Ghostsigns Walking Tours

This walking tour through Stoke Newington’s historic conservation area features some of London’s best ghostsigns (fading advertisements painted on walls) as well as many other points of interest. These include a Banksy survivor, a lethal alleyway and a pint in the pub to finish it all off. The signs are used to explore local, advertising, craft and design history, aided by additional photographic resources shared en route.

After the tour you will start to spot ghostsigns everywhere you go with a heightened appreciation of their history and place in the contemporary urban streetscape. While photos are useful for documenting ghostsigns before they are lost, nothing compares to seeing them ‘in the flesh’. This tour includes some of London’s best examples, the stories behind them, and an introduction to the topic in more general terms.

Tour leader, Sam Roberts, is a lifelong Stoke Newington resident and ghostsigns obsessive who has been researching them since he first noticed them in 2006. Since that time he's written over 500 blog posts, curated the national History of Advertising Trust Ghostsigns Archive, and provided written contributions to numerous books, magazines and journals. He regularly speaks on the topic and advises other researchers in their own work.