Sign Stories

Black Cat Audio

Fascinating audio giving some history behind the Black Cat sign on Dingley Road, EC1.  This includes the observation that the growth of the cigarette industry in the early part of the last century was partly fuelled by the fact that soldiers fighting in the war were given fags in their rations. They then got hooked […]

27 Nov 2009

Ghost Signs Received

Having been busy on my dissertation I have been neglecting to feature all the signs that I get sent by friends and readers of this blog. The last time I did a profile like this was back in March 2008 when I showed some examples from London, Europe and the USA. So here are some […]

29 Jan 2009

James Ashby & Sons (Rose Brand Fine Teas)

James Ashby & Sons, Union Street, SE1 Rachel at Jerwood Space recently told me that the building at 195-205 Union Street is currently awaiting final confirmation of its demolition and development. It may not be long before the building and its little piece of ghost sign history is lost forever so I got down there […]

12 Dec 2008

Hovis Update

Some time ago Rosemary tipped me off about this well preserved Hovis sign just off Green Lanes in Harringey which I’ve now got round to photographing. It is an excellent example, well preserved, and strikingly similar to the one in Islington (see below) in terms of the logo and design.  However, the slogans differ, this […]

10 Sep 2008

Bile Beans Part 2

Although I’ve been aware of this Bile Beans sign for some time I was struck by Andy Johnson‘s picture seen here as it really highlights the brightness of the sign versus the surrounding area.It has been tinkered with slightly but provides an insight into how much the original signs must have stood out against an […]

30 May 2008

Bovril Update

Alex sent me this photo of the remnants of a Bovril sign in the Redhill area. In much the same way as the Ekco sign that Duncan sent me, this sign appears to have been revealed during some recent construction work involving the demolition of the adjacent building or extension. This is a huge factor […]

26 Apr 2008

Leicester Ghost Signs

Browsing some of the vast and ever growing collection of photos in the Flickr Ghost Signs pool I came across a nice collection taken by Amy Jane Barnes in Leicester. Here are three of my favourites. Thank you to Amy for letting me feature them on the site and do visit her ongoing photo-a-day project […]

4 Apr 2008

Jack Daniel’s

Some time ago now my uncle sent me two photos he took while visiting Newcastle (see below). These show Jack Daniel’s reviving the hand painted advertising medium by using a stencil to replicate the label design on walls across the city.  Comparing the two signs reveals that they are stencilled, most probably they did a […]

18 Jan 2008

Pulse of the Planet

A while ago I submitted some photos and general information to a competition run by USA science website Pulse of the Planet. And I won (!) with this picture of one of my personal favourites from Stoke Newington Church Street, N16. Interestingly one of the two runners up prizes went to another Stoke Newington sign […]

2 Dec 2007

Boyd Pianos

Charlie, sarflondondunc and Ross all told me about this great sign for Boyd Pianos that has recently been revealed on Shacklewell Lane in Hackney, presumably by the removal of a billboard. It is interesting on a number of levels, not least the quality of preservation 1. It is advertising pianos which is something you would […]

23 Nov 2007

Bovril & Greys

Andy sent me this great double sign from Bedford in response to my appeal for world record contenders.  Although it isn’t a multitude of signs, the quality of preservation is exceptional. Either they’ve been retouched or they have been preserved by a billboard/adjacent building. redgrittybrick says of the Greys signs: ” I believe the “Greys” […]

19 Oct 2007

Ariel Bikes

This sign from Kennington in south London was spotted by Steve and I photographed it soon after. It’s right beside a library which makes it difficult to get a square shot. It is a mystery why it says “Writers” across the bottom and also interesting that the top left of the sign has completely gone.Ariel […]

21 Sep 2007

French Brickads

A recent trip to the south of France was surprisingly fruitful when it came to Ghost Sign hunting. Whereas discovering a new sign in London is something of a rarity, France is bursting with them. There’s something about the country that makes them comfortable with all things rusty and dusty i.e. they don’t mind if […]

13 Sep 2007

Southborough Butchers

Driving back to London from a wedding this weekend I pulled over in Southborough to take a picture of this sign. It’s obviously been maintained and I like the effect used on the corners.  Like the Vaneers ad it features an old style phone number, this one for Tunbridge Wells 529 757. However, my favourite […]

30 Jul 2007

Peterkin Mystery

This classic sign for Peterkin’s Custard, Self-Raising Flour and Corn Flour can be seen on St John’s Hill near Clapham Junction Station. See a bigger picture here. The sign was first brought to my attention by Nicola via the Museum of Brands, Packaging & Advertising.  She was interested in the company and what happened to […]

4 Jul 2007

Whitton’s Bread

Andrew Hughes, who is writing his dissertation on the protection of Ghost Signs, sent me this well preserved sign from Lincoln.  The bread would most probably have been made at Whitton’s Mill in nearby Whitton, perhaps an early competitor to Hovis as this sign is actually for the shop but probably paid for by Whitton’s. […]

25 Jun 2007

Black Cat Cigarettes

One of my personal favourites, this one is on Dingley Road, EC1. It is for an old brand of cigarettes that no longer exists.  There used to be a factory located on this site but more interesting is that Greater London House in Mornington Crescent was originally built as a factory for these cigarettes by […]

19 Jun 2007

BP (British Petrol) Revealed

This sign was partially covered for a long time but, just the other day, the modern poster was taken down revealing an old ad for British Petrol (BP) and some other ads faded behind but in a similar colour. The history of the logo indicates that this sign may well date from pre-1930.

18 Jun 2007

Watneys Competition

Further to the post on Watneys Wall here are a couple of pictures showing how the competition was run. Above is the sign that was displayed in bars to encourage entries for a prize of £50, and below a picture from the article in the January 1938 ‘The Poster’ showing the 40,000 entires being dealt […]

17 Jun 2007

Watneys Wall

Yesterday I visited the History of Advertising Trust (HAT). I came across a funny old poster for Watney’s Ale.  It was a parody of the painted ad format and of painted political slogans and was done in 1938 by an advertising agency called Horrocks and Company. This picture from the October 1938 edition of ‘The […]

16 Jun 2007