Railway Bridge Adverts.

[Undiscovered]

I seem to recall that in the 80s or 90s Gouranga was associated with some form of religious movement.They would have membera in town centres encouraging people to “call out Gouranga,be happy”.

It was the Hare Krishna's, I think.
Gouranga became 'popular', or certainly re-emerged back into popular culture, as a result of the Grand Theft Auto game. If you completed a certain task, 'Gouranga!' flashed up on the screen, and you got a hefty bonus. I'll not post the details here, google is your friend.


Apologies for any poor spelling in this post.

 

[DelW]

Ferodo still near the famous arches of Stonebridge Park:

Street View · Google Maps

Explore a place in a more immersive way in Google Maps.

maps.app.goo.gl

Interesting to see in the Streetview history that those signs were repainted in 2021. I wonder if Ferodo paid for the repaint, or if it was done just to maintain the original appearance? It seems to have been done at the same time as the singling and landscaping of the old North Circular road running under the bridges.

I was slightly surprised to find that Ferodo still exists, I remember their signs on railway bridges in the Midlands in the 1960s. I think that Girling (also a supplier of brakes) appeared on railway bridges then too.

 

[High Dyke]

It was the Hare Krishna's, I think.
Gouranga became 'popular', or certainly re-emerged back into popular culture, as a result of the Grand Theft Auto game. If you completed a certain task, 'Gouranga!' flashed up on the screen, and you got a hefty bonus. I'll not post the details here, google is your friend.


Apologies for any poor spelling in this post.

Also referenced in the song Twydale's Lament by Half Man Half Biscuit.

“Gouranga Gouranga, yes I’ll be happy, when you’ve been arrested for defacing the bridge”

 

[zwk500]

Assuming this is referring to the Chiltern line M25 viaduct, Streetview shows it having gone from "Give peas a chance" to "Give Helch a break" then "Thank you NHS" (post Covid) and finally "Helth Skelth". What any of those (apart from the obvious NHS one) actually mean, if anything, is anyone's guess.

'Peas' and 'Helch' were/are reasonably active "taggers".

'Give peas a chance' M25 bridge graffiti removed

One fan was "overwhelmed" to hear her "favourite piece of public defamation had been defamed".

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[kevconnor]

There used to be a bridge in Oldham proclaiming the town as the home of the tubular bandage.Goodness knows how many accidents it caused.

Just up the road in Rochdale, there is also one: Rochdale - Birthplace of Co-operation

Street View of Sandbrook Way · Google Maps

Rochdale

www.google.com

 

[CharlieSpotted]

"Birthplace of Co-operation" is an odd claim! Nobody had ever co-operated on anything before until someone in Rochdale came up with the idea?

 

[Dr Hoo]

Narborough Rd in Leicester has a bridge with West End and pairs of socks painted on it.

Narborough Road being a westerly route in and out of Leicester plus the city being noted for its hosiery industry.

"Birthplace of Co-operation" is an odd claim! Nobody had ever co-operated on anything before until someone in Rochdale came up with the idea?

Rochdale being the birthplace of the formal Co-operative movement.

Nothing wrong with a bit of civic pride and evoking local history. Certainly better than random graffiti. (IMHO.)

 

[Gloster]

"Birthplace of Co-operation" is an odd claim! Nobody had ever co-operated on anything before until someone in Rochdale came up with the idea?

The Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers of 1844 was the first Co-operative organisation in the form that it eventually developed. They had a Class 47 named after them.

 

[northernbelle]

What an interesting thread!

A well-known one is the Intercity bridge at Bristol Temple Meads, visible from the Bath Road:



Less well known is the smaller bridge along Cattle Market Road at Bristol Temple Meads - an earlier advert is starting to reappear from under the peeling paintwork. It looks to be a mid-80s era Inter-City advert - you can just make out the double arrow on the far left and some Rail Alphabet lettering in black - I haven't yet worked out what it says.

 

[DelW]

Less well known is the smaller bridge along Cattle Market Road at Bristol Temple Meads - an earlier advert is starting to reappear from under the peeling paintwork. It looks to be a mid-80s era Inter-City advert - you can just make out the double arrow on the far left and some Rail Alphabet lettering in black - I haven't yet worked out what it says.

View attachment 187746

I reckon it's "Inter-City" again. The "e" is in the panel left of the RA graffito, with "r" (space) dash below the RA and "C" below the left G (assuming that's meant to be GG).

 

[Siemens Trains]

I seem to recall that in the 80s or 90s Gouranga was associated with some form of religious movement.They would have members in town centres encouraging people to “call out Gouranga,be happy”.

Yeah, I felt the Hare Krishna guys chugged quite aggressively on Edinburgh's main shopping thoroughfare (Princes Street) in the 80s and 90s, showing photos of disabled children and collecting funds for their spiritual retreat in Linlithgow. After being stung a couple of times I found they responded excitedly if I smiled and exclaimed "Gouranga!" thereafter allowing free passage.

 

[Welly]

I seem to recall that in the 80s or 90s Gouranga was associated with some form of religious movement.They would have membera in town centres encouraging people to “call out Gouranga,be happy”.

Thank you! I was convinced that Gouranga was a drug dealer when I saw these all over.

 

[Dave S 56F]

Schweppes tablewaters advertisement quite faded I would reckon now in bottle green background and white writing painted on the halifax bradford lanky yorky line A58 sandstone arch bridge on the eastern parapet as you are driving from Leeds to Halifax.

 

[FenMan]

Not an advert, but the Happy Christmas Bridge next to Sandhurst station has been around since the late 60s.

A BBC News article about the graffiti being restored in 2024: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8ek1g90159o

It might seem too early to be kicking off the festive season but a beloved local landmark has had a makeover and is once again wishing people "Happy Christmas".
College students first painted those two words on the crossing between Yorktown Road and High Street in Sandhurst in 1967.
In February, hundreds of residents called for the fading piece of graffiti to be repainted - with people coming forward to share what the sign meant to them.
Sandhurst Town Council and Network Rail have now collaborated to redo the graffiti in its original form.
Harriet Fraser, who lives in Sandhurst, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that her uncle Martin Malorie was one of the seven college students who painted the bridge in the 60s after leaving a Christmas party nearby.
She said: “They went to the Rose & Crown pub and then to a house for a party.
"My grandad was painting something in the garage and the boys took it with the piano.
“They wheeled the grand piano to the bridge and then dangled down and painted it.”
Mrs Fraser said the landmark is often used when giving directions in the town and she was "really pleased" to see it repainted.
“It’s a really happy message throughout the year,” she said.
The original graffiti was painted over by Network Rail but in 1988 Ian Langston and his friend repainted it.
Mr Langston said he was 23 at the time and was discussing the landmark at the New Inn, now known as the Village Inn pub.
He said: “The pub regulars all bet my friend and I one pound from each of them if we repainted it.
"We went to my friend's Dad's house, got a large paint brush, a broom handle and sticky tape. Off we went – it took about an hour.
“We did one side each, hanging over the top, whilst being held by the trouser waistband.”
Mr Langston said he was delighted it had been repainted as it was "part of his legacy", and something he would be telling his grandchildren about.
In February, Bracknell Forest councillor Guy Gillbe, suggested the bridge be repainted, saying it had become "iconic".
The cabinet member for planning, transport and countryside said: “I love the memory of coming back in the car and seeing 'The Happy Christmas Bridge', and it was that feeling of coming home.”

 

[MikePJ]

My favourite of the Cardiff ones is the one on Clare Road that has a Brains Beers advert with the strapline "it's Brains you want!"

 

[Cricketer8for9]

The footbridge just to the north of South Croydon had NF = Nazi for many years late 70s til mid 00s. Not an advert but certainly a memory. I’ll ask about the advert at Smitham over Brighton Road, Coulsdon and revert.

 

[Travelmonkey]

West Midlands has especially around Wolverhampton, there's a Hanson Mild Ale on the bridge along A449 leaving Wolverhampton, there's even an old design painted new on a bridge in Tipton https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqqj0qv7npo

I was gonna mention that bridge in Dudley for the new tram line. It does add a bit of charecter to what would be a generic tram stop,

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Oct 2025 ==

Around here there is a local landmark in the Hanson's Ale bridge in Tipton. The bridge was recently replaced as part of West Midland Metro works and incredibly, they recreated the graphic on the new bridge ...

Before:

And after :

The tagine fits, It's good its been kept.

 

[The exile]

I reckon it's "Inter-City" again. The "e" is in the panel left of the RA graffito, with "r" (space) dash below the RA and "C" below the left G (assuming that's meant to be GG).

Given the spacing, I wonder if it had 125 and a second double arrow after it.