children. Sadly his dream that Prince Arthur would become King Arthur was not to be, he died young  - but we can tell of the effects that the tales had on his brother, Henry VIII, as he was obsessed with Edward III`s Round Table at Winchester, and not only had it repainted, but in doing so set an image of himself squarely at the top, where King Arthur would have sat. 

It is possible that our cards were suggested by the success of a book, also published in 1910, called "Stories of King Arthur" by A. L. Haydon, with plates by Arthur Rackham. Sadly not much seems to be known of Mr. Haydon, and he died in 1910, quite young, for he had only been born in 1872. 

The  cards are : 

1.  Arthur defend le pays de Galles, sa patrie (Arthur defends Wales, his homeland)
2.  Cortege nuptial d`Arthur et de Genievre (The wedding procession of Arthur and Guinevere)
3.  La Table Ronde (The Round Table)
4.  Arthur debarque en Irlande et exige un tribute (Arthur lands in Ireland and demands tribute)
5.  Perceval depart a la recherche d`aventures (Perceval sets off in search of adventure)
6.  Mort d`Arthur (The death of Arthur)

And they are also available in Italian, as "Il Ciclo di Artu". 

Wednesday, 21st January 2026

This Green Man seems to owe much to Robin Hood, but the more usual Green Man is just his head, either made from, or encapsulated in, foliage, and in that he symbolises how in springtime nature bursts forth, with unquenchable force, covering all in its path. It means that everything on this earth is not static, it has its time to be born, and its time to die. It is a very popular pagan symbol, and all round the globe, and it is almost exclusively a male, and always just a head, though women`s heads do, very rarely, appear.

There seems to be a link with King Arthur too, or at least to the Green Knight, who both tormented and advised Sir Gawain, both before Sir Gawain decapitated him, and then after he had picked up his head and ridden away, requesting they meet in a year and a day`s time. 

Returning to our figure, he appears to be a different type of Green Man, and nothing to do with foliage, but in actual fact he too is usually represented in parades and pageants by a local villager dressed in a costume of leaves and moss, who most often dances at the front of these, clearing the onlookers out of the way, and sometimes demanding money, or forfeits. The latter is reminiscent of the trials that the Green Knight would set Sir Gawain; and research proves that this version of the Green Man is indeed linked to Sir Gawain, as well as to another figure called Jack in the Green, who is lauded in Derbyshire on May Day, being covered in foliage and flowers and led through the streets on a horse. Sometimes Jack in the Green also has a lady friend, who traditionally was a man in woman`s clothing. And at the end of the ceremony, the wreath about his head is removed, and pushed down on a pinnacle of the Church tower, in an act which is also said to symbolise the beheading of that Green Knight, by Sir Gawain. 

As for the Green Man in Shatterling, near Ashford in Kent, it started out as a farm, in 1728, owned by Lt. Colonel Christopher Kien, who also lived at Kensington Palace in London.  He then leased it to a local farmer, and in 1744, when he died, the lease was passed to his widow, and she seems to have allowed the farmer to stay on, not just that, but was gracious enough, on his death, to allow it to the widow. By that time though, one of the outbuildings was being used as an ale house, with all the correct legal papers, and had been since 1740, though there was possibly a bit of double dealing going on for the ale house was listed as being in the parish of Staple, rather than at Shatterling. 

It seems to have stayed with several generations of the same farmer`s family too, even after widow Kien had prepared for her death by leasing it to a Samuel Joynes, then by leaving it to the Coussemaker family  who seem no relation, but in 1788 it is recorded as being left to a George Kien Hayward Cousemaker, so there must be some link to the Kien family.  

At some time after that date there was some trouble with the ale house, and it was closed. In fact it was more than closed, because a codicil was reportedly added to the deeds stating stating that it could never be an ale house again. However in 1820 this was challenged, by a Filmer Larkins, and though he was not allowed to open the former ale house in the outbuildings, he was allowed to convert the house into one. We also have rather enlightening details, suggesting that the trouble was not revellers as I was thinking, for in the license it states that the ales sold could not be adulterated, or sold from pots of illegal measure. Only then does it go on to stress that there could be no gaming, nor drunkenness, and that known thieves could not be served. The premises at that time were owned by the daughter of George Kien Hayward Cousemaker, and she supported the application for a full license in 1826, after the trial period was over. However she sold it in 1841, to a John Dadds of Wingham, and he sold it, pretty much straight away, to a George Collard, from Staple, who was a licensed victualler. 

Whitbread came along in 1955, which is the year this set was issued, and the "Green Man" was amongst several public houses which they gained on taking over a company called Combined Brewery Holdings. And they kept it until 1972, when they sold it on as a Free House. In 1996 it was renamed to "The Frog and Orange". That was auctioned in 2021, and it seems likely the premises will be demolished and the land used for housing. But it seems that this was later changed to only two houses not the several which were originally imagined, and nothing yet has begun. 

As for our card, it is from the fifth set in a group of cards which we discuss fully with our Card of the Day for the 1st of April, 2025 (but not for long as it is getting ready to move!).

This fifth series (and also the fourth) differs from the first few in they chooses not to display the name of the county. And there is another difference too, for the fourth and fifth were only available on card, not on aluminium. And this fifth series was the last one in this group, until the "Special Issue of Four" in 1951, which you can read about in our newsletter of the 12th of July 2025. 

In our original British Trade Index part II, these six, and  the one off card of "The Britannia Inn" are catalogued together. The entry for our set reads  

                               WHITBREAD & CO. Ltd.
Brewers. Issued 1950-1958. 

• INN SIGNS. Md. 76 x 51 ... WHI-1
  
  5. Fifth Series. Nd. (50). On board

By the time of our updated British Trade Index, our set is listed as : 

                               WHITBREAD & CO. Ltd.
Brewers. Issued 1950-1974. All 76 x 50. 

• WHITBREAD`S INN SIGNS. Fifth Series. 1955. Nd. (50). ... WHI-190

As far as the inns which had their signs immortalised, they were as follows : 

1. ADMIRAL HARVEY Ramsgate
2. ARMY & NAVY Rainham
3. BAILIFF`S SERGEANT Dymchurch
4. THE BELL Hythe
5. BRENT`S TAVERN Faversham
6. THE BRICKMAKERS Deal
7. BRITANNIA Milton Regis
8. THE BULL INN Sissinghurst
9. BURNT OAK Gillingham
10. CARDINAL`S ERROR Tonbridge
11. CARPENTERS` ARMS Canterbury
12. CECIL ARMS Strood
13. THE CHEQUERS Biddenden
14. THE CHEQUERS High Halden
15. CLARENDON INN Sandgate
16. CLOTHWORKERS` ARMS Sutton Valence
17. DENMARK ARMS Rochester
18. DUCHESS OF KENT Dover
19. DUKE OF CUMBERLAND Barham
20. FALSTAFF TAP Canterbury
21. THE GEORGE Folkestone
22. THE GRAPES Milton Regis
23. GREEN MAN Shatterling
24. THE HARP Tunbridge Wells
25. HOP POLES Canterbury
26. KING`S HEAD Hythe
27. MAN OF KENT Crundale
28. NAG`S HEAD St. Leonard`s-on-Sea
29. NELSON`S HEAD Hythe
30. NEWCASTLE INN Ewell Minnis
31. OLD GOLDEN CROSS Hastings
32. PIER HOTEL Herne Bay
33. RAILWAY HOTEL Gillingham
34. RED LION Stodmarsh
35. ROYAL DRAGOON Canterbury
36. ROYAL OAK Bonnington
37. ROYAL OAK Iden Green
38. SHIP CENTURION Whitstable
39. SHIP HOTEL New Romney
40. SHREW BESHREWED Hersden
41. SPREAD EAGLE Chatham
42. TRAFALGAR MAID Chatham
43. TRUE BRITON Folkestone
44. WHITE HORSE Tonbridge
45. THE WINDMILL Cranbrook
46. WOODLAND TAVERN Gillingham
47. THE WOODMAN East Malling
48. THE WOOLPACK Goudhurst
49. THE YORK Chatham
50. YPRES CASTLE Rye

Thursday, 22nd January 2026

Here we have the mythical Unicorn, which strays a bit from the human subjects we have so far featured, but was offered me by reader Mr. Franks, and so I accepted, mainly because this was a first series card and it was going to be a Card of the Day, therefore a really great home page for the original five sets of this Whitbread issue. And its a unicorn, so I`m not turning one of those down - I even have unicorns on one of my bath towels... or is that T.M.I.....? 

The Unicorn never really existed, and it is hard to imagine what could have been glimpsed and erroneously identified, for its horn is hugely long, much more so than a deer or rhinoceros, and it is, in addition, spirally twisted like a antelope, though totally in the wrong place. And we do not know how it came to be believed that it could only be approached and tamed by a truly virtuous maiden - which is the way it is generally depicted in art, and often with the Virgin Mary.  However, the unicorn is neither male nor female, or possibly both, which in some way accounts for its acceptance as a symbol by the LGTBQIA+ community. 

I am not totally convinced that its first representation in art comes from seals of the Indus Valley, about 2,000 B.C.for the body is all wrong, it is more like a bull, and the horn is curving, in the manner of a rope tying the poor creature whilst it awaits its fate. Though we do know that the Greeks believed the unicorn came from India, and even called it the one horned Indian ass. In fact Pliny calls it a monoceros, being the singular or the rhinoceros.  

We do not know how it came to be the emblem, or at least one of the emblems, of Scotland - the other being the lion. 

Not much is known about the Unicorn public house. It seems have at first been a private dwelling, and the first written reference to it being a public house was in 1861, when the publican was a Henry Mission, and it seems they also rented rooms. However the Mission family had been living there, on and off, since 1840. It seems to have then moved upmarket and become a public house and hotel, and in the 1880s it was on the coaching route, thanks to its location, right in the centre of Marden, and flanking the market place. 

This page is now the home page for the first five series of Whitbread`s "Inn Signs", because this is from the first set of Whitbread "Inn Signs" to have been issued as proper cards - though they were not the first "cards" to be issued; those were black and white reproductions of inn signs, pretty much business cards, with the proprietor`s names on the reverse.

The cards of Series one were made of metal, and only of metal. There is a reason for this, for when the first and second set was produced, paper was still scarce, after the Second World War, but thin aluminium sheet was more readily available, and, it must be said, this material was almost certainly sold to Whitbread on the grounds that it looked and felt more like an actual inn sign.

The idea of the series began in 1949, when the Whitbread & Company Brewery, at Wateringbury, in Kent, thought it would be interesting to make collectable plaques of some of the signs which hung outside their public houses. The cards were given away, just handed over the counter when you bought a pint of beer. Now there are two schools of thought to that statement - the first has it that each card was only available at the inn where that sign hung, and to get the rest you had to travel to all the other public houses, and buy a beer - whilst other collectors say that the cards were left at each pub in bundles, and you just got the next one at random. The first becomes more likely when you realise that the inns are quite close together - the first ten being in Hastings and St. Leonards on Sea (in Sussex),  cards eleven to fourteen from Rye, (also in Sussex),  and cards fifteen to fifty from Kent.

The actual list of inn signs which make up Series one are as follows : 

1. THE G.I. Hastings
2. WISHING TREE St. Leonards-on-Sea
3. THE PRINCES Hastings
4. THE FOUNTAIN Hastings
5. OLD GOLDEN CROSS Hastings
6. WARRIORS GATE St. Leonards-on-Sea
7. BRITISH QUEEN St. Leonards-on-Sea
8. DRIPPING SPRING  St. Leonards-on-Sea
9. MARINA INN  St. Leonards-on-Sea
10. NAGS HEAD St. Leonards-on-Sea
11. WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR Rye Harbour
12. QUEEN ADELAIDE Rye
13. YPRES CASTLE Rye
14. SHIP INN Winchelsea Beach
15. BLACK HORSE Tenterden
16. THE HARRIER Sandhurst
17. OAK & IVY Hawkshurst
18. KING WILLIAM IV Benenden
19. THIS ANCIENT BORO` Tenterden
20. ROYAL OAK Wrotham Heath
21. THE STARTLED SAINT West Malling
22. THE CRICKETERS Maidstone
23. QUEEN`S HEAD Maidstone
24. HARE & HOUNDS Maidstone
25. BLACK LION Mereworth
26. TORRINGTON ARMS Mereworth
27. DUKE WITHOUT A HEAD Wateringbury
28. NORTH POLE Wateringbury
29. QUEEN`S HEAD  Wateringbury
30. KING`S HEAD  Wateringbury
31. THE PHOENIX Wateringbury
32. THE HARROW Wateringbury
33. THE TELEGRAPH  Wateringbury
34. RAILWAY HOTEL Nettlestead
35. THE HOP POLE Nettlestead
36. THE WOOLPACK Yalding
37. TWO BREWERS Yalding
38. TWO BREWERS Yalding (different to the above)
39. CHESTNUT TREE Yalding
40. THE HARP INN East Peckham
41. THE MERRY BOYS East Peckham
42. THE CHEQUERS Tudeley
43. JOHN BRUNT V.C. Paddock Wood
44. THE BULL Hunton
45. KENT ARMS Fowl Hall
46. PRINCE OF WALES Collier Street
47. THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON Collier Street
48. THE FOUNTAIN East Peckham
49. THE UNICORN Marden
50. THE RED LION Offham

In the second series, issued in 1950, which we speak of as our Card of the Day for the 1st of April 2025, they are again a mixture of inns in these two counties, Kent and Sussex.  And in the third series, issued in 1951, one of which is our Card of the Day for the 17th of September 2024,  they are solely from the county of Kent.  The fourth series has not yet appeared on these pages, but the fifth has, just, for it was the Card of the Day only yesterday, on the 21st of January 2026.

Now it is often stated that this fifth was the end of that line - and that what came next was the so called "Special Issue of Four" which you can read about in our newsletter of the 12th of July 2025, though as it is a newsletter card you will have to scroll down to Monday, the 14th July. In any event, this is incorrect, as that "Special Issue of Four" was issued in 1951, and that means they push their way in between the Second and Third Series of the standard Inn Signs. The belief that these are later is also reinforced by our original British Trade Index part II, where all these seven sets are catalogued together, as : 

INN SIGNS. Md. 76 x 51 ... WHI-1

1. First Series. Nd. (50). On aluminium
2. Second Series. Nd. (50). On aluminium
3. Third Series. Nd. (50). On (a) aluminium (b) board
4. Fourth Series. Nd. (50). On board
5. Fifth Series. Nd. (50). On board
6. Special issue of Four. Nd. (4). On board
7. The Britannia Inn. Unnd. (1). On board

Note : Signs were also issued uncoloured by certain Inns on the backs of calling cards, as pin-ons, etc.

In our original British Trade Index part three, item 7 was updated, and a later edition of three cards issued in 1958 appeared. And it also expanded on the note at the end of the above listing - which are out of date order, for they came first, being designed as business cards, having the sign of the inn on the front and the proprietors details on the reverse. In fact a lot of collectors believe that it was the making of those that set the idea of making the coloured series off. That listing from British Trade Index three reads :

7. The Britannia Inn. Back (a) plain (b) printed, with reference to Brussels 1958 Exhibition. 
8. Whitbread`s Inn Signs - 1958. On board. Series of 3.  
    1. Duke Without a Head
    2. The Railway
    3. The Startled Saint
9. Black and White reproductions, partly with proprietor`s names on reverse. 4 known.
    1. Oak & Ivy - Hawkhurst
    2. The Old Cock, Hildenborough
    3. Spread Eagle, Chatham
    4. Trafalgar Maid (back blank)

Section 9 is added to in our original British Trade Index part IV, with : 

9. Black and White reproductions. Add : 
    5. Camden Hotel, Pembury
    6. The Woolpack

This was the end of the line, for a while, but in 1973 the idea was restarted, with cards called  "The History of Whitbread Inn Signs”. They will have a home page all their own, one day, but for the moment you can read about one of what would eventually become eleven sets with our Card of the Day for the 28th of November 2023

By the time of our updated British Trade Index, the five standard series, including our fifth, are listed as : 

                                                             WHITBREAD & CO. Ltd.
Brewers. Issued 1950-1974. All 76 x 50. All issues are covered in this volume. The History and listing of numbered series is covered in full in the book "Collecting Whitbread Inn-Signs" by Cockell and Laming, 1996. 

• WHITBREAD`S INN SIGNS. First Series. 1949. Nd.  (50). On metal.     ... WHI-150
   
• WHITBREAD`S INN SIGNS. Second Series. 1950. Nd.  (50) On metal. ... WHI-160
   
• WHITBREAD`S INN SIGNS. Third Series. 1951-52. Nd.  (50) On a) metal. b) card. A number of cards have been seen with square corners... WHI-170
   
• WHITBREAD`S INN SIGNS. Fourth Series. 1953. Nd.  (50) 25 of this series are known with plain backs, Nos. 1, 4, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 19, 20, 24, 27, 28, 29, 31, 34, 35, 37, 38, 41, 43, 44, 46, 50.  ... WHI-180
   
• WHITBREAD`S INN SIGNS. Fifth Series. 1955. Nd.  (50)                      . ... WHI-190

That reference book about the signs was issued in 1996, and it is quite scarce. I am not sure whether the copy in our library is that or not though, as this is listed by another title, "Whitbread Inn-Signia". But I will find out. 

Friday, 23rd January 2026

Here we have Britannia, the national symbol of England, so much so that she appears on our coinage.

We do not know why she was decided to be a woman, especially as she wears robes and a helmet, and carries the warlike, masculine tools of the shield and trident. But we do know that her first appearance on a coin was in 119 A.D, during the reign of Emperor Hadrian, where she is seated, but only holds a spear. There is a connection you may not realise though, for Britannia was the name that the Romans gave this land under their occupation, and it is also from where our calling it Britain developed. 

Britannia was soon forgotten after the Romans left Britain, and only resurfaced in the time of John Dee, who resurrected her to stunning effect, kneeling before Queen Elizabeth I, begging that she strengthen the Navy, for an illustration in his book "General and Rare Memorials Pertayning to the Perfect Arte of Navigation", published in 1577. This contradicts the popular belief that James I added her connection to the sea by mistaking the rocks on which she stands as waves - though James II also used her, on coinage, at the time of the War against the Dutch in 1665, as well as on the medal struck to mark the end of that War in 1667, a medal which, for the first time, adds her shield. As for the lion that she often stands beside, this was added in the First World War, which is why there is no lion on this card.

As to who modelled for her, it is said to have originally been Frances Teresa Stewart, Duchess of Richmond and Lennox, who was well known at court, but not well known enough to Charles II, in his opinion, for she consistently refused to become his mistress. There is a theory that immortalising her on this coin was  a further attempt to sway her, but that too failed.  

The earliest twentieth century version, from 1901, was modelled from the Chancellor of the Exchequer`s daughter, aged just seventeen - but it was not popular, and ceased to be minted just ten years later.  In 1936, when George VI came to power, Britannia returned, along with a trident, not a spear, and, rather incongrously, a lighthouse in the background. And today though she is not on the coins in general circulation, we do still have Britannia, on the bullion coins that bear her name.

This set first appears in our original Australasian Miscellaneouys Booklet, RB.20, published in 1951 as :

• 18. CRESTS OF BRITISH WARSHIPS (adopted title). Size 67 x 43 m/m. Fronts per Fig.18 in colour, grey background. Backs (type 5) in (A) Blue (B) Green, both colours found on matt and semi glossy board. Unnumbered series of 64. Each caption commences with "H.M.S" - 

1. Achilles (1907)
2. Africa (1906)
3. Agamemnon (1908)
4. Albemarle (1903)
5. Antrim (1903)
6. Argyll (1904)
7. Bellerophon (1909)
8. Berwick (1903) 
9. Birmingham (1914)
10. Black Prince (1908)
11. Britannia (1906)
12. Caernarvon (1905)
13. Collingwood (1910)
14. Commonwealth (1905)
15. Conqueror (1912)
16. Cormwall (1902)
17. Defence (1909)
18. Devonshire (1905)
19. Dominion (1905)
20. Drake (1902)
21. Dreadnought (1906)
22. Dublin (1913)
23. Dukeof Edinburgh (1906)
24. Essex (1903)
25. Exmouth (1903)
26. Glasgow (1910)
27. Hampshire (1905)
28. Hercules (1911)
29. Hibernia (1906)
30. Hindustan (1905)
31. Indefatigable (1911)
32. Indomitable (1908)
33. Inflexible (1908)
34. Invincible (1909)
35. ron Duke (1913)
36. Irresistible (1901)
37. King Alfred (1903)
38. King Edward VII (1905)
39. King George V (1912)
40. Lion (1912)
41. London (1902)
42. Marlborough (1914)
43. Melbourne (1913)
44. Monarch (1912)
45. Natal (1907)
46. Neptune (1911)
47. New Zealand (1912)
48. Princess Royal (1912)
49. Queen (1904)
50. Queen Elizabeth (1915)
51. Queen Mary (1912)
52. Roxburgh (1905)
53. Shannon (1908)
54. Southampton (1913)
55. Spitfire (1912)
56. Swiftsure (1904)
57. Temeraire (1909)
58. Thunderer (1912)
59. Triumph (1904)
60. Vanguard (1910)
61. Warrior (1907)
62. Weymouth (1911)
63. Yarmouth (1912)
64. Zealandia (1905

Dates in parentheses show when the ships were commissioned  - this information does not appear on the cards. The latest is the "Queen Elizabeth", launched in 1913 and completed in 1915. Her crest would probably not have been decided until shortly before she was commissioned. The series obviously would not have included ships recently sunk, and several prominent ships sunk between September and November, 1914, are omitted. The series thus appears to have been issued early in 1915 

Again this listing includes numbers when the cards are unnumbered, but I guess in this case it matters not. 

By the time of our original World Tobacco Issues Index the set is slightly altered, and now reads : 

• CRESTS OF BRITISH WARSHIPS (A). Sm. 67 x 43. Unnd. (64) See RB.20/18.  ... S88-15
  
  A. Back in blue
  
  B. Back in green

And this remains identical in our updated World Tobacco Issues Index, save a new card code of S587-130