Ghost Signs

The Boyd is Back in Town

Boyd Pianos’ ghost sign on Shaklewell Lane, London E8, revealed again after 13 years’ hibernation.

16 May 2025

W.E. Baxter: A Beautiful Palimpsest in Lewes, Sussex

Layers of lettering in Lewes, advertising the W.E. Baxter printers, bookbinders, and stationers. Photo: David Quay.

5 Jun 2024

Holland-America Line, Santander

The retouching of an illustrated ghost sign for the America-Holland Line in Santander, Cantabria, Spain. Photographed by Federico Barrera Garaña / Santatipo.

14 Feb 2024

A Curious Palimpsest: Foster Ltd in Bristol

Small lettering emerging beneath a recently revealed ghost sign for Foster Ltd in Bristol. Photographed by Tobias Newbigin.

10 Feb 2024

Fading Ads of Gloucester by Chris West

Fading Ads of Gloucester extends the current series from the History Press in the UK, USA, and Ireland. The material has been researched and gathered by Chris West, graphic designer for the publisher. The format of the titles in the series varies but this one opts for some very brief introductory comments, before moving into […]

29 Apr 2017

Dingo Flour Restoration in Fremantle Australia

On one of my recent Bankside Ghostsigns Walks an Australian guest tipped me off about the recent restoration of a famous Dingo Flour ghost sign in Fremantle, Australia. This was undertaken at the end of 2016 with a grant from the Western Australian Heritage Council. The sign was originally painted in 1940, and was maintained […]

22 Apr 2017

The Vacuum Shop and George Braun

Guests on my Stoke Newington Ghostsigns Walk in early 2015 were lucky to see a bonus fading fascia en route, advertising The Vacuum Shop. This was revealed by works to the Anglo Asian restaurant, which now straddles numbers 60 and 62 Stoke Newington Church Street. Ben Selig was the proprietor of an “electrical appliances” shop […]

15 Apr 2017

What is a Ghost Sign?

‘What is a Ghost Sign?‘ is the title of the second chapter of our book, Advertising and Public Memory. It is an attempt to provide a logical approach to formulating a definition, and a formal response to the many times I’ve been asked, ‘Does this count?’. The article started life a few years ago as […]

11 Feb 2017

Tracing the Origins of ‘Ghost’ Signs

When did old painted signs on walls become known as ‘ghost’ signs, and who coined the phrase? These questions crop up often in my discussions with others, and on my tours, and I always have to hold my hand up and say I didn’t invent the term, but have just made use of it for […]

14 Jan 2017

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

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

‘Sur Les Murs’: Montréal’s Bilingual Ghostsigns

‘Sur les murs‘ (‘on the walls’) is the first book about ghostsigns to come out of Canada. It is a French language publication, as it is set in Montréal, but contains many English language signs. This reflects the bilingual history of the city and the country, which continues to this day. In fact, through the […]

8 Sep 2013