Stampex and its customised stamps

Abstract

The Business Design Centre in London, the venue where Stampex is held twice yearly in Spring and Autumn, must have been the last place to be visited by our erstwhile Vice President, the late Anthony (Tony) Fenech prior to his demise on 23rd September. What is Stampex? The first British National Stamp Exhibition was held at the Central Hall, Westminster in January 1953. In 1956 the name was changed to Stampex which has been retained to the present day. Stampex is organized by the Philatelic Traders' Society. It provides a variety of stands for stamp dealers, specially prepared halls for exhibitions and specifically designed rooms for meetings. In addition to the foregoing preparations, the U.K. Annual National Stamp Competitions are held normally during the Autumn session. The competitions cover a number of philatelic items such as Aerophilately, Postal History, Postal Stationery, Revenue, Special Studies, Social Philately, Thematics, Traditional and Literature. A number of trophies and special awards are awarded including the famous Silver Mailcoach for the best exhibit. The organizers introduced the issue of a Customised Sheetlet of 10 x 1st Class stamps in the Stampex of Spring 2003 and have continued to do so to date. This short write up covers the eight sheetlets issued since then.