The Royal Mint has today launched a new series of commemorative coins celebrating the life and work of John Lennon.

The uncirculated £5 coins, which will go on sale from 9am, can be purchased from the Royal Mint starting from £18.50.

The Royal Mint has today launched a new series of uncirculated £5 coins celebrating the life and work of John Lennon, which will be available to purchase from 9am.

The coins, which are available in a number of variations at wildly different prices, can be purchased from the Royal Mint starting from £18.50.

A colour version, limited to 10,000 units will be on sale for £29.50, while a 1oz silver version, one of 5,000 will set buyers back £118.

Those available range up to a £3,265 1oz gold proof coin, with a 1kg silver proof version available for £2,850 and a silver 10oz version on sale for £1,165.

Only 400 1oz gold versions of the coin have been struck, the 1kg silver coin is limited to just 64 coins.

Icon: The Royal Mint is launching a series of commemorative coins celebrating John LennonThe Royal Mint says the release coincides with what would have been Lennon’s 85th birthday. The coins feature a portrait of Lennon, which is based on a photo taken by Bob Gruen.

During his career, with the Beatles and as a solo artist, Lennon won seven Grammy awards and is widely considered one of the most successful and talented musicians of his generation.

Rebecca Morgan, director of commemorative coin at The Royal Mint, said: ‘Arguably one of the greatest singers and songwriters of all time, Lennon’s achievements as an artist, activist and advocate for peace continues to live on and will now be forever remembered on a coin.

‘Still admired by millions of people and generations worldwide, we hope this coin and its design will be treasured for many years to come.’

The coins are available to purchase now from the Royal Mint website.

These aren't the first commemorative coins based on musical legends that the Royal Mint has released, with some of the UK's most iconic artists including fellow Beatles band-made Paul McCartney having been immortalised in coin form.

The majority of the Mint's 'musical legend' ranges have sold out, with coins celebrating the likes of Elton John, Queen, David Bowie and The Rolling Stones all no longer available.

This being the case, is it possible these coins will be increasing in value now that they are off the market and if so, perhaps budding magpie investors should look to get their hands on the newest Royal Mint launch.

Dan Hatfield, resident This is Money expert valuer, said: 'The Royal Mint are synonymous with quality and millions have turned to them for investment purposes for hundreds of the years, as Britain's oldest business it is one of the most trusted institutions in the world. I believe the products they produce represent quality and although you are paying a premium, for example the gold one ounce coin is 40 per cent above the spot price, the designs, the craftsmanship and the limited number mean that they are highly sought after and collected around the world. From my long exposure to their offerings, they will increase in value. If I were to purchase one I would always go for the gold ones and buy one as heavy as my disposable income would permit me.'

Gold has gained some 40 per cent since January last year, and has risen more than two per cent this week alone.

'As world economies struggle investors and central banks continue to purchase gold meaning that prices will most likely continue to rise for the rest of this decade,' Hatfield said.

Meanwhile, Phil Mussell, coin expert and author of Spend it? Save it? told This is Money: 'The series was first released in 2020 and the precious metal versions of these coins have certainly held their value well. Gold, for example, has increased from £1,500 per ounce to £2,300 an ounce since then. Will it continue to go up and up? If I knew that I'd be a very rich man indeed.

'The music legends series has a mass appeal away from numismatics, but the artists featured are very eclectic so not every coin will appeal to every collector. Personally, while I like the Beatles, I was never much of a Lennon as a solo artist fan, if I were buying any of them I'd probably go for artists I play regularly, maybe Queen or Bowie, even The Police. I'm an 80s boy at heart.'