A vigilante has taken action against the council’s decision to eliminate apostrophes from Harrogate district road signs.
The move comes after North Yorkshire Council last week told the Stray Ferret it will abolish apostrophes from road signs after a new sign was installed on St Mary’s Walk.
The new sign, which read ‘St Marys Walk’, sparked concern among local grammar guerrillas – and it seems someone has now taken matters into their own hands.
Shortly after it was installed, someone, armed with a piece of black tape, drew an apostrophe on the new sign, which now reads ‘St Mary’s Walk’ (pictured).
(L) the new sign before being corrected. Another sign nearby (R).
The council said the new format was being adopted by other councils across the country, but it proved less than popular with local residents.
One man, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Stray Ferret last week:
“I do not feel I have been consulted about the council deciding to use poor English language.”
Another upset resident commented on the Stray Ferret’s Facebook post:
“Yes, let’s teach our kids how not to write properly, when the poor English teachers are trying to get students through their grammar tests and, later, exams.“The teachers are having to waste their valuable time explaining to their students why the teacher knows what they’re talking about and that North Yorkshire Council’s decisions are flawed and incompetent.”
A similar initiative happened in 2014 – which saw a similar fate.
The Guardian reported at the time that Cambridge City Council’s decision to abolish apostrophes led to a backlash from “self-declared defenders of grammar” who used marker pens to fill in missing apostrophes on road signs.
Read more:
- Council eliminates apostrophes from Harrogate district road signs
- Drivers face delays as four-week Pannal gasworks start
Council eliminates apostrophes from Harrogate district road signs
North Yorkshire Council is to abolish apostrophes on road signs.
The news comes after a Harrogate resident, who wished to remain anonymous, contacted the Stray Ferret to complain about a grammatical error on the new St Mary’s Walk sign in the town.
He said the sign was “spelled incorrectly with no apostrophe”, adding it had been placed opposite another St Mary’s Walk sign, which is grammatically correct.
The Stray Ferret put the resident’s concerns to the council. A spokesperson said in response:
“Regarding grammar, the council, along with many others across the country, has opted to eliminate the apostrophe from street signs.”
The new format will be “adopted when road signs are replaced”, they added.
The resident responded to the council’s move:
“I do not feel I have been consulted about the council deciding to use poor English language and the council has not responded to me when I raised the issue.”
Read more:
St Mary’s Walk is not the only Harrogate road to fall victim to grammatical errors. St Winifred’s Road, on the south side of the town, also has contradictory spellings on signs.
The signs reflect the change of format, meaning the older one includes an apostrophe and another does not.
The contradicting signs. Pic: Google Maps.
A similar initiative back in 2014 which proved less than popular.
The Guardian reported in 2014 that Cambridge City Council’s decision to abolish apostrophes led to a backlash from “self-declared defenders of grammar” who used marker pens to fill in missing apostrophes on road signs.
Firefighters called to kitchen fire at Harrogate house
Firefighters attended reports of a kitchen fire at a house in Harrogate last night.
Crews from Harrogate and Knaresborough rushed to St Mary’s Walk in town at around 10pm.
On arrival, the firefighters discovered a small fire in a microwave, which was already out. There was heavy smoke in the kitchen as a result.
St Mary’s Walk
Read more:
- New 5G masts proposed for Harlow Hill water tower
- Ballot could decide whether to set up Harrogate town council
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue said crews removed the microwave from the building and cleared the smoke with a ventilation fan.
A spokesperson for the service said:
“Appliances from Harrogate and Knaresborough attended reports of a kitchen fire in a residential property.
“Crews removed the microwave from the building and cleared the smoke using a positive pressure ventilation fan. Advice was given to residents and on site staff.”
