5 Pounds

The Nairne-signed white fiver occupied an unusually long production window, overlapping the entire First World War period during which the Treasury — not the Bank — took over responsibility for the lower denominations. That political split is precisely why the Bank's large white notes continued uninterrupted: Bradbury's emergency currency covered the 10 shilling and £1 gap, leaving the Bank's established £5 format undisturbed.

These notes were printed on one side only, with the reverse left blank — a practice the Bank maintained on its white fivers until 1957. The partially printed format made forgery detection easier for cashiers trained to spot bleed-through irregularities. John Gordon Nairne served as Chief Cashier from 1902 to 1918, giving this issue its full date span.