How 50 years of Mr Men children's books will be celebrated in new coin collection

In 1971, Cleckheaton-born Roger Hargreaves was asked by his son, “what does a tickle look like?” – which led to the creation of the first Mr Men character.

Mr Tickle would be joined by Mr Greedy, Mr Happy, Mr Nosey, Mr Sneeze and Mr Bump – who featured in the first Mr Men books.

Now 50 years later Adam Hargreaves, son of creator Roger, has designed a commemorative coin collection, which will be launched by The Royal Mint, today, to celebrate the milestone anniversary of fun with some of the iconic characters for the next generation.

The collection features Mr Happy, Little Miss Sunshine, and Little Miss Giggles with Mr Strong on a £5 crown.

Brilliant uncirculated versions of the coins feature the latest colour printing techniques showcasing the characters in vivid colour.

Prices for the coins, being made available on the Royal Mint's website start at £13 for an uncirculated £5 denomination coin, or £22.50 for a colour version.

A one ounce gold proof coin in a denomination of £100 is being made available for £2,370.

Adam Hargreaves said: "It is an absolute honour to not only have the Mr Men Little Miss characters feature on official UK commemorative coins but to have the opportunity to create the designs that feature on the coins too."

He added: Over the past 50 years Mr Men Little Miss characters have grown to become a global favourite amongst many and I am delighted to be celebrating 50 years of fun with The Royal Mint and I hope fans of the Mr Men Little Miss series will be just as thrilled with this commemorative coin collection as I am."

The Royal Mint will also be hiding 50 "golden Mr Tickle tickets" among all three of the colour uncirculated commemorative coins.

Customers finding golden Mr Tickle tickets will be entitled to Mr Men and Little Miss prize bundles.

Clare Maclennan, divisional director of commemorative coins at the Royal Mint spoke with Adam Hargreaves on a virtual call, where they discussed the designs and characters.

She said: “Each year we celebrate British icons, anniversaries and moments from history on commemorative coins, and this is a fun new addition to the collection.

“With this year marking the 50th anniversary since the Mr. Men Little Miss characters were introduced to the world, it felt right to celebrate the loveable characters on their own commemorative coins”.

Created by prolific illustrator Roger Hargreaves in 1971, the Mr Men Little Miss books and their world of "happyland" have become a global favourite.

There are more than 90 characters in an ever-growing books collection, read in multiple languages in more than 24 countries around the world.

The coins will not be going into general circulation.

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