2012 Charles Dickens £2 Coin
The 2012 Charles Dickens £2 is a circulating £2 with 8.19 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 2012
- Circulation mintage
- 8,190,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Designer
- Matthew Dent
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 2012 Charles Dickens £2 worth?
8.19 million were made, so the 2012 Charles Dickens £2 is easy to find. A circulated one is worth face value; collectors pay a little more only for uncirculated coins and coins still in their original Royal Mint pack.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition with crisp edge lettering
- Original Royal Mint pack or presentation folder
- A genuine mint error such as a misaligned or wrong edge, confirmed by an expert
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 2012 Charles Dickens £2 rare?
- No. 8.19 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 2012 Charles Dickens £2 coins were made?
- 8,190,000 were struck for circulation.
- Who designed the 2012 Charles Dickens £2?
- The design is credited to Matthew Dent.
- What is the 2012 Charles Dickens £2 made of?
- Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring. It weighs 12.0 g and measures 28.4 mm.
- Is the 2012 Charles Dickens £2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every two-metal £2 coin, commemoratives included, is legal tender in the UK.
Why the 2012 Charles Dickens £2 was made
Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth on 7 February 1812 and died in 1870 at Gad's Hill Place in Kent. He knew hardship early. When his father was imprisoned for debt, young Charles was sent to work in a blacking factory, an experience he never forgot. Those years fed the novels that made him the most popular writer of his age, from Oliver Twist and David Copperfield to Great Expectations and A Christmas Carol.
For the bicentenary in 2012 the Royal Mint issued this £2 with a reverse by Matthew Dent, the designer behind the shield definitives introduced in 2008. Its circulation mintage of 8,190,000 was high, so it is one of the easiest commemorative £2 coins to find. It shared 2012 with the London to Rio handover coin, which had a tiny mintage by comparison, so if you are sorting 2012 £2 coins the Dickens is the one you'll see most. The idea behind the design is a clever one that rewards anyone who takes a closer look, which is part of the reason it remains a favorite with casual collectors.
How to recognize it
Dickens appears in profile, facing left, but the portrait isn't drawn with lines in the usual way. His features are built up from the titles of his works, set in small type that follows the shape of his face, hair and beard. With a magnifier you can read the titles one by one. The inscription 1812 CHARLES DICKENS 1870 runs to the left of the portrait. The edge reads SOMETHING WILL TURN UP, the hopeful catchphrase of Mr Micawber in David Copperfield. No other £2 forms a face out of words, so it is hard to mistake. Matthew Dent designed it.
The other side carries Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, used from 1998 to 2015.
2012 Charles Dickens £2 by the numbers
In mintage terms the 2012 Charles Dickens £2 ranks 38th lowest of 42 circulating £2 coins with a published mintage. The next scarcer is the 2006 Brunel Portrait £2 (7.93 million); the next more common is the 1986 Commonwealth Games 1986 £2 (8.21 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2005 End of World War II (VE Day 60) £2 with 10.2 million, about 1.2 times as many. The scarcest is the 1989 Claim of Right £2 with 381,400, 21 times fewer than this one.
It was released in 2012 alongside 1 other circulating £2 design: the London to Rio Handover (845,000). The 2012 Charles Dickens £2 was the most plentiful of the year.
What to check on your 2012 Charles Dickens £2
- Read the edge. It should say SOMETHING WILL TURN UP. A wrong or missing edge inscription is the quickest sign of a counterfeit.
- Check the two metals: a silver-colored center and a gold-colored ring, with the ring tight and level all the way around.
- Weigh it: a genuine two-metal £2 weighs 12.0 g. Fakes are often a little light and softer in detail.
- Compare the portrait and lettering with a known genuine coin. Blurry letters, a flat portrait or uneven spacing point to a copy.
With over eight million made, the Dickens £2 is a face value coin in circulated condition. The tiny lettering makes it fun to own. It is also what wears first, so a coin where the titles are still readable is the one to keep. The design featured in Royal Mint collector sets for 2012, where every title stays sharp. Forgeries aren't a concern here. A quick look at the lettering tells you straight away whether you have a well preserved example or a tired one that has spent years in pockets and tills.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 pounds |
| Issuer | Royal Mint |
| Year | 2012 |
| Circulation mintage | 8,190,000 |
| Composition | Bimetallic: cupronickel center in a nickel-brass outer ring |
| Weight | 12.0 g |
| Diameter | 28.4 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Lettered: SOMETHING WILL TURN UP |
| Designer | Matthew Dent |
| Portrait | Rank-Broadley |
Other 2012 £2 coins
| Coin | Circulation mintage | Value band |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 London to Rio Handover £2 Coin | 845,000 | Small premium |
Frequently asked questions
Why is the Charles Dickens £2 made of words?
The designer built the portrait from the titles of Dickens's novels and other works. It's a neat idea: the writer is formed by what he wrote. A magnifying glass helps you read the titles, especially on a worn coin.
What does the edge of the Dickens £2 mean?
SOMETHING WILL TURN UP is the cheerful refrain of Wilkins Micawber in David Copperfield, a character who is always in debt but always hopeful. Dickens partly based Micawber on his own father, who had money troubles of his own.
Mintage figures: Two pound coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Mint figures. How we build these pages.