An election has been called here in the UK.
The prospect of over a month’s heavy-rotation exposure to our politicians has not triggered universal joy.
But, go back a bit and you’ll find plenty of political heroes, and lots of political memorabilia with which to celebrate them.
But which Prime Ministers should you buy?
Will artefacts of Rishi Sunak’s premiership and the 2024 election come to have value in time?
Probably, but it's a bit soon for that yet.
Here, we will try here to put bias and partisanship aside - thought it’s impossible to do so entirely, and no political (or historical) figure is uncontroversial - and tell you which British Prime Ministers are the most collectible.
In the long term.
1 - Winston Churchill
Press photos show Churchill as war leader, the chief reason for his popularity.
Winston Churchill is one of the few politicians within living memory with widespread name recognition and a good popular reputation.
Around 10 years ago polling had him trouncing living politicians as the most popular British PM in history.
The BBC’s 2002 poll of Greatest Britons put him at number one from a nationwide vote of more than 1 million.
As Churchill College noted: “Before 1940 that judgement would have astounded Britons.”
Churchill is remembered now as the War Leader.
And that triumphantly recalled period has trumped everything else.
He has been portrayed at least 60 times on screen, you can’t say that about the likes of the Earl of Aberdeen (PM from 1852 to 55), and is a genuine figure in British and anglosphere popular culture.
It helps that he was a genuinely extraordinary character: 64 years in parliament (as a Liberal and a Conservative), cabinet minister at 34, PM at 80, soldier (he took part in the last ever British cavalry charge), journalist, popular historian, very accomplished painter, orator, drinker… he even won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
An interesting, personal letter like this has value to collectors beyond a simple signature.
History isn’t ever as simple as the legend, and there are plenty of very good reasons in a long career to ask questions of Churchill’s hero status.
But, to most he remains the personification of the Battle of Britain, of fighting them on the beaches and of the V for Victory sign that amazingly came true.
A long, aristocratic life produces a lot of memorabilia, and Churchill’s collectibility stretches from papers and letters to the used cigars that signify his fully lived life.
His value doesn’t seem to be diminishing. Quite the opposite in fact.
Just last year, a cigar sold for £25,500. The record for a painting was set in 2021 at £8.3 million pounds (15 of his works have made over $1 million). A desk was being offered for $450,000 earlier this year, a signed book for $45,000.
Churchill didn’t do things by halves and he wrote a lot and signed a lot. The timing of an autograph, its quality and condition, and any link to a particular moment is vital to its value.
Churchill’s status as a public figure also opens up a huge market of manufactured collectibles, souvenirs and trinkets of varying quality and value. Few other political figures are in this league.
Politics is always controversial, but putting Churchill at number one in a list of the most collectible British prime ministers is the easiest decision it’s possible to make.
2 - The Duke of Wellington
Nothing is more personal than a strand of hair, and few British politicians would inspire this level of interest.
Do many people in 2024 know the Duke of Wellington was Prime Minister?
Probably not as many who have heard of his military exploits.
Like Churchill he was a genuine national hero with a huge popular reputation.
As a soldier.
The hero of Waterloo took his great popularity into politics, and by 1828 he was Prime Minsiter for the first time.
Though he did pass laws giving equal political rights to Britain’s Catholics (he was later influential and successful in his attempt to stop Britain’s Jews getting equal rights) he stood in the way of political reform and was kicked out in 1830.
He came back in 1834, but was recognised as a stop-gap figure, and stood down for Robert Peel in 1835.
His heroic military reputation took quite a battering at the hands of his political career too.
Like Churchill, Wellington had a big personality and a big life story.
He's not the only Prime Minister to fight a duel (four have would you believe), he's up there with Churchill in having a state funeral that attracted enormous crowds.
A lot of porcelain was produced to honour his military achievements. Medals too, and these can cost several hundred pounds in good condition.
Good autographed letters should cost hundreds of pounds. A cloak (probably) worn at Waterloo made nearly £50,000 in 2015, the 200th anniversary of the battle.
This letter has historical importance, showing a politician in action.
Many important Wellington pieces are in museum collections and are unlikely to ever hit the collectibles market.
And while he might have defeated Napoleon in battle, the French Emperor is decisively the more valuable figure at auction.
A strong signature from a strong character.
Like Churchill his attraction extends into the stamp and coin collecting realms, and you’ll find his likeness on paper and metal in the UK and well beyond.
3 - Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher won three General Elections and was Britain's first woman Prime Minister.
Britain’s first woman Prime Minister remains one of the most controversial and consequential figures in our modern political history.
And one of our most collectible.
In 2019, the 40th anniversary of her first election win was celebrated or commemorated (as you prefer) with the third auction from her estate at Christie’s in London.
That final sale made over £1 million.
The earlier sales, starting in 2015 also produced very high prices.
And while some items - jewellery mainly - undoubtedly had intrinsic value, many items went flying past their estimates on the strength of the Iron Lady’s name.
The top item was a bald eagle statuette gifted to her by Ronald Reagan. That sold for £266,500 against a £5,000 to £8,000 estimate. A Prime Ministerial red box went for £242,500 against a top estimate of £5,000.
Even clothing - trade mark suits - went into the 10s of thousands of pounds.
Reagan and Thatcher enjoyed a special relationship reflected in this patriotic gift from the US President.
The value of her autograph is very dependent on context. A simple, signed hand-out photo can be yours quite cheaply. But the right letter can put that value up to hundreds, thousands or even 10s of thousands of pounds.
That big Christie’s sale also revealed that Margaret was a collector herself, with porcelaine figurines of our top 2 (Churchill and the Duke of Wellington) in her own estate.
Collecting British political memorabilia
There have been 57 British Prime Ministers - who also serve as First Lord of the Treasury - and all are to an extent collectible historic figures.
The world of collectibles is both very simple and very confusing though.
Collectibility is usually a measure of fame.
If one were to add more names to this list it would be the most famous.
William Gladstone was four times Prime Minister. He's a towering historical figure.
The names that spring to mind when you think of Prime Ministers: Blair, Attlee, Lloyd George, Disraeli, Gladstone, Peel, Walpole, Wilson.
But when it comes to individual items a whole host of other variables come into play.
And those are most often best judged by experts.
We have political memorabilia for sale. All backed with a 100% money-back guarantee of authenticity.
And, we can help you find the best price for memorabilia you want to sell.
