Royal Mail has unveiled a special stamp collection to celebrate the 60^th anniversary of the X-Men franchise.

The 17-stamp set will feature some of the most popular characters from the Marvel comic book series, which was first published in 1963.

The main set of 12 stamps was created by British comic book artist Mike McKone and includes original members Professor X, Cyclops, Angel, Iceman and Beast.

Other favourite characters Wolverine, Kitty Pryde, Colossus, Jubilee, Jean Grey, Storm and Rogue also feature in the collection.

An additional set of five stamps in the form of a miniature sheet has also been designed by comic book artist Lee Garbett and will feature some of the mutant enemies faced by the X-Men - Juggernaut, Mystique, Magneto, Emma Frost and Sabretooth.

The stamp for Professor X, otherwise known as Charles Francis Xavier, depicts the founder of the superhero team in a blue suit with one hand to his temple and the other outstretched, demonstrating his telepathic powers.

The recognisable character was played by Sir Patrick Stewart in the first three films of the 20^th Century Fox X-Men film series. He also reprised his role in a number of spin-off movies.

Meanwhile, James McAvoy played a younger version of Professor X in a series of X-Men films after first debuting in 2011’s X-Men: First Class.

The stamp of Wolverine, played by Hugh Jackman in the film adaptations, show the character wearing his classic yellow-and-black suit with his signature metal claws on display.

The stamp for Magneto, who has been portrayed by both Sir Ian McKellen and Michael Fassbender in the films, sees the character don his iconic red superhero suit and purple cape.

All 17 stamps will be available to buy in a presentation pack which goes on general sale from 16 February at £16.35.

David Gold, director of external affairs and policy at Royal Mail, said: “Generations have grown up, enamoured by the adventures and the personalities of the X-Men and their enemies.

“We celebrate the X-Men Universe with these stylish new stamps featuring some of its iconic characters.”

The X-Men superheroes were created by the late writer Stan Lee alongside artist and co-writer Jack Kirby.

They depicted the group as being founded by mutant telepath Professor X and were based in the professor’s home, which was transformed into the School for Gifted Youngsters and dubbed the X-Mansion.

After many of the original X-Men were captured by the mutant island of Krakoa, Professor X formed a new squad to rescue them, bringing heroes such as Wolverine and Storm into a new international team.

The professor’s school later became a refuge for mutants from all over the world, forming teams such as the New Mutants, Excalibur and Generation X.

The first film adaptation, X-Men, was released in 2000 and a host of movies and spin-offs have followed since.

Reporting by PA

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