Royal Mint VE Day coin: new commemorative 50p coins released to mark 80th anniversary of WWII's end in 2025

• The Royal Mint has launched a new VE Day 50p coin to mark the 80th anniversary of WWII's end
• The coin features a dove of peace, a design first seen on a 1995 £2 coin
• It is available in various finishes, including silver and gold, with prices starting at £14.50
• On May 8, 2025, a special gold edition will be minted for VE Day’s anniversary
• Veterans Ron Horsey and Richard Pelzer helped strike the first coins at the Royal Mint

The Royal Mint is releasing a new range of commemorative coins to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day and the end of the Second World War.

A special edition 50p features a dove of peace and the inscription “In peace goodwill”, a tribute to a design that first appeared on a 1995 £2 coin created for the war’s 50th anniversary.

The coins have been available to purchase from Thursday, May 1 via the Royal Mint’s website, offered in a variety of finishes, including brilliant uncirculated, silver, and gold.

On May 8, 2025 - VE Day’s 80th anniversary - the Mint will also strike a special edition in gold.

Prices for the VE Day 50p start at £14.50 for a brilliant uncirculated coin, rising to £1,725 for the gold edition minted on May 8. A 10-coin VE Day 80th anniversary set will also be available, priced at £1,640.

To celebrate the launch, the Royal Mint welcomed guests from the Taxi Charity for Military Veterans to its South Wales site.

Among them were 98-year-old Ron Horsey and 101-year-old Richard Pelzer, both from Swansea and veterans of the Royal Engineers, who were given a behind-the-scenes tour and invited to take part in the coin striking process.

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Horsey said: “I’m incredibly proud to have been invited to the Royal Mint to strike this coin. VE Day holds such meaning for me and many others, and to be able to strike this design representing peace on to a coin all these years later is truly moving.

“I hope this coin reminds people of the freedom we enjoy today and the cost at which it came.”

Vice president of the Taxi Charity for Military Veterans Dick Goodwin described the visit as “a wonderful experience”.

Rebecca Morgan, director of commemorative coin at the Royal Mint, said: “The VE Day coin pays tribute to the courage, sacrifice and resilience of the generation who secured peace in Europe in May 1945 and it was fitting to welcome Ron and Richard to site to strike one of the first coins.”

The Mint is known for commemorating key moments in British history, with recent coin releases including a Red Arrows 50p, a Stories of the Second World War 50p, and a D-Day 80th anniversary 50p.

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