Images of animals will appear on the next series of Bank of England banknotes as the central bank moves away from historical figures such as William Shakespeare, Winston Churchill and Jane Austen over the coming years.
“Nature is a good choice from a banknote approval perspective and means we can showcase Britain’s rich and varied wildlife on the next series of banknotes,” said Victoria Cleland, the BoE’s chief treasurer.
Bank of England notes have featured monarchs since Queen Elizabeth first appeared on one in 1960, while Shakespeare was the first historical figure to appear in 1970.
King Charles’ portrait will also continue to appear on the next series of notes, the BoE said.
The BoE held a consultation on a change to the banknote design in July 2025, inviting views from the public.
The nature theme was supported by 60% of the 44,000 responses, beating the “architecture and landmarks” category with 56% and “notable historical figures” with 38%. Other categories included “arts, culture and sport”, “innovation” and “notable milestones”.
The new notes will feature wildlife native to the UK and will not include livestock, the BoE said. It plans to hold a second consultation in the coming months asking for the public’s views on specific animals to be included in the notes taken from a list created by UK wildlife experts.
The BoE is not the only producer of banknotes in the United Kingdom. Banknotes are also produced by seven commercial banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
