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“Slade Protection”, Westminster: glam rock
“Slade Protection” burglar alarm, City of Westminster • Slade! The mighty Slade! Every one of whom would make a thoroughly convincing glam rock burglar alarm engineer, with Noddy Holder as the affable...
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“Smiths Security Services”, Oxford: miserablist
“Smiths Security Services” burglar alarm, Oxford • I love the idea of The Smiths running a security firm – it’s pure Stella Street. Imagine calling up the engineer about a faulty alarm, only to find...
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“SOS Security Group”, Lambeth: 1970s disco
“SOS Security Group” burglar alarm, Lambeth • Although I have a category called “1970s disco“, that’s for 1970s-looking typography. Whereas this old sounder shares a name with an actual 1970s disco...
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“TRB”, Southwark: right-on
“TRB” burglar alarm, Southwark • I rather like this logo, which looks like an American football logo off a 1980s bomber jacket. Unfortunately it also shares an acronym with smug post-punk rocksters...
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“Guardwell Ltd”, Camden: self-explanatory
“Guardwell Ltd” burglar alarm, Camden • A name that falls into the “does what it says on the can” category – I doubt there are any firms called Guardbad. Note also the nice retrofuturist “GW”...
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“Watchman Alarms”, Edinburgh: not plural
“Watchman Alarms” burglar alarm, Edinburgh • Another waveform in a circle, like Guardwell the other day – only not as retro. Luckily the name isn’t plural, so I don’t have to go on about the also...
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Ghost under “GC”, Chelsea: comeuppance
Ghost under “GC Fire & Security” burglar alarm, Kensington and Chelsea • And now mighty Chubb gets its comeuppance, with just two measly corners peeking out from beneath a somewhat less venerable...
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“Glo Bell”, Westminster: cheeky
“Glo Bell” burglar alarm, City of Westminster • This has no globe at all – just a cheeky pun (well I assume it’s meant to read “global”, unless it’s some kind of glowing bell). I’m rather fond of Glo...
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“Cherwell”, Oxford: apocalyptic
“Cherwell Fire and Security” burglar alarm, Oxford • I love this: a “W” made of fire, leaping apocalyptically from a pool of soundwaves. Pronounced “Churwell”, the Cherwell is one of Oxford’s two...
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“Roding”, Tower Hamlets: wasteland
“Roding Security Services” burglar alarm, Tower Hamlets • Another river-cum-creek, the Roding weaves through Essex before reaching the Thames via Barking Creek and Creekmouth, crossing a strange...
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“Marksman”, Bristol: take aim
“Marksman Security Ltd” burglar alarm, Bristol • Today I start a brief and brutal run of shooting-related sounder designs, both deliberate and coincidental. The word “marksman” is a fairly unambiguous...
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“Smiths Security”, Oxford: stripey blazer
“Smiths Security Est 1850″ burglar alarm, Oxford • In the US this wouldn’t be considered a monogram, as it’s only one letter – even though the origin of the word monogram is “monogrammos”, Greek for...
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“Taybell Alarms”, York: groovy
“Taybell Alarms” burglar alarm, York • Groovy! This charming monogram looks like something off an early 1970s boutique, apt since Taybell was founded in 1974. Utterly fab. • Spotted: Gillygate, York,...
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“Ides”, Glasgow: fateful day
“IDES Intruder Detection and Electrical Services” burglar alarm, Glasgow • The Ides was part of the fantastically complex early Roman calendar system, as in Julius Caesar’s fateful assassination date,...
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“Ape Fire & Security”, Bristol: wild
“Ape Fire & Security” burglar alarm, Bristol • Ah, APE – not only a wild animal emitting soundwaves, but an unexplained hand-drawn monogram in the shape of a circle. Many boxes ticked. • Spotted:...
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“Crime Beat Security”, Islington: bell-end
“Crime Beat Security” burglar alarm, Islington • I’ve already featured the tortuous CBS bell here, but this is a more recent version with a curvier bell-end, and a garland of EU stars. Still a winner...
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“Class A”, Derby: hard drugs
“Class A Alarms” burglar alarm, Derby • A baroque paean to classiness, somewhat undermined by its unfortunate reference to hard drugs. • Spotted: Town centre, Derby, Derbyshire, DE1, England, 2010 •...
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Sonata Security, Norwich: tuneful
“Sonata Security” burglar alarm, Norwich • I’ve featured a lot of sound and music-based alarms without ever having a dedicated category (apart from bells), so here’s one now. Sonata is rather a...
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Vocal Vale, Norwich: choral
“Vocal Vale Great Yarmouth” burglar alarm, Norwich • Another classical music reference, with another double initial, and again found in Norwich – I wonder if it’s related to yesterday’s Sonata...
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Trio, Camden: thrice
“Trio Trio Trio” burglar alarm, Camden • It’s a trio, and it’s written three times, geddit? • Spotted: Richardson Mews, Camden, London, W1, England, 2012 • Politics: In the Labour constituency of...
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