Wallace and Gromit on Royal Mail's stamps

This year's British Christmas stamps feature children's favourites Wallace and Gromit.

The animated characters going about their festive duties are featured on seven different stamps but those wanting a religious theme have only one choice, the image of the Madonna and Child that has been on sale for the past three years. Last year, Royal Mail offered five religious designs, based on nativity scenes from stained-glass windows of different churches.

"I like Wallace and Gromit, it's good entertainment, but let's have a balance," said the Rev Hugh Hoskins, team rector for St Mary's Church in Upavon, Wiltshire.

A Royal Mail spokeswoman answered, "We have distributed tens of millions of the Madonna and Child stamps to go on sale alongside the Wallace and Gromit stamps."

Iconic Mazda Vehicles Commemorated with Japan Post's Limited Edition Stamps

Mazda Motor Corporation was today presented with a limited edition sheet of postage stamps that feature iconic Mazda vehicles. The stamps are entitled, "History of Mazda Motor Corporation Hiroshima (with model car)" and were created and issued by the Chugoku Regional Office, Japan Post Network Co., Ltd. (Japan Post Network Chugoku Regional Office).

The stamps are available online and at all post offices (excluding contract post offices) in the regions of west Japan where Mazda has production facilities: Hiroshima prefecture and Hofu city in Yamaguchi prefecture.

The limited edition stamps feature images of iconic Mazda cars from the company's 90-year history, ranging from the 1950 Mazda-Go three-wheeled truck to the all-new Mazda Premacy (known overseas as the Mazda5) that went on sale in Japan in summer 2010. The stamp sheet also shows the Mazda Shinari, a new concept car that indicates the future direction of Mazda design.

Masami Uemura, managing director of the Japan Post Network Chugoku Regional Office, presented a sheet of the limited edition postage stamps together with a miniature model of the 1967 Mazda Cosmo Sport 110S - the world's first mass production rotary-engined sports car - to Yuji Harada, a director and senior managing executive officer at Mazda Motor Corporation.

Crafts under threat - set of stamps from Belgium

The Belgian Post has issued a series of stamps dedicated to the old crafts which are less and less popular nowadays and are under the threat of disappearing.

The stamps depict the tools from the Museum of ancient techniques located in Grimbergen (Belgium). The museum contains a vast collection of tools, technical manuals and trade catalogs.

'Stop Aids Now' - set of stamps from Netherlands

The TNT Post has issued a set of stamps dedicated to the Stop Aids campaign which aims to make anti-retroviral drugs - often unavailable in poorer countries - universally accessible.

Although treatments for AIDS and HIV can slow the course of the disease, there is no known cure or vaccine. Antiretroviral treatment reduces both the mortality and the morbidity of HIV infection, but these drugs are expensive and routine access to antiretroviral medication is not available in all countries.

The Netherlands Post participates in the Stop Aids campaign calling to donate by means of the TNT Post. All the donors will get an exclusive set of postcards with the illustrations of the stamps.

'Redevelopment of Old Areas' - special stamps by Hong Kong

Hongkong Post today announced that a set of four special stamps on the theme "Redevelopment of Old Areas" will be released for sale, together with philatelic products, on November 16.

Spurred by a steady flow of population from the Mainland and propelled by an unmatched spirit of entrepreneurship, Hong Kong has experienced phenomenal growth in the past few decades. But it faces difficult choices when seeking to make room for economic progress while also trying to retain its collective memories. In this context, the Government is embarking on a "people-centred, area-based and community-engaged" approach, aimed at giving the city environment a facelift through rehabilitation and redevelopment while promoting sustainability through revitalisation and preservation.

The design of these special stamps signifies the on-going commitment to striking a balance between urban regeneration and heritage and cultural conservation. This will be achieved through the steadfast implementation of the four renewal strategies - rehabilitation, revitalisation, preservation and redevelopment.

Images of the Hong Kong cityscape both before and after redevelopment are juxtaposed, with the "old-look" set in monochrome and the new one shown in vivid colours to highlight the contrast. Red, white and blue site hoarding and scaffolding on the bottom left of the souvenir sheet harmoniously echo the colour scheme.