Subtitle

The Not Quite Adventures of a Professional Archaeologist and Aspiring Curmudgeon

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Ominous Roadsigns: London Edition

So, as some of you are aware, one of my hobbies is collecting photographs of ominous road signs. I recently was in London, a trip that I will probably describe in a few future entries, and while there, I was astounded by the sheer volume of ominous road signs. So, here we go:


I'm not sure why this road is named as it is, but I'm guessing it has to do with a wharf breaking...




Not ominous from a flavor standpoint...but very ominous from a halitosis standpoint.



Then there's this pair:


So, a bit of background. The term "cheap" comes from a word that meant "traffic, bargain, a purchase", and is the root of the modern word "cheap" (meaning poor quality, stemming from another modern usage meaning low-cost), as well as the root of the modern word "shop". Still, given the modern usage of the word, it seems like a strange name for a street. And "The Ward of Cheap" sounds like a euphemism for Wal-Mart.

...and then there's this, an argument in favor of why a location should never be named for the dominant object found in said location:


On the other hand, it is a wonderful counterpart to Brown Material Road.


....And now, these aren't ominous road signs. But they are amusing and/or surprising business and organization names. Unlike the amusing business names in Japan, these were written by someone with a command of the language. Some of them make sense given their location (such as the pub located near a major Freemason's hall, or the church that was once located in a Jewish neighborhood), while others are just clever names:


I think that this one got grandfathered-in past the appropriateness police.




Soon, on Vixen Video DVD, Jenna Jameson meets the Honest Sausage!




Contrary to what you may think, this pub is really not significant.




Not content to merely control the world, the Freemasons also want to control your drinks!

And in case you think I'm being alarmist, here's more proof of the grand, world-wide alcohol conspiracy:

Quick, someone call Mr. Icke!




This was advertising a play about Enron, but it was still odd to be walking down the street in London and see a large, lit-up Enron sign.




I tried checking out, but they wouldn't let me leave.



And, the best name ever for an eatery...or, wait, no that's not a very good name at all:


Really, there's only one type of slug worth celebrating:

...Just sayin'

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