A full English squeezed onto a 10p is one of the alphabet's more playful ideas. The E coin makes room for a fried egg, bacon, sausages, beans and tomato around the letter. There is plenty to enjoy here before you even start filling an album.
Breakfast earns its place in the alphabet
The Royal Mint chose an everyday meal alongside the series' landmarks, inventions and famous characters. Its design notes connect the breakfast tradition with the long, social meals of the Victorian gentry.
On the coin, the appeal is more immediate: the familiar ingredients of a fry-up, picked out in metal. It is a light-hearted gift for someone who takes their breakfast seriously.
Which E do you need?
The design appears in both 2018 and 2019. Find the date on the portrait side. Circulation mintages were 220,000 for 2018 and 84,000 for 2019, excluding collector editions.
The 2019 E has a lower circulation mintage, but that alone cannot explain the price of an Uncirculated example. Our A–Z 10p mintage guide separates circulation rarity from collector supply.
Make it a four-coin food collection
Add F for Fish and Chips, I for Ice-Cream Cone and T for Teapot. Together with E, they make a small food and drink collection you can build one coin at a time.
Start with English Breakfast
Choose the 2018 English Breakfast 10p or the 2019 English Breakfast 10p. Ordering a few letters together? Postage to the UK is £2.90 per order, whether you buy one coin or 100. Both English Breakfast dates are offered in Uncirculated condition.
E 10p coin facts and issue history
Recognise the design: Breakfast meal with E. Both dates use this reverse; read the year on the Queen's portrait side.
- Denomination and metal
- 10p, nickel-plated steel
- Size and weight
- 24.5 mm, 6.5 g
- Edge
- Grained
- Design attribution
- The Royal Mint Team (reverse); Jody Clark (obverse)
These specifications are recorded in The Royal Mint's E issue archive. The official design proclamation describes the motif and edge.
Circulation mintage: 220,000 for 2018 E and 84,000 for 2019 E. These low circulation figures explain the rarity of these dated coins in change. They exclude collector editions and do not count the Uncirculated coins available today.
The alphabet series launched in March 2018. The 2019-dated circulation rollout began in February 2019, according to the original programme FAQ. For bags, cards and albums, see our packaging comparison.
Primary records checked 11 October 2026.