A YOUTUBE star from Basingstoke who takes a suitcase into a bank each week to go home with £1,240 in change has earned himself 55,000 subscribers.

Christopher Collects launched his YouTube channel in 2017 after developing an interest in coin collecting.

Now, the 28-year-old’s videos are watched by hundreds of thousands of people on YouTube as he searches through cash for valuable coins.

Read the full story here.

Coins to look out for in your change:

Battle of Hastings 50p

Featuring a design inspired by the Battle of Hastings the coin was made in 2016 to mark the 950th anniversary of the battle between King Harold II and William the Conqueror in 1066. There are 6.7 million in circulation.

Christopher says: “It’s a real example of a coin that’s done the rounds in social media and newspapers saying it’s worth a fortune. I wish it was because I’ve got hundreds of them. But it’s quite a common one you will see quite often. There are some that are worth a fair bit of money. But most will be about £1 on a good day.”

The Battle of Britain 50p

Issued in 2015 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the coin quickly earned recognition in the collecting world.

Christopher explains why two different versions make one more valuable than the other.

“If you look at the Queen’s head, under it you can see two different initials. One is JC featuring the new portrait of the Queen by Jody Clark, which was issued in circulation and it’s quite common, you’ll find it often. But the other one with Ian Rank-Broadley’s portrait with the initials IRB that could be worth £30, £40 or £50. It’s these little tweaks that could add value to these coins.”

Kew Gardens 50p

Described by Christopher as “the holy grail of coin hunting” the rare coin could be worth up to £200 making it one of the most valuable you could find in your spare change.

“It’s got such a low mintage,” explained Christopher. “There are only 210,000 of those out and about and everyone wants one so they will pay top dollar for it.”

Beatrix Potter 50p coin set

The coins were released in 2016 to mark 150 years since the birth of author Beatrix Potter.

They show characters from her iconic children’s story The Tale of Peter Rabbit, and as Christopher explains, are desirable to collectors.

“They are a lovely set and the kids really like them. They could have a higher mintage than other coins but because it’s a popular topic it could be worth a fair bit of money,” he said.

Florence Nightingale 50p

This is one of Christopher’s favourites to find. He said: “It’s a lovely design.”

However, it might not be worth very much because there are 6,175,000 in circulation, released in 2010 to celebrate 150 years of nursing.