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They say Paris is the city of love, but an unusual item on a quiet street shows that Exeter has its fair share of romance too.

Blackall Road might not be people's first choice when they think of the most romantic place in the city.

The leafy road, just outside the city centre, is flanked by train tracks and has a prison at one end.

But, hidden next to a parking pay and display machine on the rail track side of the road, is a mysterious plaque which tugs on the heartstrings.

It reads:

I don’t like text in art

but walking along this road

holding the hand of a girl I loved

was the happiest I’ve ever been

The background to this poem is shrouded in mystery. Nobody seems to know when it was written, who wrote it or why.

Speak to most of the residents along Blackall Road today and many of them do not even know of the sign's existence, let alone how it came to be.

Even people who have lived in the area for years are clueless about it, while a thorough search Google comes up with nothing as to the origin of the message.

The plaque remains a mystery which many will surely ponder on Valentine's Days to come.