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Christmas 2022: Special Snowman and Snowdog coin released by Royal Mint

Royal mint snowman and snowdog coinImage source, The Royal Mint
Image caption,

It might seem a bit early to talk about anything Christmassy, but tell that to the Royal Mint!

It's been ten years since the adorable 'The Snowman and the Snowdog' animation was released, and a special 50p coin has been released to celebrate.

The film is a sequel to the 1982 classic 'The Snowman', which always gets a showing on TV every Christmas.

There will be a few versions of the coin such as silver and copper, but there's also one with a colour design created using special digital colour printing technology.

And even though new coins will now start to have King Charles' face on them, this one will still have Queen Elizabeth on the 'heads' side as work was started some time ago.

Image source, The Royal Mint

Illustrator Robin Shaw worked on 'The Snowman and the Snowdog', and has also helped design the special coin.

He said: "It's a joy to be revisiting The Snowdog after 10 years. I've always been rather pleased when he's around and imagined him keeping The Snowman company when we're not looking."

What is the story of The Snowman and the Snowdog?
  • Billy discovers the original snowman-making kit from 'The Snowman hidden under his bedroom floorboards

  • Using it, Billy builds the snowman and, with a little leftover snow, a snowdog

  • That night, the two come to life and Billy joins them on an adventure

It's not the first Snowman-themed coin the Royal Mint (who make all our physical money is made) has released.

The first was in 2018, and this most recent one will make five in total.

Image source, The Royal Mint

Rebecca Morgan, director of collector services at the Royal Mint, said: "The Royal Mint first celebrated the heart-warming tale of The Snowman on official UK coins in 2018.

"Today, we are delighted to introduce another collectable 50p coin to the series celebrating 10 years since the release of The Snowman And The Snowdog. This year's design is just as charming as ever and features an exclusive design by award-winning illustrator Robin Shaw."