1949threepence

It's exactly that, and of course the fuel price guarantee was absolutely nothing to do with the mini budget, being set weeks before. Sorry, no - if you make a commitment to the public on such a vitally important issue, then right or wrong, you stick to it. There's nothing wrong with adding a caveat to the effect that if prices do come down in the meantime, then the situation can be reviewed. But not to abandon the principle altogether. Supposing the price doesn't come down, what then? Hard luck folks, suck it up?

List and pics of (pretty much) all the known 1863 die No 4 under date pennies Courtesy of Richard @secret santa

Yeah, it's well sub fine, but as you say, it's much better than most of the washers for this type.

1/ That's going to sound a bit long winded and clumsy. I reckon "energy price cap" is a lot more succinct. 2/ But Hunt didn't say that. Just that it would be for 6 months only. 3/ Why is it unrealistic? Absolutely no-one in politics or the media (that I recall) said it was unrealistic at the time it was announced, NOBODY bar none - so why is it suddenly and miraculously unrealistic now? Expensive yes, but unrealistic no. In fact it's a disgrace to just scrap a public commitment on an extremely serious issue, simply because you have a different philosophy. Anyway, it's all being turned upside down yet again, and we will see whether Johnson gets back in, or whether it will be a Sunak coronation. If it goes to the membership, it will be Johnson for certain. If it is Johnson I doubt Hunt will be Chancellor for much longer. Probably go to Cleverly.

Interestingly, there's 10 on Richard's rare penny list (including this one), and of that 10, six are more or less washers. So if you see one for sale, it's more probable than not it will be a clear date washer, and you're going to have to pay. In his book "The British Bronze Penny 1860 to 1901", Gouby said there were 15 known in his 2009 pricing and rarity pages. But at page 48 of his 2020 amendments, he says there are 8+ known.

We already know that it's not an absolute cap in terms of individual usage, which may be more or less. But it is the accepted phrase used to describe the overall cost to consumers, unless you can think of a better one. The energy price cap, which I believe is set by Ofgem, limits the maximum amount energy suppliers can charge you for each unit of energy used. As for April 2023, the two year promise helped worried households to feel a bit more secure, and could have been modified to take account of overall energy price changes along the way. Now they've had the rug pulled from under their feet again. Wit regard to helping the most vulnerable, I can forecast quite accurately now, that will be an administrative nightmare as there will be millions right on whatever borderline is set, who will be disputing the decision in their case.

The link I used was the one I saved to my desktop in order to bid. But yes you're right, even an advanced search trying sold and completed listing reveals nothing. Bit odd, buy hopefully a logical explanation.

We'll hear what Hunt has to say soon, but the one decent thing that was announced before Kwarteng's mini budget, namely a 2 year energy price cap set at £2,500, now only lasts for 6 months, until April 2023, with (as yet undefined) help for the vulnerable. Absolutely bloody spiffing.

The Waterbird specimen, which for a die No 4, is actually quite a reasonable specimen, looks a bargain for £2480 (admittedly 3 years ago)

Well worn coin, nay washer. But excessively rare. I just didn't bid enough, unfortunately, and had no time to recover and make a higher bid. link

Indeed, never argue with an idiot. They'll just drag you down to their level and beat you on experience. Or these days get you cancelled for daring to disagree with them in the first place.

Yes, you're right. Found the post. Edit time is 2 hours on attaining 200 and more posts - link

If you could send me an e mail as well, Ian, I'd be most grateful.

I will try mine - the time being precisely 22:09 First edit: 22:53 - after 44 mins Second edit: 23:14 after 65 mins Third edit: 23:42 after 1 hour and 33 mins. Eyes shutting now so need some kip. Not going to be able to reach 2 hours,

Is it a couple of hours, Chris? As you say it is a short window, but actually much longer than some forums.

I'd also give a shout out for KB Coins. He's a bit pricey, but has an excellent high quality stock.

Indeed, you have to be a discerning collector to successfully deal with them.

Thanks. Might call him to see what he's got.

Me included - BUT, I got my superb 1849 penny from them, as well as some other nice coins. They always seem a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde outfit to me, brilliant at times, careless and incompetent at others. Their stock is enormous though. As far as Dave Craddock, is he still dealing? I know he had his stock robbed from him in a very nasty incident outside the Midland Coin Fair back in January. Not sure if he's built it back up again. Certainly not seen any e mails, which he used to send out roughly every 3 or 4 months.

Why would they need conscription if things were going well? What about all the dead troops not even coming back in body bags, but just left to rot on the battlefield? You can't fool all of the people all of the time. There's a point when the propaganda machine begins to look too wooden, too predictable and ultimately absurd.

I note that Zelensky has applied for NATO membership. It would certainly put the cat among the pigeons if we were to grant this in respect of land currently occupied by Ukraine, effectively drawing a line in the sand, then start moving in Western boots on the ground, and declare the region a no fly zone, apart from authorised flights. It's the only kind of language Putin understands. A peace deal is pointless as he just can't be trusted. Both sides have already showcased their weaponry, and that of the West has outclassed theirs by many orders of magnitude. So he will know what to expect if he messes with NATO. In such a scenario, all he will have succeeded in doing is gaining a small amount of territory, and opening up Russia to a huge land border with NATO, if you also include Finland. Of course, the above probably won't happen, and it is difficult to know exactly how the war will go from now on. But it will by now be blindingly obvious to the Russian people that it's not going well for them, and the poorly trained conscripts really are cannon fodder. As far as the bridge, another possibility is action by clandestine anti Putin Russian groups. For Putin to blame Ukraine directly, makes his security look weaker than ever.

I reckon one of the real strengths of this forum is it's unchanging continuity and very light touch moderation. Apart from one or two technical bells and whistles, I'd say it was virtually the same as when you last posted in 2008. I joined in 2009. With regard to the coin's value, I can't really help as I'm not a farthing specialist. All I can say is that Peck lists BMC 525 as "extremely rare". Given the auctions you mention above and the recent rise in coin prices, probably £300 is close to the mark. I'd say provenance or pedigrees are still very important. Collectors really value provenance, especially those that go back a very long way. The one you have, albeit scribbled out long hand, is very detailed and comprehensive. ETA: by the way I'd just add that with regard to the Coins and Banknotes specimen, Eddie Price does tend to charge top dollar for his stock. He does have some very very high end stuff though, and I notice that the ex Bamford F21 penny he was offering for £2,750, has now disappeared from his website. It doesn't say sold out, it's gone altogether.

Lot 1341, the 1806 proof farthing struck in gold, took my eye. I assume a KF15, 1392 - described as "excessively rare". Nice.

Indeed. Going back through the centuries, the normal approach is not to mint any coins bearing the new monarch's effigy until the year following their death - so hence dated 2023 in this instance, not 2022. Maybe this is due to tradition, and waiting until after the coronation. Not sure.