The words of model railroading and philately collided today. I grabbed an envelope mailed in the UK from the mailbox, realizing it was a complimentary copy of the bimonthly Roundhouse, the periodical of the NMRA British Region. I appreciated publisher Peter Bowen soliciting the article, patiently checking in with me in October/22, March/23 and May/23. I finally got on track and sent the article electronically in June/23. The article and photos reproduced nicely, and I was pleased to have my article on my home layout next to Tom Klimoski's Georgia Northeastern! But back to the stamps...
Two different worlds also collided on the franked cover, with three stamps of two monarchs. The three stamps - 10 pence turquoise-green and 3 pound purple showing Her Late Majesty The Queen and 2 pound 20 dark green Jennings design showing King Charles III - each have an attached 2D code, implemented in February, 2022 as an attempt to reduce stamp counterfeiting. These stamps mark the transition between monarchs as well as the transition to coded stamps that render previous definitives unusable. The codes also allow the Royal Mail to track mail through its system, and are separated from the effigy by a fake perforation!
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