Bank of England unveils new Alan Turing £50 polymer note

London: The Bank of England on Thursday unveiled the design of the new GBP 50 banknote, which features British scientist and World War II codebreaker Alan Turing.

The polymer note, which includes an image of Turing and other related imagery, will be issued for the first time on June 23, coinciding with what would have been the mathematician's 109th birthday.

There's something of the character of a nation in its money, and we are right to consider and celebrate the people on our banknotes. So I'm delighted that our new GBP 50 features one of Britain's most important scientists, Alan Turing, said Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey.

Turing is best known for his codebreaking work at Bletchley Park, which helped end the Second World War. However, in addition he was a leading mathematician, developmental biologist, and a pioneer in the field of computer science, he said.

He was also gay, and was treated appallingly as a result. By placing him on our new polymer GBP 50 banknote, we are celebrating his achievements, and the values he symbolises, he added.

Turing was prosecuted for homosexuality in 1952 and died of cyanide poisoning two

years later.