Sam Roberts

Restoration Period: My Monotype Recorder Article Now Available to Read Online

Extended article examining what to do about ghost signs in terms of conservation, restoration, and protection.

30 Nov 2020

Glasgow Ghost Signs Walking Tours: Free Maps

Three walks the reveal some of Glasgow’s wonderful ghost signs.

23 Nov 2020

A Cluster of Ghost Signs Intrigue in Spitalfields’ Artillery Grounds

A cluster of ghost signs including advertising for a dairy, a boundary marker and a street sign offer some intrigue in Spitalfields’ former Artillery Grounds.

16 Nov 2020

The Fascinating Legacy of Neon in Warsaw, Poland

Watch Eric Bednarski’s film ‘Neon’ and discover more neon and ghost signs highlights from the 2020 Neon Speaks festival.

9 Nov 2020

New Developments in the Case of E. Mono on Kentish Town Road

Additional painted fascia revealed at E. Mono, but then both covered by new mounted signage.

2 Nov 2020

The Gileric Gowns of H.A. Howard & Sons, Ducie Street, Manchester

Research into H.A. Howard & Sons of Ducie Street, Manchester, manufacturers of Gileric Gowns.

26 Oct 2020

N.E. Signs Appreciation Society Wins Appreciation from Hackney Council

Update on work to document and protect Hackney’s surviving street signs with the now-defunct N.E. postal district, including successful Hackney Society lobbying.

19 Oct 2020

Ghosts of London’s Wayfinding Past in this New Book

Highlights from Alistair Hall’s London Street Signs book.

15 Oct 2020

Writing Off the Wall: The Wholesale Removal of a Viennese Ghost Sign

Last summer an extraordinary project took place in Vienna, Austria, with the aim of removing an early-20th Century ghost sign for Adolf Grünsfeld, in its entirety, from its host wall. It’s end destination would be the permanent display at the city’s Wien Museum. Tom Koch, who produced this film documenting the project, has written about […]

12 Oct 2020

Ghost Signs for Sale Raise Ethical Questions

Review of signs from architectural salvage that end up for sale on interior decoration marketplaces, and associated issues, including ‘faux’ ghost signs.

5 Oct 2020

Alf the Purse King

“Among the restaurants and cafes that dominate today’s Stoke Newington Church Street in North London is a ghost sign representing both the industrial and Jewish heritage of the area. The proud proclamation of ‘Alf the Purse King’ (the ‘man bags’ of their day?) is fading gracefully, high up on the bricks of its host building. […]

28 Sep 2020

A Curtain Call for the Theatre Advertising of Old

Fading theater curtain with painted advertising discovered on former premises of Burr Theatre in Ludlow MA by Sean Hastings.

21 Dec 2018

Stoke Newington Ghostsigns Walk: 28 December

Details of Christmas special Stoke Newington Ghostsigns Walk on Friday 28 December 2018.

14 Dec 2018

Two Paris Beauties Under Wraps

A couple of years ago these two well-preserved ghost signs were revealed in Paris (see Streetview), presumably by the removal of billboards that covered and protected them. [Update via Caroline’s Miscelleny: The uncovering was in 2012, and the works can be seen underway in the legacy Streetview.] The first adverises Ripolin, a paint brand, which […]

7 Dec 2018

F.W. Woolworth Co. and the Winston-Salem Sit-Ins

Absolutely fascinating investigation uncovering the historical connections between two glass signs for F.W. Woolworth Co. and the Winston-Salem sit-ins that played a major role in the American Civil Rights movement. (Watch on www.pbs.org here.) Hat tip to Meredith at the Pre-Vinylite Society for spotting this, and to PBS for creating the documentary.

30 Nov 2018

Introducing the Pre-Vinylite Society Journal

There is one week left to back the printing of a brand new publication that will be of interest to all those interested in hand-painted signs (old and new), art, design, architecture, and the intersections of all these. One of the articles inside will be the first of my planned ‘Lettering Locations’ series, featuring the […]

23 Nov 2018

Singapore’s Historic Signs

I’ve never been to Singapore but have always believed it to be an ultra-modern city-state, and an unlikely place to find much in the way of historic signs. However, it turns out that this prejudice is unfounded, as this collection of photos from Mark De Winne, Vikas Kailankaje and Vishesh Wanvari shows. They were featured […]

16 Nov 2018

London Street Level by Robert Brownjohn

I recently (28 October) hosted ‘Font Sunday’ on Twitter with the theme of ‘fading fonts’ to mark the changing of the clocks and the fading light it signifies. Among the contributions made was a tweet from Eliza Brownjohn, daughter of the designer Robert Brownjohn (1925-1970) who took the photo above in 1961. It is one […]

9 Nov 2018

Lancell Road’s Mystery Ghost Sign

[Download in high resolution] At 49 Stoke Newington Church Street, junction with Lancell Road, is this fragment of a ghost sign which, despite my best efforts, has remained a mystery in terms of decyphering. It would once have extended further to the right to fill the chamfer, but this portion was left exposed and subsequently […]

2 Nov 2018

Fonts Inspired by Ghost (and other) Signs

Earlier this year I was lucky to attend the launch of Lost & Foundry, a collection of fonts created and published by Fontsmith in collaboration with M&C Saatchi. They are inspired by various of pieces of historic signage in Soho, and funds raised from their sale all goes to support the charitable work of the […]

26 Oct 2018

The Enduring Ephemera of J.M. Hill in Southwark

Although my Bankside Ghostsigns Walk ends further West along the road, it doesn’t spend any time on the Eastern end of Union Street. However, a few buildings in, on the North side, I recently spotted this mounted sign and shared a photo on my Instagram and Facebook page, simply giving the broad location as supplementary […]

12 Oct 2018

Follow the Tram Lines to the Mann Egerton Reveal in Norwich

Alex Clayton sent me photos of this recent reveal in Norwich. Located at Magdalen Road (opposite Whalebone Freehouse), it advertises the Mann Egerton & Co Garage, and is a classic gable-end ghost sign. It was covered, and partly protected, by a billboard as shown in the streetview capture below. However, at some other time, the […]

5 Oct 2018

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 and Great Guildford Street). These convey the euphemistic line, ‘Commit No Nuisance‘, which translates to ‘please don’t urinate here’. Many other examples exist across London and the world, one of […]

28 Sep 2018

Scorched Earth Reveals Historic Eire Signs

A fire at Bray Head, County Wicklow, in Ireland, has revealed this fascinating relic of the second world war. This large-format Eire sign was one of over 80 located around the coast of Ireland to indicate the country’s neutrality in the war to bombers flying overhead. Many others survive, including some which have been maintained/restored, […]

21 Sep 2018