Wombles' creator to feature on Alderney stamps
The Cookie Jar CompanyGuernsey Post has announced the Wombles creator and other figures connected to Alderney will appear on a new range of stamps.
The range has been created to celebrate Alderney's Blue Plaque trail, which includes Elisabeth Beresford, who is best known for creating the fictional creatures who lived on Wimbledon Common.
Beresford's connection to Alderney began when she and her family visited for holidays before moving permanently in 1978.
Other figures featured include the founder of Methodism the Reverend John Wesley, renowned World War One RAF pilot Tommy Rose and BBC sports commentator Leslie Thomas John Arlott.
Wesley inadvertently visited Alderney due to poor weather conditions whilst on a trip to Guernsey and stayed at The Divers Inn on Braye Road.
Rose moved to Alderney in 1957 and purchased The Marais Hotel where his parties became legendary.
Arlott and his family were regular visitors to Alderney before moving to the island permanently in 1980.
Guernsey PostOther stamps include the Le Mesurier family, who served as the hereditary governors from 1729 to 1825, and Alderney-born Sir Henry John Gauvain.
Gauvain was knighted in 1920 for his contributions to medicine and chaired the Alderney Evacuation Committee during World War Two.
Sir George Martin, who is widely referred to as the "fifth Beatle", features on the £1.26 stamp.
He acted as the Liverpool band's record producer, arranger and mentor and bought a home on Braye Road in the mid-1980s and visited Alderney for 30 years.
Bridget Yabsley, head of philatelic at Guernsey Post, said: "Alderney's Blue Plaque Trail provides a fascinating insight into the heritage and the influential individuals associated with the island."
The stamps have been designed by Two Degrees North based in Guernsey.
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