The Royal Mint says the coins are a "thank you" to the wartime generation.

Special £2 coins minted for VE Day anniversary

The 22-carat gold coin was one of a small collection of trial sets that were never released due to the king’s abdication in 1936.

Rare Edward VIII sovereign sets new sales record at £1m

The coins were originally ordered for the October 31 departure date.

The Royal Mint will also commemorate the 75th anniversary of the D Day landings, and diarist Samuel Pepys

New £1 coins are being deliberately damaged so that they can be sold on for thousands of pounds to collectors, the Royal Mint believes.

Savers who keep coins in a piggy bank could lose out as the new pound coin comes into circulation next month.

The Chancellor George Osborne slipped into a cockney twang during a trip to the Royal Mint in Wales today.

A raft of new coins for 2014 that commemorate British anniversaries including the centenary of the First World War have been produced.