Queen Elizabeth to remain part of new King Charles coins with nostalgic nod

The new King Charles coins will feature a nod to the late Queen Elizabeth II by including a design that had been originally imprinted on coins to mark the Queen's coronation at Westminster Abbey in 1953.

• The Royal Mint has begun making coins bearing the likeness of King Charles III for the first time following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
• The coin will feature a touching tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II, who died aged 96 at Balmoral Castle in September.
• In other royal news, Meghan Markle has admitted to 'cowering and tiptoeing into a room' in the workplace.

Since the death of Queen Elizabeth, many things are set to change including stamps, post boxes and flags - and one major change is that of bank notes and coins. Work started on Thursday to produce 9.6 million copies of a new commemorative 50p coin, which will mark the late Queen Elizabeth's death.

The coin will feature a design that had been originally imprinted on coins to mark the Queen's coronation at Westminster Abbey in 1953. It shows four quarters of the Royal Arms represented within a shield, while emblems of the home nations - a rose, a thistle, a shamrock and a leek - feature on the outside.

The head of King Charles can also be seen on the other side of the coin, in a historic first described as the biggest change to UK coinage since decimalisation.

The new King Charles coin will begin appearing from December, with plans to start circulating them through banks and post offices. Coins displaying the Queen's portrait will continue to be legal tender, and will be gradually replaced with the newer coinage as they become damaged or worn.

Kevin Clancy, director of the Royal Mint Museum, said, "For many people this will be the first time in their lives that they have seen a new monarch appear on money. It represents the biggest change to UK coinage since decimalisation and will usher in a new era where the coins of Queen Elizabeth II and Charles co-circulate in the UK."

He added, "The new memorial 50 pence marks a moment in history and honours a landmark reign that lasted for 70 years."

There are currently around 27 billion coins with Her Majesty's portrait in circulation in the UK, although it used to be common for coins featuring multiple monarchs to be in use at the same time.

Sculptor Martin Jennings worked for a year with experts from the Royal Mint to prepare the portrait of Charles, based off of images taken for his 70th birthday back in 2018.

He said that he was also inspired by images of previous Kings, which he had found on "a little sack" of old coins given to him by his mother. His initials, MJ, feature in tiny letters by the King’s neck on the new coin.

King Charles III is shown facing to the left on the new coins, following the tradition that the new monarch looks in the opposite direction to their predecessor. Unlike the Queen's coins, he appears without his Crown. 

The King's face will also appear on a commemorative £5 coin, the reverse of which features two new portraits of his late mother.