The four-coin collection celebrates one of the most popular movie franchises of all time, created by American moviemaker George Lucas.

The first coin features R2-D2 and C-3PO in colour inside the Millennium Falcon. Other coins include Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia, and Han Solo and Chewbacca.

Each coin in the commemorative collection include a special effect called a ‘lenticular feature’ which tilts in the light to reveal symbols, including the Tatooine and the Rebel Alliance ‘Starbird’ logo.

However, while the coin collection and design by Ffion Gwillim has today been unveiled, eager Star Wars fans will need to wait until 9am on Monday 10 July to get their hands on them via the Royal Mint website.

The first coin in the collection comes in a 50p and ounce range, but fans will also be able to secure the complete four coin collection on the day too. Prices and details of how many coins or sets are for sale will also be revealed then.

Rebecca Morgan, director of collector services at The Royal Mint, said: “We are delighted to launch an out-of-this-world collection to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. We are excited to enthuse new and existing coin collectors across the world, as well as Star Wars’ thriving fan base both in the United Kingdom, and internationally, with the launch of this collection.

“The collection features beloved character duos from the Star Wars franchise, and the team at The Royal Mint have worked to faithfully recreate the iconic R2-D2 and C3-PO, the first Star Wars characters to feature on coins in the collection.”

According to The Royal Mint, coin collecting remains Britain’s favourite hobby.