Stanley's faded dancehall days. This "ghost" sign, painted directly onto an end-terrace wall in Stanley Co.Durham, was one of the first I ever spotted in this region. The letter style puts it at least as far back as the 1950s and it seems to be advertising the then very popular dances which were the only place anyone could do a bit of "courting".

My friend Gordon Wearmouth (who is in his 70s) said the only drawback to these cafe venues was that they had no licence to sell alcohol - he and his mates used to skip every third tune, nip over the wall to a pub, swig a pint in record time and be back before the band had struck up the next opening chord.

It's a miracle this sign has survived so long. Below it is a Primary School playground, can't believe it hasn't been painted over with some hideously bright community mural which educationalists seem to think stimulate young children.