A tube sign expressing solidarity between London and Manchester is not a real sign

A sign apparently seen at a London tube station has been shared across social media. The sign has been praised for expressing solidarity between London and Manchester during recent negotiations regarding financial support for Manchester’s move into a higher tier of restrictions.

However, this isn’t a real tube sign, and we can find no evidence that it ever appeared in a tube station. The iconic blue tube roundel in the top left of the sign reads “This isn’t real.”

There are some other features that offer clues that it isn’t a real tube sign—despite being shared across the internet, only one photo and angle of the sign appears. If this were at a tube station, it’s likely there would be some alternative shots of the message. Fake tube signs are also well-known memes online; we’ve written about them before.

You can learn more about spotting misleading images online here.