In 2024 a Ghost Sign was revealed in the Sheffield suburb of Crosspool when a large advertising billboard was removed from a gable end at the neighbourhood shopping centre. It was a much faded version of what can be seen here. A story of local reaction unfolded in the local press - elderly residents recalled seeing the original sign in their youth. As an exercise in graphic design it has to be said it’s very basic. But, perhaps its very simplicity spoke to the omnipresent popular yearning for simpler times and a campaign to see it reinstated was widely supported. A year later the sign was restored to its former self, modestly promoting the virtues of tinned processed peas to the wider world. Follow this link to see how it was achieved. Not everyone was delighted, some felt it should have been preserved in its damaged condition, maintaining its identity as a Ghost Sign. Others believed the sign had little merit and preferred to see the entire gable end as a potential space for Street Art. The last photo features the frequently elusive 51 bus, behind which the billboard can be seen as it was in 2007.
