Silver to Celebrate Doctor Who’s Golden Anniversary

Silver to Celebrate Doctor Who’s Golden Anniversary

BBC Worldwide and New Zealand Mint Launch Commemorative 50th Anniversary Coins for Iconic TV Series Doctor Who

January 24, 2013

In an exciting collaboration through time and relative dimension in space, BBC Worldwide Australasia and New Zealand Mint are offering a legal tender coin, and a series of collectable coins as a celebration of Doctor Who’s 50th Anniversary.

To celebrate the world’s longest running sci-fi series, New Zealand Mint will launch a one-ounce silver .999 coin which features an engraved picture of the iconic TARDIS, as well as a unique 50th Anniversary logo. The coin comes packaged in a 3D model replica of the TARDIS, which opens with the iconic TARDIS “vwarp vwarp” sound. The coins themselves are legal tender for $2 in the South Pacific Island nation Niue, making them a must-have item for fans to collect.

Later in the year New Zealand Mint will also release collectable coins featuring all 11 Doctors, from the first Doctor played by William Hartnell, to the current incarnation - Matt Smith. Further Doctor Who coin releases are also planned for 2014 and 2015.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with New Zealand Mint on this global deal. It is an historic year for the Doctor Who brand, and we are pleased to be able to bring this unique product to Doctor Who fans and coin collectors alike,” said Rachael Hammond, BBC Worldwide’s Senior Licensing Executive, Consumer Products.

Said Simon Harding, NZ Mint Chief Executive: “I grew up watching Doctor Who as a child in New Zealand which, coincidentally, was the first country outside the UK to screen the show. It’s a great honour to now be asked to produce these coins to celebrate the 50th anniversary. Fans are going to really like what we’ve come up with.”

The coins will officially launch at the World Money Fair in Berlin on 1 February and will be available for pre-order at the New Zealand Mint website www.newzealandmint.com from 24 January or via selected international coin distributors.

Doctor Who first aired on the BBC in 1963 and originally ran for 26 series, until 1989. The show was revived in 2005 and has continued to captivate a broad audience, from young children and families to nostalgic viewers and sci-fi fanatics. Each of the 11 actors playing the Doctor has put a unique stamp on the role and the many and varied companions, monsters and adversaries have all added to the shows enduring appeal. The show celebrates its 50th anniversary on 23 November this year.

The next series of Doctor Who (Series 7: Part B) will air in New Zealand and Australia later in the year on Prime and ABC1.

ENDS

About BBC Worldwide Australasia
Australia is a priority territory for BBC Worldwide, focusing on growth across all five of its core businesses. In 2011/12, BBC Worldwide Australasia increased revenue by 9% on the previous year, generating AUS$140m. Based in Macquarie Park, Sydney, BBC Worldwide Australasia wholly owns five channels; UKTV, BBC Knowledge and CBeebies in Australia; UKTV and BBC Knowledge in New Zealand; and is responsible for the distribution and promotion of BBC World News which transmits in both countries. It distributes great British content from the BBC and other producers to all free-to-air and most subscription channels in Australia and New Zealand. BBC Worldwide Australasia works with partners to bring BBC Worldwide DVDs, magazines, digital apps, innovative products and live events to the local market, as well as offering advertising opportunities for the BBC’s world renowned bbc.com news site and lonelyplanet.com. Australia is the most successful territory for the global BBC iPlayer.

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About New Zealand Mint: New Zealand Mint has been minting legal tender commemorative coins, gold bullion and medallions for more than four decades. As New Zealand's only precious metal mint and one of the first world mints to adopt the .9999 standard for gold coin purity, New Zealand Mint prides itself on high quality design and production work. In 2009, New Zealand Mint opened the Bullion Exchange, the first of its kind in New Zealand which offers a comprehensive service for buying and selling gold and silver bullion as well as on-site insured storage. Leading the way with innovative, colored, silver and gold commemorative coins, New Zealand Mint is known globally for quality and design excellence. New Zealand Mint also produces several ranges of jewelry that cater to many tastes and styles, including the Boh Runga and Trelise Cooper for New Zealand Mint collections.

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