During WWII "almost perfect" forgeries of Bank of England Pound notes were produced by prisoners in a German concentration camp. The project was code named "Operation Bernhard". The German intent was to ruin the British economy by flooding them with hundreds of millions of counterfeit pounds.

There are a number of very small but discernible differences between the Operation Bernhard counterfeits and genuine notes. A counterfeit has a dull look in Britannia eyes, her lower lip not as full, less clarity on the cross at top of her crown, fleur-de-lis on the crown not as well defined, and the marking on the vase and the shadow around it not as dark. See side-by-side comparison
of enlarged Britannia. Genuine one is on the left. Can you find other differences?

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and North Ireland (including England, Scotland, Wales and North Ireland) is a constitutional monarchy located off the northwest coast of the European continent. In the 19th century Britain was the world foremost colonial power. By the mid-20th century, most of the territories formerly comprising the British empire had gained independence, and the empire had evolved into the Commonwealth of nations.

The Bank of England notes are used throughout United Kingdom. However, Northern Ireland and Scotland also use banknotes issued by local banks.

For a more detailed country profile, see CIA World Factbook on United Kingdom.