Clacton's hidden '1920s' adverts will stay on show

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-33386865

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Decades-old advertisements uncovered in Essex will stay on show after a campaign was launched to preserve them.

The vintage signs, thought to be from the 1920s, were revealed when a JCDecaux billboard was removed from Meredith Road, Clacton, last month.

Blogger Danny Sloggett won support on social media after he called for the so-called "ghost signs" to be saved.

A JCDecaux spokewoman said its billboard had been "permanently removed" and would not be replaced.

But she was unable to confirm why the company had taken the decision.

Mr Sloggett described the move as "wonderful" and said he felt his efforts had been appreciated.

"I think it's great that they might have taken notice of what we were saying. So many things have been ruined and it's good to rectify something from our past," he said.

When Mr Sloggett first spotted the billboards, he described them as "relics" which "showed off Clacton's power".

"The Royal Family used to come here in the 1920s and 30s. Lots of people used to come from London, and things like this are an important part of our history which has been hidden away," he said.

The posters, which advertised Ambrosia, Black Cat cigarettes and a local cafe, are on the side of a building currently leased by an estate agency.

The BBC was unable to contact the owner of the building with the vintage posters on its side.