Bruce Henderson (philatelist)

Bruce Ronald Henderson, also known as Bruce Grenville and Martin Renwick (born 1950), is a New Zealand anarchist, hoaxer and producer of artistamps. He is particularly known for the creation of the fictional Sultanate of Occussi-Ambeno.

Early life

Bruce Henderson was born in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1950.[1]

Sultanate of Occussi-Ambeno

In the 1970s and 1980s he gained notoriety for a hoax involving the fabrication of the utopian Sultanate State of Occussi-Ambeno, located as an exclave on the Island of Timor, with himself as the self-proclaimed Sultan.[2] Stamps were produced for the "Sultanate".[1][3] The Oecusse District is located in East Timor.

Other fabrications

Grenville's artistamp output encompasses an entire alternative universe of artistamp countries. These include the Kingdom of all the Sedang (not to be confused with the historic Kingdom of Sedang), the Sultanate of Upper Yafa, the People's Republic of Kempland, the Free Vinland Republic, the Republic of Liegerland, the Republic of Port Maria, Tui Tui, Aldabra, Raoul, the Land of Muggy, Cryonica, Aramoana, Whangamomona, Lar?, Nova Arcadia, the Antarctic Confederation and the Khanate of Bokhara. Grenville's artistamp world even has its own imaginary "United Nations," the "International Council of Independent States" (ICIS). His creations are sometimes identified as micronations; however, being completely fictitious and without "participants", they do not fit the definition.

He produced stamps and labels for the Karenni, being in contact with some leaders of the KNPP, the Karenni revolutionary party on the border with Thailand. At the time the KNPP was controlling part of Karenni State (Kayah State). Covers bearing these stamps were actually sent by the Karenni, with Thai stamps to pay postage.

Doctor Who

In January 1999, he came to notice for the discovery of a long missing 1965 original episode of the BBC television series Doctor Who, discovered in a garage sale in Napier.[4] The episode, "The Lion" (the first part of the serial The Crusade) was subsequently released on VHS and later DVD.

Selected publications
  • "Voyages to Imaginary Countries" in Artistamps Francobolli D'Artista, James Warren Felter (Ed.), AAA Edizioni, Bertiolo, Italy, 2000. ISBN 978-8886828253

References
  1. "Long Live The Sultan! The World and Stamps of Bruce R. Henderson" by Geir Sør-Reime, The Cinderella Philatelist, Vol. 56, No. 1, (Whole No. 221), January 2016, pp. 10–22, & Vol. 56, No. 2, pp. 58–64.
  2. Hayward, Philip (November 2019). "Oecusse and the Sultanate of Occussi-Ambeno: Pranksterism, misrepresentation and micronationality" (PDF). Small States & Territories. 2 (2): 183–194.
  3. "Newsdesk", Gibbons Stamp Monthly, Vol. 63, No. 8 (January 1990), p. 6.
  4. "Only Chance to See Doctor Who Episode." The Press (Christchurch), 13 April 1999.
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