Blue plaque

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In England, a blue plaque is a sign attached to a house where someone famous once lived (or sometimes where a notable event took place) to commemorate that fact. These are often blue-glazed earthenware or resin discs, 19 inches (48 cm) in diameter, with a white border and white text, placed on the exterior of buildings or other places. They are generally 2 inches (5 cm) thick and incorporated into the wall with mortar so as to form a permanent part of the fabric of the building<ref>English Heritage — Design and Manufacture</ref>. Not all of them are actually blue. They mark the building's historic link rather than celebrating the person.

1 English Heritage's scheme
2 London scheme
3 Other schemes
4 Trivia
5 References
6 External links

[edit] English Heritage's scheme

Under the main scheme, run by English Heritage, nominations are taken from the public for people that have been dead for at least 20 years or were born 100 years ago, whichever is earlier. The criteria for deserving a plaque were set in 1954 and include eminence; having made an "important positive contribution"; "exceptional and outstanding personalities"; and deserving of national recognition. If a person meets these criteria, a plaque may be placed on a building to which they have a link. For new awards only one plaque per individual is allowed, although in the past some names have appeared more than once (the names of Dante Gabriel Rossetti and William Wilberforce appear on three plaques each and those of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, William Morris and Virginia Woolf appear on two plaques each — sometimes with other notable people).

[edit] London scheme

The official blue plaque scheme in London was set up in 1867, celebrating Byron's Holles Street residence. Initially the scheme was run by the Royal Society of Arts; it was transferred to the London County Council in 1901 and later the GLC. When the Greater London Council was disbanded in 1985, following the Local Government Act of 1985, English Heritage took on the role. English Heritage places about 20 new plaques each year. The scheme extended to other parts of the UK in 1998, with the first plaques being unveiled in Liverpool in 2000. Other cities involved are Birmingham, Portsmouth and Southampton. The scheme has been adapted and used worldwide. The Royal Society of Arts placed 13 plaques, the London County Council 249 and the GLC 262; there are now more than 800. Many of the buildings which had plaques have been subsequently demolished. The oldest surviving plaque is in Gerrard Street and dates from 1875. The early plaques were dark brown, the current design dates from 1937, with the white border added in 1939. A few of these plaques are made of vitreous enamel.

[edit] Other schemes

Several similar schemes operate (a few with different coloured plaques), often run by Civic Societies, district or town councils, or local history groups, and generally with different criteria. Westminster City Council runs a 'Green Plaque' scheme which is sponsored by groups campaigning for memorials. See External links below. The Dead Comics' Society installs blue plaques to commemorate notable comedians' places of residence, including those of Sid James and John Le Mesurier.

In 2003, London Borough of Southwark started a blue plaque scheme which included living people in the awards <ref name=southwark>Southwark Blue Plaques Scheme, 2003 onwards</ref>.

[edit] Trivia

Plaques for George Frideric Handel and Jimi Hendrix stand side by side on 25 and 23 Brook Street, Mayfair London, W1.
Despite being a fictional character, Sherlock Holmes has a plaque on the supposed site of 221B Baker Street, London, W1.
William Wymark Jacobs author, had two blue plaques unveiled to him on the same day in 1998 in London and Loughton.
Willie Rushton has his blue plaque in Mornington Crescent Station due to the game played on the UK comedy radio show, I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue.