Post script

We all love a secret, don't we? And the Postal Museum's secret railway is one of the best. Mail Rail runs underneath London's streets. It used to deliver mail, and now the 100 year old network delivers delights to museum visitors in its tiny trains. The museum has been nominated as Museum of the Year 2018, and it's only been open a few months - I guess the railway won't be secret much longer.

Some seem surprised that this museum has been such a success, but I'm just as surprised that they're surprised. People have an innate need to communicate, and the story of our postal service is fascinating. It's battled through attacks by highwaymen, bombs and even a lion (it's worth a visit to the museum for that story alone).

The secret railway sign is on the paving of a pretty garden area which includes a living wall studded with red post boxes. For fans of food, the cafe is worth a mention, as it's a notch better than the usual fare. So it's probably worth a visit now, while it's still (nearly) a secret. More info here.

Chicken or egg?

Which came first - the chicken or the egg? A sign of gamification of smoking, near a university somewhere in London (maybe Bloomsbury?). Neat idea. Discourages litter, encourages debate. And possibly also smoking. The chicken seems to be winning.

Bad housekeeping

Sign of opulence in South Kensington, London. All that money, yet they can't afford an apostrophe.

Self reflection

Lloyds Bank sign in Piccadilly, London, with the reflection of Wren's St James's in the window. A calm, cool picture which seems to hark back to the days when banks and churches were trusted pillars of society. In reality, Piccadilly is brash and bustling, the contrast between the haves and have nots is painful, something which St James's admirably strives to address.

Ring in the new year!

 
Happy New Year all! 2018.

Model houses for families

An early example of social housing, with a sign proudly proclaiming its purpose. Built by the wonderfully named Society for Improving the Condition of the Labouring Classes, this handsome Bloomsbury building opened in 1850. It housed 48 families. Each dwelling had a living room, two bedrooms, a scullery and a water closet, and there were communal bathrooms and a laundry. It made a profit of about 5.5% for its investors. The Society's President was Queen Victoria's husband Albert. They had already experimented with a large development in Birkenhead, Wirral, which housed over 300 families; this had not been a success, as the buildings were too close together and the bedrooms too small. However, the London buildings were successful, and as well as homes for families, the society had lodgings elsewhere in London for single men and women. The society was taken over by the Peabody Trust in 1965.

When things were simple

Remember the simple days when you got your gas from the Gas Board, your electricity from the Electricity Board and your phone from the Post Office? Wait, what - the Post Office? It doesn't sound quite so obvious in these days of multiple providers, myriad models and a bewildering array of packages to pick from. I bet the phones supplied by the London Telephone Service were big, black and hung in the hall. I took this photo a couple of years ago and I can't remember where this handsomely lettered sign on a long blocked-up letter box is, though the geo info on my (not big, not black) phone says it's somewhere near Regents Park.

Need a whip maker?

There's never a whip maker around when you need one. But James Smith & Sons has been around since 1830, as the sign on its handsome shop front will tell you.

Known simply as the umbrella shop, it's in New Oxford Street in London, and remains pretty much unaltered since Victorian times. Its gorgeous shop front boasts of tropical sunshades and golf umbrellas, and a rather more interesting range of life preservers.

Why not pick up a dagger or swordstick while you're there?

Sporting sign

Fantastic smart sign in Southwark, London - you don't mess with this one. The original Ring Boxing Club was housed in a former chapel. It had 12 sides, and no 90 degree angles - the architect said that meant there was no corner for the Devil to hide in. The building was sadly a victim of the blitz - the Ring today is close to the original site. There's a great history section on their website.

Going underground

Smart London tube sign at St Pancras.

Barking mad

Andy Leek sign in London's Russell Square. Made me smile.

Ring out the old year, ring in the new!

Happy new year!

Give us a bell

I made a pilgrimage to the Whitechapel Bell Foundry earlier this year. It's a place I'd always wanted to visit, and I wasn't disappointed. We were given a warm welcome, and enjoyed the fading museum exhibits which tell of its impressive history. The shop was a delight - you're allowed to ring a selection of small bells, and I bought a tiny tourist bell as a memento of my visit. So I was sad to see the recent news that its future is uncertain. Activities will cease on the Whitechapel site, in the East End of London, by May 2017 and negotiations are underway to settle the future of the business. 

As the signs say, the business was established in 1570 and it has been on Whitechapel Road since 1738. Spanning the reigns of 27 English monarchs, it's Britain's oldest manufacturing company. The Liberty Bell and Big Ben were cast here. Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.

Neat

Neat, no-nonsense sign and great use of space at the wonderful Whitechapel Gallery, London.

Shh!

Shh, please close the doors quietly at St Katharine Cree in Leadenhall Street, London. How can you ignore such a graceful sign? Spread across two doors, it seems to have stood the test of time.

Tempting

Nice shiny night bell sign on Bush House, London. Tempting.

Pull the other one

Handsome dentist sign in Bloomsbury Square, London.

Push

This sign on a beautiful drinking fountain in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London is urging you to push. The park was once the site of duelling, jousting and public execution. Now it's a pleasant place to wander round, play tennis, eat or, increasingly and sadly, sleep on a bench.

It's a deal

Nation shall speak peace unto nation

The sign on the gorgeous Bush House, once the home of the BBC World Service and now part of King's College London. Built in the 1920s and 1930s, the building was once declared to be the most expensive in the world, and it is now listed.