The financial crisis faced by London’s Blue Plaque scheme, which honours dozens of the capital’s historic residents, may be saved after an offer of sponsorship by the British Dental Association.
The BDA sees its involvement as a way of helping to alleviate the nation’s oral problems. “Blue plaque is a particularly virulent form of mouth pollution and a significant factor in tooth decay,” President Thomas Macavity commented . “We envisage little change to the wording of Blue Plaques, merely the addition of important health messages. For instance, you might have ‘Samuel Pepys lived here - brush twice daily if you don’t want wooden teeth like him’.”
The Association will also be lobbying for recognition of historically important dentists. Sir Digby Robson-Hardycroft, who spent 40 years in the service of Queen Victoria, is first in line for a plaque. Macavity explains: “He was actually a very fine dental surgeon, and it’s unfortunate that his attempt at radical cosmetic improvement for Her Majesty in 1876 failed so spectacularly, and led to the glum visage that we see in every portrait after that time.”