That faded ghost sign on Didsbury Road and a question

As ghost signs go it doesn’t have the fancy artwork of some or the name of a business or product which might give you a story but this one on Didsbury Road in Heaton Mersey intrigues me.

The faded letters proclaim “DAILY BUSINESS AS” which I can only assume finished with the word “USUAL” but what that business was and why it was painted on the side of building is lost.

It was seen by my old friend David Harrop who knowing my fascination for ghost signs passed it on with the comment that “the word supper is on the wall adjacent to the doorway of the property but I don’t remember it being a chippy.”

And as a way of confirmation someone else has said it was a wool shop, but I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point in the past it did indeed deal in chips, fried fish and mushy peas and the clue might be the bricked up entrance at the side.

In keeping with the rest of the block there is a front door to the left of the window which I guess will be part of the original design but at some point in the past the front room was converted into a shop with a separate entrance.

Such conversions were common enough and more recently with the demise of the corner shop many have returned to residential use.

Not that this helps with why the sign was put up, but I bet someone knows and in the fullness of time will offer the answer.

Failing that the alternative is the simple one of trawling the directories for Didsbury Road.

Alas these I don’t have access to which leaves me hoping that someone with a long memory will come forward.

Picture; ghost sign Didsbury Road, October 2015, courtesy of David Harrop