Note:This article was originally released on December 23 2022, and re-released on February 27th 2025 with no further edits to the article's body text. The original version is archived on the Wayback Machine, here.
THE WORLD TELEGRAM NEWS (NEW YORK, NY) — On December 20th, The Bank of England unveiled the new design for its next series of banknotes, which feature a new portrait of King Charles III (who ascended to the throne in September, after the death of Queen Elizabeth II).
The new prints will be rolled out in Mid-2024 and will be used alongside banknotes from Queen Elizabeth’s reign to reduce environmental impact.
The Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey said:
“I am very proud that the Bank is releasing the design of our new banknotes which will carry a portrait of King Charles III. This is a significant moment, as The King is only the second monarch to feature on our banknotes. People will be able to use these new notes as they start to enter circulation in 2024.”
With the release of this new series of banknotes, The Bank of England announced they would also decommission paper notes, making them not legal tender (unsuitable for use in payments).
The United Kingdom began migrating towards polymer banknotes in 2016, completing the transition in 2021.
Compared to their paper counterparts, polymer banknotes are more durable, contain various additional security features, and are resistant to water.
Though the front portrait of the banknote has changed, the reverse will not change.
The designs on the reverse are as follows:
- £5 – Sir Winston Churchill, Prime Minister who led Britain through WWII (Issued 2016)
- £10 – Jane Austen, English author, known for her 1811 novel, “Sense and Sensibility”. (Issued 2017)
- £20 – JMW Turner, English painter and watercolourist (Issued 2020)
- £50 – Alan Turing, English mathematician and computer scientist, known for creating the Automatic Computing Engine, one of the first computers. (Issued 2021)
