Bring out your best china with these regal collectables

These gorgeous pieces are part of a full set of 35. The whole set is priced at £180

Did you have a nice “Stay At Home” Valentine’s meal? Even if you had a takeaway delivered there’s nothing like getting out the best china to make a meal feel special, and why restrict it only to Christmas?

If you want to feel truly regal, then it has to be tableware with ‘Royal’ in the title, like this week’s collectable, Royal Albert. In 1896, Thomas Clark Wild bought the Albert Works pottery in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, named the year before in honour of the birth of Prince Albert, who became King George VI in 1936.

Using the brand name Albert Crown China, Thomas Wild and Co.’s early floral patterns in rich shades of red, green, and blue became instantly popular. Embracing the sentimental and florid excesses of Victorian England, commemorative fine bone china pieces produced for Queen Victoria’s 1897 Diamond Jubilee earned them that sought after Royal Warrant in 1904.

Creating pattern after pattern, many inspired by English gardens and woodlands, means they produced a wider number of ranges than much older manufacturers.

Despite being a relatively recent manufacturer Royal Albert’s most treasured pattern among users and collectors is probably Old Country Roses, introduced in 1962 and featuring a 22-carat gold trim.

Based on a much older Royal Albert Pattern called King’s Ransom, it embodies the traditions of gardening and teatime, displaying red, pink, and yellow English roses in full bloom, and is estimated to have sold more than 150 million pieces!

A full set of Old Country Roses certainly makes a real impact, like pieces from this stunning 35-piece set currently in the centre. Perfect if you fancy making ‘the best china’ an everyday indulgence, the whole set is priced at £180.

Those looking for perfect examples of ‘OCR’ (the acronym will mark you out as a serious collector!) should watch out for ‘second quality’ pieces with glazing mistakes and imperfections in size or colour. Official seconds were often given to employees or sold at reduced prices, and can often be identified by a scratch or X mark across the backstamp.

In 2002, production of Royal Albert china moved from England to Indonesia, making ‘Made in England’ marked items more valuable.