verdigris. Since then, the name has been informally inscribed or scratched into the paintwork many times, despite its repeated removal by Cambridge City Council or obliteration by graffiti. At one point in the mid-1990s, according to Graham Chainey writing in The London Magazine, "Reality Checkpoint" was scratched on one side of the plinth, while on the opposite side was scrawled "The Comfortably Numb" - a reference to a song on the album The Wall by the Cambridge band Pink Floyd. For the first half of 1998 the lamppost carried an unofficial plaque bearing its name, until removed by the council. Comedian Ben Miller featured the lamppost in his BBC Two physics documentary "What Is One Degree?" for the science series Horizon. At that time, the lamppost had the words "Reality Checkpoint" scratched into its paintwork in at least two places. The inscription was restored in June 2017 by artist Emma Smith, with the approval of the Cambridge City Council, as part of the art project 'Hunch' commissioned by the University Arms Hotel. References External links "What is Reality Checkpoint?" on cam.wiki "Getting to the bottom of the legend of Reality Checkpoint" on cambridge-news.co.uk 1894 establishments in England Buildings and structures completed in 1894 Culture in Cambridge Grade II listed buildings in Cambridge Graffiti in England Terminology of the University of Cambridge Street lighting Individual lamps