Peter Rabbit to become first children's character to appear on a UK coin, in honour of Beatrix Potter

A children's character devised by Cumbrian author Beatrix Potter will become the first children's literary figure to appear on a UK coin.

Mischievous Peter Rabbit will feature on a special commemorative silver 50p coin released in honour of the 150th anniversary of the writer's birth in 1866.

Three more Potter characters will feature on coins set to be released later in the year to complete the four-piece set, the Royal Mint confirmed.

It is the second set of coins released to celebrate the the sesquicentenary of Potter's birth, with both gold and silver 50p pieces unveiled at the start of the year.

Uncoloured versions of the coins featuring the designs will be released into general circulation after the specialist coins have been released.

The designs were drawn up by the Royal Mint's Emma Noble, who has previously created Diamond Jubilee and Remembrance Sunday commemorative coins.

The Tale of Peter Rabbit - telling the story of a determined vegetiable thief - was an instant hit when it was first published in 1902 by Frederick Warne & Co.

Peter went on to appear in five further books by the author.

Potter, whose marital home was in the Lake District, died in 1943 at the age of 77.

The World of Beatrix Potter, based in Bowness-on-Windermere, say the coin looks "fabulous":