Emmerdale has rivals licked

The cast of Emmerdale were celebrating an unexpected victory yesterday after they won the battle to star on a new set of postage stamps.

11:02 25 January 2005

The cast of Emmerdale were celebrating an unexpected victory yesterday after they won the battle to star on a new set of postage stamps.

A scene from the fictitious Yorkshire village was chosen ahead of entrants from Coronation Street and The Bill to feature on a new commemorative collection by the Royal Mail.

The public were asked to vote on which soap to use to mark the 50th anniversary of independent television in Britain, and 36 per cent plumped for Emmerdale.

Corrie's famous opening shot of washing and a cat was second, while The Bill's flashing lights and screeching police cars came in third, the Guardian reports.

From September, some first class stamps will feature a cosy rural scene of a Land Rover driving along Emmerdale's main street by the Woolpack Inn, with idyllic country houses in the background.

But there was never any chance of the show's stars appearing on the front of envelopes across the country - as the Royal Mail prohibit anyone but royalty adorning their stamps.

"The only living people who appear on stamps are members of the royal family, unless they are unrecognisable," Ruth Barker, a spokeswoman for the Royal Mail, confirmed.

"For instance, we did have a picture showing the [England] World Cup rugby team, but only small and from behind."