What a time to be a Blackadder fan! After a comic relief special gave Baldrick some time in the spotlight, and two upcoming documentaries promise to spill the beans on the never-before-seen pilot episode, the Royal Mail is looking to get in on the action.
The British postal service has unveiled a series of 13 special stamps to commemorate Blackadder's 40th anniversary, depicting classic moments from the four seasons of the historical comedy show. We especially love the stamp of Miranda Richardson as Queen Elizabeth I from Blackadder II.
There's a range from all four seasons, including Edmund's run-in with Brian Blessed as the King in the first season, and the troops ready to run out of the trench in Blackadder Goes Forth.
In total, each season has two stills of classic episodes, and then there's one stamp of Blackadder as a portrait in each season, and finally one stamp that shows every version of the character. So whichever your favorite season is, there's something for you.
The stamps also have a Blackadder-themed postmark... or should we say a Baldrick-themed one, as the stamp states "I have a cunning plan" after the lovable idiot's catchphrase.
Different stamps in the set cover the range from First Class, Second Class, £2.20 and £2, so they're useful beyond their decorative elements, though you can also buy the stamps as postcards, envelopes, collectors' sheets, a presentation pack or framed if you'd rather buy them simply for the commemorative purposes.
The Blackadder stationery sets go on sale on Wednesday, May 17, with some of the collector-focused items instead released on Thursday, May 25, and they run the price gamut from a 30p envelope to a £150 'Blackadder Gold Miniature Sheet'. You can check out the Royal Mail website here for a full rundown of what's going on sale, and also to pre-order everything.
Following Lord Edmund Blackadder in four different periods of history, the TV show Blackadder was a historical comedy that has garnered countless fans, hence the release of this stamp collection forty years after the first season aired, and the aforementioned upcoming documentaries about the show.
Series creator Richard Curtis described the Blackadder team as "amused and delighted" at the stamps, and hopefully you'll be able to see plenty of letters showing up at your front door with the stamps when they go on sale.
