We’ll mint again: £2 coins celebrating Dame Vera Lynn go on sale

Forces’ sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn is being celebrated with the launch of £2 cash designed by the Royal Mint.

The singer and entertainer lifted individuals’s spirits through the Second World Warfare with songs together with We’ll Meet Once more and The White Cliffs Of Dover.

The reverse design of the £2 coin design incorporates a detailed portrait of Dame Vera, accompanied by her identify and the dates denoting the years of her life. The coin additionally options an edge inscription that reads: “We’ll meet once more”.

Dame Vera continued to carry out and win new followers lengthy after the Second World Warfare. She died in June 2020, aged 103.

The coin, designed by the Royal Mint’s in-house designers, was initially unveiled as a part of a five-coin assortment.

Dame Vera’s daughter, Virginia Lewis-Jones, mentioned: “It’s improbable to see my mom celebrated on this manner and to make sure her legacy lives on.

“We’re simply so excited and happy – much more so figuring out that Royal Mint cash require approval of Her Majesty the Queen. I’m particularly happy that this coin is offered to worldwide collectors. Over time I’ve all the time been touched by the sacks of letters we obtain from individuals everywhere in the world who’ve been moved ultimately by my mom’s music, charity work or morale-boosting performances through the warfare.”

Dame Vera additionally turned closely concerned with charity work later in her life. Specifically, she campaigned for the Burma Star Affiliation – a British veterans’ affiliation for ex-servicemen and girls who served within the Burma Marketing campaign through the Second World Warfare.

She was made a Dame in 1975 and a Companion of Honour in 2016.

Clare Maclennan, director of commemorative coin on the Royal Mint, mentioned: “Dame Vera Lynn’s songs had been essential in sustaining morale through the Second World Warfare and it’s an honour to have fun her legacy on a £2 coin.

“The collectable £2 is the Royal Mint’s newest tribute to one in every of Britain’s biggest nationwide treasures. We’re delighted to have labored with Dame Vera’s household to assist this coin come to life.”

The coin is not going to enter normal circulation, however collectors should purchase good uncirculated, silver and gold variations from the Royal Mint’s web site.

Costs vary from £10 for an excellent uncirculated model of the £2 coin to £11,430 for a 5oz gold coin in a denomination of £500.