Stamp Collector gives you all the information, news, expert advice, market insight and inspiration you need to build your stamp collection and get the most from your hobby. Every issue features the latest prices, expert collecting advice, in-depth guides giving you the lowdown on classic stamp sets, new stamps, postal history, first-day covers and much more. Our stamp stories shed light on intriguing stamps and why they were produced, and our stamp sidelines pages provide an insight into postmarks, first-day covers, Cinderellas, Post & Go and Europa stamps.

This is How The Stamp Trade Works • Philatelic Expert Lets You into his Selling Secrets so you can benefit from a totally different (and New) Selling Experience

Stamp Collector

Welcome • WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER. STAY SAFE & KEEP COLLECING

FIRST COLLECTORS’ CONFERENCE CELEBRATES GB STAMPS

IN BRIEF

ROYAL MAIL LAUNCH PARCEL PICK-UP SERVICE

SINKING CAUSES STAMPS TO BE POSTPONED

AUSTRIA ISSUE COVID19 STAMP… ON TOILET PAPER

IRISH STAMPS HONOUR ROCK BAND U2

GB CHRISTMAS STAMPS REVEALED

An evergreen seasonal tale

Festive island scenes

IN BRIEF

Santa on his travels

Live long, prosper, and collect • Royal Mail recently issued a new set of stamps to celebrate the long-running Star Trek television and film franchise. We take a look at the new designs

AUCTION HIGHLIGHTS

Potential in the Philippines • Our philatelic private eye spies another stamp set that’s likely to go up in value

LATEST INTERNET SALES • Your quick reference guide to recent online sales, in association with delcampe.net

An Edward VII 9d purple and blue? • The reign of Edward VII gave philatelists only a select few stamps to pursue, but as this month’s market guide reveals, there are plenty of varieties to suit your collecting budget. By Ed Fletcher

The Lady with the Knowing Look

Background to Post & Go

The golden pillar box

British Post Office in Constantinople

Rule Bretagne

The Wonderland Dodo Cover • The Dodo was only ever encountered on the island of Mauritius which sits in the Indian ocean just east of Madagascar. It’s a ‘dreamy’ spot in life, as well as in the philatelic world, writes Devlan Kruck

COLLECTING FOR BEGINNERS • Are Christmas stamps a fun theme or are these seasonal stamps nothing more than an annual annoyance? Laura McInerney tends to think they’re the latter as she take another look at the world of collecting through the eyes of a beginner

We’re in this together How philately met the challenges of 2020 • It’s been a year like no other. The world has changed and may never be quite the same again. So what of our beloved hobby? We asked a panel of stamp experts for their views on collecting and Covid, and discover how the ‘new normal’ for philately might not be so bad after all

How has the collecting community met the challenges of 2020?

How did the lockdown affect your own collecting?

Do you think the slower pace of life during lockdown helped stamp collecting’s popularity?

Has the pandemic changed stamp collecting forever?

What does the future hold for our hobby?

2020: the year stamp collecting went virtual

Art Deco you can afford • Beautifully designed, authentic 1920s and 1930s art can be yours when you collect postage stamps. Ed Fletcher looks at some of the many examples showcasing the distinctive styles of that era

Classic combinations • Ever seen a Machin definitive used with one of the special issues stamps? That’s a mixed franking because the stamps on it are from two or more different issues, writes Ray Simpson. But the ones I want to introduce you to are much more interesting than that…

Tercentenary...