Bruce Henderson (philatelist)


Bruce Ronald Henderson, also known as Bruce Grenville and Martin Renwick, 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.

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 at Oecusse, with himself as the self-proclaimed Sultan. Stamps were produced for the "Sultanate".

''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.

Selected publications

  • "Voyages to Imaginary Countries" in Artistamps Francobolli D'Artista, James Warren Felter, AAA Edizioni, Bertiolo, Italy, 2000.