Several years ago, I wrote a piece about the famous ‘Lucozade’ sign which has welcomed motorists approaching London from the west with its vintage, sparkling display since the 1950s.

The Lucozade sign (image: The Mirror)

The sign, located at Brentford, can even be glimpsed in a 1975 episode of ‘The Sweeney’:

The Lucozade sign (to the left), 1975

But now, thanks to the brazen action of advertising giant JC Decaux, the sign has vanished; hastily removed over the Christmas period and replaced with yet another, generic digital board. An so, yet again, London has had another little piece of its uniqueness and character chiseled away.

What a sad way to start the year.

A petition calling for the sign’s reinstatement can be found here.