Sam Roberts

Cars and Ghost Signs by Tom Pawlesh

Tom Pawlesh got in touch and shared his cool collection of images composed by juxtaposing ghostsigns with a variety of classic cars. He has currently amassed almost 50 in total and I was happy to hear that Tom is already in contact with Dana Forrester who has drawn a similar connection between ghostsigns and cars. […]

13 Dec 2016

Early Graphic Communications in Cave Paintings

Thanks to Derek for alerting me to this video which explores some of the earliest known forms of graphic communications and symbolism, building on previous posts here on the blog. Here is the TED blurb, and the speaker has a book, The First Signs: Unlocking the Mysteries of the World’s Oldest Symbols (also available on […]

6 Dec 2016

New Book: Ghost Signs of Bath

Ghost Signs of Bath has been a book waiting to happen for many years, and I have written about the city on a number of previous occasions. Fortunately Andrew Swift and Kirsten Elliott of Akeman Press have seized the opportunity and created a publication that takes local historical research into ghostsigns to new levels. I […]

28 Nov 2016

Ghostsigns with the Gentle Author on Spitalfields Life

I’ve recently had the pleasure of meeting the Gentle Author, creator and driver of the incredible daily posts on Spitalfields Life. We explored the routes of my North and South London Ghostsigns Tours, which have been documented on the blog (here and here). As with my public walks I enjoyed seeing the signs through another’s […]

17 Oct 2016

Paper & Bags: Spitalfields Mystery

Philip Marriage got in touch with the photograph above, taken in the Spitalfields area in 1985. It is part of a wider collection of archive photos that he has, many published on the Spitalfields Life blog here. Philip has been trying to pinpoint the locations of each of his photos, with some being easier than […]

6 Oct 2016

Kotanyi Paprika: Stunning Vienna Reveal

Looking barely aged since it was painted in 1963, this fabulous ghostsign for Kotanyi Paprika has just been revealed in Vienna, Austria. The demolition of the adjacent building fortuitously precedes the publication of Ghost Letters of Vienna, and happened just in time to make it onto the cover of the book. (See previous post about […]

29 Sep 2016

More Glasgow Ghostsigns

In July I headed to Glasgow to deliver a workshop, screening and talk for the Merchant City Festival. (A write-up of what happened can be found over on the Better Letters blog.) While there I got to see lots of new ghostsigns, and other forms of historic and noteworthy signage, much of which I collated into my […]

23 Sep 2016

The Ghostsigns Tours App is Out Now

The Ghostsigns Tours App, and the Bankside Ghostsigns Walk within it, are now available from iTunes and Google Play (for Android). The app brings the popular Ghostsigns Walking Tours to your mobile device, for enjoyment at street level, or from the comfort of your own home. A mixture of contemporary and archival photography is used […]

16 Sep 2016

RIP: Black Cat Cigarettes

I’m often asked what is my favourite ghostsign. There are many to choose from, but, since first discovering it in 2007, the Black Cat Cigarettes sign on Dingley Road in London is the one I usually go for. When giving my Top Ten London Ghostsigns to Londonist I said this about the sign: “This is […]

13 Sep 2016

Light Capsules from Craig Winslow

Craig Winslow is an experiential designer who has recently turned his gaze towards ghostsigns, and the creative possibilities offered by applying his expertise in light projection mapping. The idea first came to him during a trip across America and has grown since. In essence it involves recreating the fading signs through a process of typographic […]

7 Sep 2016

Fading Ads of Cincinnati

Fading Ads of Cincinnati by Ronny Salerno is the latest in the series of books from The History Press. Documenting the ghostsigns of his hometown, Ronny offers up some beautiful examples, complimented by detailed local history research that places them in context. Versus others in the series there is slightly less generic material on the […]

23 Jul 2016

Yager’s: The House of Value Revealed

Previously covered by billboards, this wonderful ghostsign advertising Yager’s has just been revealed in Stamford Hill. Following many tweets (via @ghostsigns) and emails concerning the sign, I had to go and have a look for myself. Thank you to everyone that got in touch, here it is back in 2009, with the billboards still in […]

12 Jul 2016

‘Phantoms’ by Michelle Madsen of the Poetry Takeaway

The Poetry Takeaway is a fun, interactive rapid poetry unit, and I was lucky enough to get one written for me a couple of weeks ago when I met the team at Here London. After a high-energy chat/interview with poet Michelle Madsen, I left her to it, and she came back with ‘Phantoms’ which you […]

24 Jun 2016

RIP: 154 Bishopsgate EC2

This elegant painted sign adorning the stonework above the entrance to 154 Bishopsgate, London EC2, is no more, recently replaced by mounted metal letters (see picture below). Although it isn’t what most would refer to as a ghostsign (see my chapter, What is a Ghost Sign?, in this forthcoming book), it was a striking and […]

27 May 2016

RIP: H. Callcut & Son

The H. Callcut & Son sign that once adorned this house front has now been whitewashed (see below). It was on Blackstock Road in North London, close to my old primary school, so I was quite sad to see this familiar landmark lost to property development. The photo above, and the details below were taken […]

20 May 2016

Ghost Letters of Vienna

Ghost Letters of Vienna is a project to photographically document the wide range of fading fascias, and other forms of redundant lettering, on buildings in the Austrian capital. I met with the project leader, Tom Koch, during his recent visit to London, and have offered a Ghostsigns Walking Tour as one of the prizes in […]

18 May 2016

36 Porto Signs

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, largely due to work on the book taking over for the last six months or so. Following a week in Amsterdam with Better Letters I enjoyed a long weekend in Porto, Portugal. Here is a slide show of some of the signs (‘ghost’ and otherwise) that I found […]

16 Mar 2016

Ghost Signs of Dublin by Antonia Hart

Last year saw the publication of Ghost Signs of Dublin, to my knowledge the first book covering the subject in Ireland. It is the latest in the growing set of titles from The History Press, previously focused on the UK and USA. (See: Birmingham Alabama; Liverpool; New York; Phildelphia; St. Louis). Versus other titles in […]

16 Nov 2015

The Cat gets the Cream in this Clacton-on-Sea Reveal

[28 July 2015 – This post updated with new images and comments below] This stunning reveal in Clacton-on-Sea in Essex features three ghostsigns. In sequence these are for Ambrosia, Black Cat Cigarettes and a tea rooms, captured here by Ed Loach. Their appearance has caught the eye of many locals, with calls for their protection […]

20 Jun 2015

RIP: Signwriters – Gilding & Pictorial Artists

This beautiful gilded script once marked the home of Ambridge Signs. When they left the premises the sign didn’t come with them and, until last month, it provided a reminder of the area’s signwriting heritage. It was situated on this unassuming building at the end of a terrace on Southgate Road, De Beauvoir, but has now […]

21 Mar 2015

J.R. Brewer, the Butcher

I’d always noticed number 77 Shacklewell Lane because of the ghostsign below. Although very faint, I always thought it advertised a business called/run by Grime. However, as we’ll see below, this word was in fact ‘Prime’. Below this was a blacked out shop fascia, overlooking the bus stop. Back in January I was cycling past […]

8 Mar 2015

E. Mono in North London

Back in 2011 an old 1920s shop fascia was revealed on Kentish Town High Street. The nature of the E.Mono business remains a mystery but the new occupants, a kebab shop, decided the sign was worth keeping and named their shop after the historic proprietors. (Andrew Whitehead has written detailed pieces on the reveal on […]

28 Feb 2015

Glasgow Ghostsigns Galore

I’ve been traveling a lot with work lately and was recently in Glasgow for a workshop. With a couple of hours to spare I looked up a few locations on the History of Advertising Trust Ghostsigns Archive and took to the streets. Here’s what I saw… An abandoned gallery and picture framers, F.W. Holroyd. The […]

18 Feb 2015

Signs & Frescoes in Pompeii & Herculaneum

When I give talks on the history of signs painted on walls I often refer to their ancient history, going back at least as far as Roman times. Evidence for this comes from the ruins at Pompeii and Herculaneum as seen before on these photos shared with me by Will Collin five years ago. (Ancient […]

11 Feb 2015