Two 22p stamps to sell for £20,000 after avoiding shredder

The stamps were produced in the UK in 1985 and were thought to have been destroyed

Two stamps with a face value of 22p each look set to sell for more than £20,000 at auction after narrowly escaping being shredded. The rare 1985 British stamps had a combined 44p face value and were widely thought to have been shredded at the time they were made.

They were part of what became known as the Rural Postbus Error as they had missing perforations. The printers produced one sheet of 100 unperforated stamps by mistake, which was pulped when the error was discovered, but just this pair escaped.

They were only found at a stamp auction in 2014 where they sold for £22k and will now go under the hammer for a second time on October 9, through Bristol-based JC Auctions. The nostalgic stamp depicts the bygone Royal Mail Postbus on a country route.

Mike Hall of JC Auctions comments: “The missing perforations may seem like a small issue, but they’re a huge deal in stamp collecting. It’s remarkable how two 22p stamps are worth £22,000 based on a mistake made by the printer. That is the extraordinary nature of stamp collecting.

“The stamps themselves are beautiful and nostalgic. That adds to their appeal. Our conservative estimate is £5,000. I wouldn’t be shocked to see it surpass the £22,000 it made in 2014. It’s so rare and desirable. You just need two determined bidders.”

The stamp was designed by illustrator Paul Hogarth, in a set of four to celebrate 350 years since Charles I had granted use of his “Royal Mail” to the public. The Royal Mail introduced the Postbus in 1967. At its height, more than 200 routes carried passengers along with the mail through rural areas in the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District, mid-Wales and the Scottish Highlands.

Passengers could pay their fare with postage stamps. The last route closed in 2017. The rare error is one of 700+ lots of rare postage stamps from GB, China and the Commonwealth that feature in the Crown & Dragon Stamp Auction.

The auction runs until Thursday, October 9, 2025. Bidding is online at JC Auctions: https://liveauctions.justcollecting.com/auction/the-crown-dragon-auction-1000