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christmas

2001

Happy Swan

Happy Swan, 39 Chipstead Valley Road, Coulsdon, Borough of Croydon, London, 2001 • Classic plastic sign and festive plant hierarchy in window. Still exactly the same in 2017 (minus Christmas […]
Happy Swan

2001

Shortlands

Shortlands, 34 High Street, Banstead, Surrey, 2001 • Old-school shoe shop rationing the Christmas lights. Still exists 2017, and also has a branch in Cobham. The 1970s logo has been “modernised” […]
Shortlands

2001

Marcel

Marcel, 31 Chipstead Valley Road, Coulsdon, Borough of Croydon, London CR5, 2001 • Plucky festive cheer within peeling facade. Looks like a restaurant but, as its name suggests, is a […]
Marcel

2001

Taylor’s

Taylor’s, 21 High Street, Merstham, Surrey, 2001 • Industrial festive cheer, part 2. This is a removals and storage business, which is still there.
Taylor’s

2013

Skeltons Bakery

Skeltons Bakery, 11-15 Trinity House Lane, Kingston upon Hull, 2005 • Founded 1931, this 43-branch bakery went into administration in 2007 – there are some photos from its heyday here. It was bought by […]
Skeltons Bakery

2001

D. Barnett

D. Barnett, 1 Station Approach, Chipstead Station Parade, Chipstead, Surrey CR5, 2001 • The perfect spot for emergency slipper repairs on 28th Dec (probably needed quite often in Surrey). Note ancient […]
D. Barnett

2001

Sun Hong

Sun Hong, 36 High Street, Caterham, Surrey CR3, 2001 • Pathetic tinsel, festive colours – it could only be a Chinese take away in the dog days of Christmas. The pointless […]
Sun Hong

2001

Tasty Grill

Tasty Grill, 158 Brighton Road, Coulsdon, Borough of Croydon, London CR5, 2001 • A lonely Christmas kebab lady in deepest, dullest Surrey (historically, if not technically) – the word Hopperesque springs to […]
Tasty Grill

2005

Hepworth’s Arcade

Hepworth’s Arcade, Market Street, Hull, East Yorkshire, 2005 • Nice arcade, pity about the crap Christmas lights – Hull from the days before it was awarded City of Culture status (and […]
Hepworth’s Arcade

2003

Maries Cafe

Maries Cafe, 90 Lower Marsh, Waterloo, Borough of Lambeth, London SE1, 2005 (top), 2011 (middle), 2003 (bottom) • Shrunken-headed Santa greets curious punter at this popular Thai-cum-greasy spoon caff, which still […]
Maries Cafe

2004

Xmas Trees

Xmas Trees, Near Sandford Hotel, Sandford Road (A351), Wareham, Dorset, 2004 • I always like a hand-written sign so I pulled over in the middle of a long drive to snap […]
Xmas Trees

2001

J.P. Wheeler

J.P. Wheeler, 55 Westway, Caterham, Surrey, 2001 • An amazing old-fashioned emporium packed with a huge range of non-printing sundries, but displaying the usual parsimonious Surrey approach to Christmas lights. Google […]
J.P. Wheeler

2001

Vogue Printers

Vogue Printers, 30 Rathbone Place, City of Westminster, London W1, 2001 • From the days when fax rolls featured proudly in window displays, an incredibly useful West End stationers with an […]
Vogue Printers

2001

Mr. Snob

Mr. Snob, 22 High Street, Banstead, Surrey SM7, 2001 • Snob refers to a superior type of cobbler (there’s a history here), rather than the good citizens of Banstead. The family business, […]
Mr. Snob

2005

Honour

Honour, 86 Lower Marsh, Waterloo, Borough of Lambeth, London SE1, 2005 • Festive fetish gear at this stalwart of the rubberwear and bondage scene, still there today if you’re interested…
Honour

2001

Sweeny Todds

Sweeny Todds, 41 Station Road, Belmont, Sutton, Surrey, 2001 • Grisly attempt at Christmas decor from an unfortunately-named hairdresser paying homage to the “demon barber of Fleet Street” – albeit wrongly spelled. […]
Sweeny Todds

2001

Sandwich Bar Cafe

Sandwich Bar Cafe, 4-5 Hatfields, Waterloo, Borough of Lambeth, London SE1, 2001 • Fine old-school cafe with spurious tinsel and customer in festive green hat. The ruched curtains, painted ivy and […]
Sandwich Bar Cafe

2001

J.T. Snuggs

J.T. Snuggs, 50 High Street, Banstead, Surrey, 2001 • Another Snuggs – this one’s a jeweller, whose Dickensian name is complemented by Scroogeish Christmas decor. That’s mistletoe in the top left corner, […]
J.T. Snuggs

2001

Jean

Jean, 18 High Street, Caterham, Surrey, 2001 • Sigh – shops named after their owners, selling random bits of haberdashery, are a dying (if not dead) breed.
Jean

2002

Nicholas Johns

Nicholas Johns, 281 Southwark Park Road, Borough of Southwark, London, SE16, 2002 • Oddly beautiful, in all its fairy-lit ruined pinkness. Was reborn as the lurid-sounding Curry Den, with tiny mosaics […]
Nicholas Johns

2001

R. Cooke

R. Cooke, 84 The Cut, Borough of Lambeth, London SE1, 2001 • Very popular old Waterloo caff which shut overnight “on doctor’s orders”. And I never set foot in there. Damn.
R. Cooke

2002

Christmas War

Christmas War, Queens Square, Crawley, West Sussex, April 2002 • Christmas War, still battling on in April in Crawley’s bunker-like mall (the height of modernity when I was a child).
Christmas War