Bank of England £ 20 note - wikipedia Bank of England £ 20 note Twenty pounds ( United Kingdom ) Value £ 20 Width 149 mm Height 80 mm Security features Raised print, metallic thread, watermark, microlettering, UV feature, holographic strip, see - through registration device Paper type Cotton Years of printing 1725 -- 1943 ; 1970 -- present 2007 -- present ( current design ) Obverse Design Queen Elizabeth II Design date 13 March 2007 Reverse Design Adam Smith Design date 13 March 2007 The Bank of England £ 20 note is a banknote of the pound sterling. It is the second highest denomination of banknote issued by the Bank of England. The current cotton note, first issued in 2007, bears the image of Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse and the image of Scottish economist Adam Smith on the reverse. Starting in 2020, the current note will be phased out, to be replaced by a polymer note featuring a portrait of artist J.M.W. Turner in place of Smith. Contents 1 History 2 Designs 3 See also 4 References 5 External links History £ 20 note, issued from London in 1934. `` Series D '' £ 20 note, issued from 1970 to 1991. Twenty pound notes were introduced by the Bank of England for the first time in 1725. The earliest notes were handwritten, and were issued to individuals as needed. These notes were written on one side only and bore the name of the payee, the date, and the signature of the issuing cashier. With the exception of the Restriction Period between 1797 and 1821 when the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars caused a bullion shortage, these notes could be exchanged in full, or in part, for an equivalent amount of gold when presented at the bank. If redeemed in part, the banknote would be signed to indicate the amount that had been redeemed. From 1853 printed notes replaced handwritten notes, with the declaration `` I promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of twenty pounds '' replacing the name of the payee. This declaration remains on Bank of England banknotes to this day. A printed signature of one of three cashiers appeared on the printed notes, though this was replaced by the signature of the Chief Cashier from 1870 onward. The right to redeem banknotes for gold ceased in 1931 when Britain stopped using the gold standard. The twenty pound note ceased to be produced by the Bank of England in 1943, and it was not until 1970 with the introduction of the series D notes that the denomination reappeared. The predominantly purple series D notes were two - sided, with an image of Queen Elizabeth II appearing on one side, accompanied by an image of Saint George and the Dragon ( all subsequent Bank of England notes also feature an image of the Queen ) and an image of William Shakespeare appearing on the other. This note also had a security feature in the form of a ' windowed ' metal thread. The thread is woven into the paper so that it forms a dashed line, yet appears as a single line when held up to the light. Series D notes were phased out in favour of the newer series E notes beginning in 1991. These notes were multicoloured ( predominantly mauve - purple ) and featured an image of scientist Michael Faraday on the back. Series E notes were replaced by a variant design from 1999 onwards. These are broadly similar to the earlier series E notes but feature Edward Elgar on the reverse. The current £ 20 note was introduced in 2007. It features a portrait of Scottish economist Adam Smith on the back as well as an illustration of workers in a pin factory. The note features a number of security features in addition to the metallic thread : these include raised print, a watermark, microlettering, a holographic strip, a see - through register, and a colourful pattern which only appears under ultraviolet light. In September 2015 the Bank of England announced that the next £ 20 note will be printed on polymer, rather than cotton paper. This was followed by an announcement in April 2016 that Adam Smith will be replaced by artist J.M.W. Turner on the next £ 20 note, which will enter circulation by 2020. Images on the reverse of the Turner note will include a 1799 self - portrait of Turner, a version of Turner 's The Fighting Temeraire, the quote `` Light is therefore colour '' from an 1818 lecture by Turner, and a copy of Turner 's signature as made on his will. Designs Note First issued Last issued Ceased to be legal tender Colour Size Design Additional information White 1725 1943 16 April 1945 Monochrome Printed on one side only 211 × 133 mm ( may vary ) Denomination discontinued from 1945 until 1970 Series D 9 July 1970 1991 19 March 1993 Predominantly purple 160 × 90 mm Front : Queen Elizabeth II Back : William Shakespeare First £ 20 note to carry a portrait of a monarch and used a ' windowed ' security thread ( July 1984 onward ) Series E 5 June 1991 2000 28 February 2001 Multicoloured ( predominantly mauve - purple ) 149 × 80 mm Front : Queen Elizabeth II Back : Michael Faraday Those notes issued from September 1993 have an additional denomination symbol £ 20 on each side Series E ( variant ) 22 June 1999 2007 30 June 2010 Front : Queen Elizabeth II Back : Edward Elgar Series F 13 March 2007 Front : Queen Elizabeth II Back : Adam Smith Series G ( polymer ) By 2020 139 × 73 mm Front : Queen Elizabeth II Back : J.M.W. Turner Information taken from Bank of England website. See also Bank of England note issues References ^ Jump up to : `` A brief history of banknotes ''. Bank of England. Retrieved 28 April 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` Withdrawn banknotes reference guide '' ( PDF ). Bank of England. Retrieved 28 April 2016. Jump up ^ `` £ 20 Note ( Adam Smith ) -- Design Features ''. Bank of England. Retrieved 28 April 2016. Jump up ^ `` £ 20 Note ( Adam Smith ) -- Security Features ''. Bank of England. Retrieved 28 April 2016. Jump up ^ `` Paper banknotes disappearing fast as £ 20 turns plastic ''. BBC News. Retrieved 27 April 2016. Jump up ^ `` J.M.W. Turner to appear on the next £ 20 banknote ''. Bank of England. Retrieved 28 April 2016. Jump up ^ `` The next £ 20 note ''. Bank of England. Retrieved 28 April 2016. External links Bank of England website Banknotes of the pound sterling England and Wales Bank of England Current £ 5 £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 Obsolete 10 / - £ 1 Scotland Bank of Scotland £ 5 £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 £ 100 The Royal Bank of Scotland £ 1 £ 5 £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 £ 100 Clydesdale Bank £ 5 £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 £ 100 Northern Ireland Bank of Ireland £ 5 £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 £ 100 Danske Bank / Northern Bank Current £ 10 £ 20 Obsolete £ 5 £ 50 £ 100 First Trust Bank £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 £ 100 Ulster Bank £ 5 £ 10 £ 20 £ 50 £ 100 British Crown Dependencies Guernsey pound Jersey pound Manx pound British Overseas Territories ( at parity with Sterling ) Gibraltar pound Falkland Islands pound Saint Helena pound See also Pound sterling Coins of the pound sterling Economy of the United Kingdom Sterling area Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bank_of_England_ £ 20_note&oldid = 849726639 '' Categories : Banknotes of England Twenty - base - unit banknotes Talk Contents About Wikipedia Bahasa Indonesia 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 10 July 2018, at 22 : 52 ( UTC ). 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Question: when was the £20 note last changed
Answer: 2007