Penny Black Penny Black The Penny Black was the world's first adhesive postage stamp used in a public postal system. It was first issued in Great Britain on 1 May 1840, but was not valid for use until 6 May. It features a profile of Queen Victoria. In 1837, British postal rates were high, complex and anomalous. To simplify matters, Sir Rowland Hill proposed an adhesive stamp to indicate pre-payment of postage. At the time it was normal for the recipient to pay postage on delivery, charged by the sheet and on distance travelled. By contrast, the Penny Black allowed letters of
Laurie Penny vile sexist and anti-Semitic abuse" following the book's publication. Penny was selected by Truthdig as "Truthdigger of the Week" for the week of 25 November 2011. In 2012, "Tatler" magazine described her as one of top 100 'people who matter'. In October 2012, "The Daily Telegraph" ranked Penny as the 55th most influential left-winger in Britain, reporting that she is "without doubt the loudest and most controversial female voice on the radical left." In April 2014, Penny was announced as an International Nieman Fellow at Harvard. In August 2015, Penny endorsed Jeremy Corbyn's campaign in the Labour Party leadership election.