Signs of the Covid-19 Coronavirus Pandemic Times

Today marks five years since the UK entered its first Covid-19 Coronavirus Pandemic lockdown.

On the 23rd March 2020 the UK effectively ceased normal operations as the country was put into lockdown.

Once we were allowed out photographed as much Covid-19 Coronavirus Pandemic and Social Distancing signage and notices as we could to document the times.

There is certainly a real variety of warnings, instructions and directional signage to do with social distancing.

Social distancing signs at Cheadle Makers Market

We were amused by this photo Emily took of the social distancing measures in place on an escalator in M&S!

Surely the 2 metre apart distance stickers should be on the moving walkway as well, rather than the static sides of the escalator?

Here are just a few of the signs we snapped.

A bench in Colne, Lancashire

Covid-19 signage at Puttstars Mini Golf in Rochdale

Covid signs at The Happy Shopper convenience store in Sheffield

Social distancing at an abandoned Blockbuster Video store in Manchester 

You can view over 1,800 of the signs at the links below:

• Covid-19 signs 1
• Covid-19 signs 2
• Covid-19 signs 3
• Covid-19 signs 4
• Covid-19 signs 5
• Covid-19 signs 6
• Covid-19 signs 7
• Covid-19 signs 8
• Covid-19 signs 9
• Covid-19 signs 10
• Covid-19 signs 11
• Covid-19 signs 12
• Covid-19 signs 13
• Covid-19 signs 14
• Covid-19 signs 15
• Covid-19 signs 16
• Covid-19 signs 17
• Covid-19 signs 18

It's still possible to see Covid-19 Coronavirus signage and I reckon the remnants of the pandemic will be visible for many years to come.

Related blog posts:

• Signs of the coronavirus pandemic times
• Minigolf in the time of Coronavirus

NO PIGEONS ALLOWED

Spotted at Greggs in the Merseyway shopping centre in Stockport.

Nice to have a sign for the pigeons themselves!

How to play mini golf - in Swedish

A look at a mini golf guide in Sweden.

We saw this mini golf instructions sign at Solna Bangolfklubb while on a Crazy World of Minigolf Tour trip to Sweden in 2018.

"Så här spelar vi bangolf" translates as "This is how we play golf".

How to play minigolf

Here's a minigolf sign about 'How to play minigolf' - in three languages (English, German and French).

How to play minigolf

So wird bahnengolf gespielt

Jouer au minigolf

We found the sign at the minigolf course in Stoke Park, Guildford, Surrey on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in 2008.

The Swedish Felt B-Run Minigolf course in Guildford's Stoke Park

We revisited and replayed the course at Stoke Park in 2016.

Blockbuster Video store in Nuneaton - May 2021

The old sign at the former Blockbuster Video store on Regent Street in Nuneaton was uncovered when a tenant of the building moved out. This is how the store looked on the 2nd May 2021.

Blockbuster Video store locations we've visited on our travels

Our interest in lost brands and retail history has taken us to several former Blockbuster stores:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Kebab Near Me in Bridgehall, Stockport

What a name for a takeaway!

We spotted the new Kebab Near Me takeaway in Bridgehall, Stockport over Christmas.

Bravo to the team at Kebab Near Me in Bridgehall, Stockport for selecting the name for the takeaway.

This is one way to be found!

Check out the Kebab Near Me website.

Blockbuster Video Express in Billingham Town Centre - April 2021

A visit to the old Blockbuster Video Express store in Billingham town centre, Teesside.

Blockbuster Video store locations we've visited on our travels

Our interest in lost brands and retail history has taken us to several former Blockbuster stores:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Morrisan Supermarket in Manchester

There's something familiar about this shop's name and sign...

Morrisan Supermarket in Manchester

Morrisan Supermarket in Manchester

The demise of Blockbuster Video in the UK

The last Blockbuster Video shop ceased trading in the UK on this day in 2013.

Blockbuster Video entered the UK video rental market in 1989 following the purchase of Ritz Video.

In 2013 there were over 500 Blockbuster locations in the UK. Throughout that year the number dwindled until October when only 264 shops remained. On the 16th December 2013 all stores ceased operations.

It's amazing that there are still clearly visible remnants of the brand on the high street and on retail parks eleven years later.

If you're lucky, and know where to look, you might find a QuikDrop box hiding in plain sight

The first Blockbuster Video store had opened in Dallas, Texas, USA on the 19th October 1985.

The very last Blockbuster Video store in operation is in Bend, Oregon, USA.

Until January this year there was an abandoned Blockbuster Video store near us here in Manchester. It was always an eerie, interesting and nostalgic thing to drive past the old shop at Fallowfield Retail Park.

Blockbuster Video in Fallowfield, Manchester

The sign about the closure was still visible on the window there before it was demolished.

At its peak in 2004 there were more than 9,000 Blockbuster stores around the world. 500+ of which were in England, Scotland and Wales. Interestingly in Northern Ireland the Xtra-Vision brand was used by the owners in-line with the Republic of Ireland.

Blockbuster certainly wasn't the first video rental shop brand, but it was at one time the market leader.

Blockbuster Video store locations we've visited on our travels

Our interest in lost brands and retail history has taken us to several former Blockbuster stores:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Lost brands

Emily and I have spent the last few years reminiscing about 'the good old days'. One of our areas of interest is in old retail brands - we're both marketers by profession and two of my first jobs in the 1990's and the year 2000 were at Tandy and Toys R Us, while Emily's first job was at a Happy Shopper shop. It's been fascinating to find remnants of these brands - and a number of other lost, dead and defunct brands - on the high street and at retail parks around the UK.

A DVD rental shop in 2024: T.V.L. Allstar Video in Haverhill

Finding a DVD movie rental shop in Haverhill, Suffolk.

It was amazing to find out about TVL Allstar Video in Haverhill and brilliant to hear that in 2024 they've been celebrating their 40th year in business.

While they no longer rent out VHS tapes they hold a library of around 8,000 titles on DVD and Blu-ray, with new releases added to the collection on a weekly basis.

We've spent the last few years documenting the last traces of Blockbuster Video stores here in the UK, and we've found some other video shop signage on our travels. It's even better when we find a video shop that is still open for business!

Signs for the movie rental membership, and some of the other services provided at the shop

If you don't know what to rent, the team at TVL Allstar Video will be able to guide you to some of the top picks. Chatting with the owner and his colleague at the shop they told me how they've maintained a regular customer base over the years. This was evident in my short visit as there were several people through the door, it was excellent to see

There aren't many things better than holding an actual video shop rental membership card in your hands in 2024 - it's a link to another time!

A view of a small section of the rentals available at the shop

New releases are regularly added to the collection at TVL Allstar Video

I would've rented Beetlejuice Beetlejuice if I lived close enough to borrow and return it in time

Lovely to see rental stickers in the wild

A familiar sight back in the day

As well as film rentals, the shop has diversified over the years and now offers scratched disc repairs, a print shop, stationery, and UPS Parcels services.

Check out the TVL Allstar Video website for more information.

TVL Allstar Video in Haverhill is one of only a handful of video rental shops still operating in the UK. Long may it continue!

The Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford

There's a Woolworths ghost sign on the former store location in Stafford.

The exterior of the former Woolworths shop in Stafford

I first saw the ghost sign on the old Woolies in May 2023.

The Woolworths ghost sign in Stafford

We've found a few ghost signs and remains of the Woolworths brand on our travels over the years.

Adventure Golf at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea

Here's a look at the Adventure Golf course at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea, Essex.

We revisited the Adventure Golf at Adventure Island in Southend-on-Sea on our trip to the seaside town in April 2023.

There are two 9-hole courses there and they were originally the 14th and 15th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in March 2007 and we've returned a number of times since then.

We actually played the Aztec and Inca Adventure Golf courses at Adventure Island in 2003, three years before our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour began. Sadly the results of that contest are lost in the ether!

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Since 2006 Emily and I have visited 1,064 miniature golf courses around the UK and overseas on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. As well as playing minigolf in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Jersey and the Isle of Man we’ve travelled to minigolf courses in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Finland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, Spain (Lanzarote and Majorca), Sweden and the USA.

When added to the courses my brother Christopher and his family have visited around the British Isles and Türkiye, Spain (Majorca), Italy, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, France, Indonesia, Croatia and the USA, the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour stands at a combined 1,111 courses visited!

Crazy Golf in Troon, Scotland

A look at the seafront Crazy Golf course in Troon, Scotland.

My friend and minigolf rival Simon Brown sent over a photo of the hut at the seafront Crazy Golf course in Troon from his recent visit.

You can see photos of the course from January 2023 in this guest blog post from Simon.

The 18-hole Crazy Golf course in Troon was the 573rd miniature golf course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in 2014.

Blockbuster Video in Southampton - May 2021

A look at the former Blockbuster Video store on Portswood Road in Southampton, Hampshire in May 2021.

Blockbuster Video store locations we've visited on our travels

Our interest in lost brands and retail history has taken us to several former Blockbuster stores:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Blockbuster Video Express in Colne - August 2020

A look at the old Blockbuster Video Express store in Colne, Lancashire on Sunday 9th August 2020.

Blockbuster Video store locations we've visited on our travels

Our interest in lost brands and retail history has taken us to several former Blockbuster stores:

• Abingdon, Oxfordshire
• Ashton, Bristol
• Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Basingstoke, Hampshire
• Billingham, Teesside
• Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester
• Chester, Cheshire
• Chorley, Lancashire
• Clacton-on-Sea, Essex
• Colne, Lancashire
• Failsworth, Manchester
• Fallowfield, Manchester
• Felixstowe, Suffolk
• Filton, Bristol
• Great Moor, Stockport, Greater Manchester
• Hastings, East Sussex
• Leigh, Greater Manchester
• Luton, Bedfordshire
• Marple, Greater Manchester
• Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
• Nuneaton, Warwickshire
• Oldham, Greater Manchester
• Prescot, Lancashire
• Shanklin, Isle of Wight
• Southampton, Hampshire
• Telford, Shropshire
• Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex
• Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Wythenshawe, Manchester

Octoputts Indoor Crazy Golf in King's Lynn, Norfolk

There's an indoor crazy golf course in King's Lynn, Norfolk.

We swung by Octoputts Indoor Crazy Golf in King's Lynn, Norfolk en route to a family gathering last month.

Check out the Octoputts website for more information.

Toys R Us at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport

Spotting a Toys R Us store at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.

Emily spotted this sign for the Toys R Us store at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport on a trip to the USA earlier this year.

The store was in Terminal A, but Emily was at Terminal D

As well as this airport store, you can find Toys R Us stores within Macy's department stores in the USA, plus locations at two flagship stores at malls in New Jersey and Minnesota.

There were once 105 Toys R Us stores in the UK. The business ceased trading in 2018 and all of the shops here closed. In the USA there were more than 700 stores, with the final ones closing in June 2018 after 70 years of operating.

My first job while at university in the year 2000 was as one of Geoffrey's helpers at the Luton store. I worked on the video game and electronics section.

It's been very interesting to find that there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK and we've visited a number of these closed, abandoned, derelict and demolished Toys R Us locations on our travels.

Former Toys R Us locations we've visited on our travels:

• Brighton Hill Retail Park in Basingstoke
• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Cathedral Retail Park in Norwich
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Gateway retail park in Reading
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich
• St James Retail Park in Northampton
• Teesside Retail Park in Stockton-on-Tees
• The Leisure Plaza in Milton Keynes
• Western Esplanade in Southampton
• Wolverhampton Road in Oldbury
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby

A Debenhams ghost sign

Spotting a Debenhams ghost sign in Stockport.

A time capsule view of old Stockport

As a fan of retail history and ghost signs it was Marvellous to see the old Debenhams logo from 1986-1991 on show at the former Debenhams store in Stockport town centre yesterday evening.

The window graphics from the 90's, along with a ghost sign outline where the DEBENHAMS letters once were

The building is now home to the recently opened Joseph James Furniture Outlet.

How the shop looks in April 2024

Debenhams ceased trading on the high street in May 2021 after 243 years of operation. You can still find ghost signs and somewhat intact storefronts around the UK where the shop units have not been occupied by a new business.

Debenhams in Stockport, December 2020

The former Debenhams is over the road from the former Tandy shop, where you can still find a ghost sign. It's also on the same road where until recently you could find a British Home Stores ghost sign.