Commit Some Nuisance for Bankside
One of the ‘bonus’ stops on my Bankside Ghostsigns Walk is a pair of signs on the back The Borough Welsh Congregational Chapel (Doyce Street … Read more
UK
It’s All Popping Off in Deptford Market Yard
In Deptford, South East London, the processes of development/gentrification are having an impact on the area’s walls, including ghost signs. The following is cribbed from … Read more
Shropshire Shop Fronts of the 1880s
My father-in-law discovered this astonishing collection of high quality photography showing the high street in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, in 1888. They were photographed by Joseph Lewis … Read more
Bill-Poster: A London Type
Sadly we recently lost what was one of my all-time favourite ghost signs, in the shape of the Black Cat on Dingley Road. RIP. The … Read more
Bovril’s Windrush Square Legacy
Windrush Square in Brixton is home to this, one of the most famous ghost signs in London. While the Bovril sign is still very prominent, … Read more
Evans, Jones & Ricketts Restoration in Talgarth, Mid Wales
The restoration of ghost signs seems to be becoming more prevalent in the UK, or perhaps I’m just more conscious of them taking place. While … Read more
Ariel / Writers Revisited
This ghost sign for Ariel motorbikes, and the Writers shop that sold them in Kennington, is one of my London favourites, partly due to the … Read more
The Dioramas of Northall by Job Weessies
Job Weessies is a Dutch model maker and, after some time working on railway models, he has moved into working with card and on creating … Read more
A 1984 Photo of the Spitalfields Gillette Ghost Sign
I first posted about this illustrated Gillette ghost sign on Commercial Street back in 2007 when I came across it on Frank Jump’s Fading Ads … Read more
Michelle Heron’s Fantastic Fascias
Michelle Heron is a London-based painter with a paticular fascination for old shops and shop fronts. Her paintings depict iconic fascias, many of which have … Read more
NE Signs Scavenger Hunt
Following a series of discussions on Twitter myself and a handful of others have decided to run a scavenger hunt to locate, photograph and map … Read more
Tracking Down Boots in Stoke-on-Trent
Back in 2016 I gave a short talk about my archiving work at the annual conference of the Business Archives Council, where one of the … Read more
Ghostsigns of Clapham, a Forthcoming Walk
Following my talk to the Clapham Society last summer we are joining forces, with Roy Reed, to develop a walk exploring the many ghost signs … Read more
Ancient Lights in English Law
This blog post highlights an entire category of fading painted signs that I have never come across. They are for ‘ancient lights’ and reference an … Read more
London Street Signs with Alistair Hall
Alistair Hall of We Made This has spent the last couple of years documenting and researching the various forms taken by London’s Street Signs. He … Read more
Painted Advertisements in Islington: Part 4
The list below of painted advertisements in Islington was compiled in the hope that some of those reading it might write in with additional locations … Read more
Painted Advertisements in Islington: Part 3
The list below of painted advertisements in Islington was compiled in the hope that some of those reading it might write in with additional locations … Read more
Painted Advertisements in Islington: Part 2
The list below of painted advertisements in Islington was compiled in the hope that some of those reading it might write in with additional locations … Read more
Gardiner & Lacey at the Cat & Mutton
The Cat & Mutton pub on Broadway Market in East London has a remarkable array of Victorian glasswork on display in the main bar (see … Read more
Sgraffito and the Old Dairy at Crouch Hill
These pictorial panels depicting the products and services on what is now The Old Dairy on Stoud Green Road have always intrigued me, and ahead … Read more
On Tour with Albani Calusin and RMIT
Back in March last year I had the pleasure of taking two groups from Melbourne’s RMIT on my Stoke Newington Ghostsigns Walk. This was the … Read more
Numbers 3-7 Stoke Newington Church Street
On one of my walking tours back in 2014 guests had the opportunity to see this reveal of a newsagent and tobacconists’ sign at No.5 … Read more
For Hire: Stunning Reveal near Columbia Road Market
Via Amanda Jacks on Twitter I was alerted to the reveal of this ghost sign near Columbia Road Market. It’s at the junction of Ravenscroft … Read more
John C. Mather, Alwyne Lane
While researching the old painted advertisements of Islington I was contacted by Leo Hornak, a journalist at the BBC. He wanted to record a piece … Read more