The pictorial pub sign is the number one ‘Icon of England’, according to a recent poll by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) [1].
Author Sebastian Faulks nominated the pub sign to be included in a list of countryside icons created for an online public vote [2]. Pub signs got 14.5% of the public vote, followed by red post boxes at 11.9%. Canal boating, a nomination from actor Kevin Spacey, was in third place [3].
However, CPRE fear the traditional pub sign is dying out as independent ale houses close down and old fashioned pubs receive a makeover.
Author Bill Bryson, President of CPRE, said:
‘A Royal Act in 1393 made it compulsory for inns to have signs, in order for official ale tasters and the mainly illiterate population to identify them, and so colourful signs and symbols have been gently enticing us inside ever since.
‘They are as characteristic of rural England as church spires and ancient hedgerows. The diversity of English life has been reflected in these intriguing and deceptively informative artefacts for centuries.
‘At a time when 36 pubs per week nationally are closing their doors, it is heartening to hear of the value still placed on this heralded tradition. Only around 30 of independent pub chains and breweries in Britain are still ordering individually painted signs. Amazingly a few of these fine artists are still working and there are some notable examples such as The St Austell Brewery in Cornwall that still employ sign writers. But it is a shrinking market and the dominance of a few chains has contributed to the disappearance of traditional British pub names, and led to a profusion of bland corporate makeovers.
‘I’m delighted pub signs won the Icons vote, and of course there is no better place to celebrate this result than inside an equally iconic British pub.’
Jon Howard, spokesperson for CAMRA said:
‘With the latest research suggesting 1 in 8 pubs will be calling last orders by 2012, people in the business will welcome this public support for their trade.’
Sebastian Faulks added:
‘People who think of England as a practical country with little flair for the visual would never have imagined that its lanes and roads would be regularly punctuated by what look like cards from a wooden tarot pack – optical extravagances, creakily offering delight, escape and risk. But it is so; and sometimes we hardly see the strangest things by which we are surrounded.’
The list of countryside icons features ideas by award-winning authors, journalists, photographers and filmmakers. This includes journalists Jon Snow, Lucy Siegle and Kate Adie and author and comedian Michael Palin.
The nominated icons were drawn from a stunning new book, Icons of England [4]. Published this winter, it contains beautiful photography and pays homage to England’s spectacular countryside and historic monuments.
The book features an introduction by Bill Bryson and 70 poignant contributions, including Jon Snow’s cherished view from his childhood bedroom window, singer Bryan Ferry’s favourite monument, broadcaster John Sergeant’s most tranquil place and journalist Kate Adie on the elusive quality of deer parks.
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NOTES FOR EDITORS
1. CPRE, the Campaign to Protect Rural England, is a charity which promotes the beauty, tranquillity and diversity of rural England. We advocate positive solutions for the long-term future of the countryside. Founded in 1926, we have 60,000 supporters and a branch in every county. President: Bill Bryson. Patron: Her Majesty The Queen. www.cpre.org.uk
2. The list of top 25 countryside icons as chosen by a selection by award winning authors, journalists, photographers and filmmakers comprises:
• Berkshire Downs by author and retired jockey Dick Francis
• Bonfires by journalist and presenter Tom Heap
• Canal boating by actor and director Kevin Spacey
• Cattle grids by journalist Leo Hickman
• Chalk horses by writer Peter Marren
• Church spires chosen by historian Dr Simon Thurley
• Cider orchards by designer Alice Temperley
• Clouds by author Gavin Pretor-Pinney
• Corner shops by poet Daljit Nagra
• Country houses by journalist Simon Jenkins
• Crags by actor and TV presenter Michael Palin
• Dartmoor by editor Satish Kumar
• Dawn chorus by sound recordist Chris Watson
• Land’s End by secretary general of the Muslim Council Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari
• Malvern Hills by poet and musician Benjamin Zephaniah
• Milestones by artist Kurt Jackson
• Norfolk Broads by journalist and TV presenter Nicholas Crane
• Post boxes by writer and photographer Peter Ashley
• Pub signs by author Sebastian Faulks
• Spurn Head by poet and critic Sean O’Brien
• Stiles by author David Lodge
• Totnes Castle by journalist and TV presenter Lucy Siegle
• Wasdale, Lake District by photographer Joe Cornish
• Water meadows by poet Wendy Cope
• Wildflowers by gardener and TV presenter Alan Titchmarsh
3. 1,036 voted in the CPRE online poll.
4. Icons of England was published on 5 September 2008 by CPRE in association with Think Books and Pan Macmillan. Copies of the book are available to buy online at www.cpre.org.uk/support/icons-of-england at a special price of £16.00 including UK p&p or from good bookshops (RRP £20.00), hardback, 176 pages, ISBN 978-1845250546.
5. To request a review copy, please contact Sandra Taylor at Pan Macmillan Publishers – tel: 020 7014 6000, email: s.taylor@macmillan.co.uk
