Many of us won’t remember the thrupenny bit, the bizarre 12-sided three pence coin that was part of our pre-decimal coinage up to 1971. However, in March 2017, it is making a comeback, this time as the new shape for the one-pound coin. The redesign, intended to prevent counterfeiting, will see all of the current round one-pound coins withdrawn by October 2017.
To this aim, the Royal Mint is urging the public to spend their pounds or take them to the bank before then. That is no mean task. There are 1.5bn pound coins in circulation and an equal number of new ones being produced.
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