diff --git a/HISTORY b/HISTORY
index 33795add..30adc15e 100644
--- a/HISTORY
+++ b/HISTORY
@@ -5244,3 +5244,5 @@ Video Disk Recorder Revision History
 - Replaced strn0cpy() with Utf8Strn0Cpy() where necessary.
 - Now using 'fontconfig' to determine which fonts to use (thanks to Anssi Hannula
   for code and hints on how to do this).
+- If no fonts are installed, VDR now uses a dummy font that doesn't actually draw
+  any text, and logs an error message.
diff --git a/font.c b/font.c
index f0722744..f2933e64 100644
--- a/font.c
+++ b/font.c
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
  * See the main source file 'vdr.c' for copyright information and
  * how to reach the author.
  *
- * $Id: font.c 1.16 2007/06/17 11:03:33 kls Exp $
+ * $Id: font.c 1.17 2007/06/17 11:46:25 kls Exp $
  */
 
 #include "font.h"
@@ -287,14 +287,33 @@ void cFreetypeFont::DrawText(cBitmap *Bitmap, int x, int y, const char *s, tColo
      }
 }
 
+// --- cDummyFont ------------------------------------------------------------
+
+// A dummy font, in case there are no fonts installed:
+
+class cDummyFont : public cFont {
+public:
+  virtual int Width(uint c) const { return 10; }
+  virtual int Width(const char *s) const { return 50; }
+  virtual int Height(void) const { return 20; }
+  virtual void DrawText(cBitmap *Bitmap, int x, int y, const char *s, tColor ColorFg, tColor ColorBg, int Width) const {}
+  };
+
 // --- cFont -----------------------------------------------------------------
 
 cFont *cFont::fonts[eDvbFontSize] = { NULL };
 
 void cFont::SetFont(eDvbFont Font, const char *Name, int CharHeight)
 {
-  delete fonts[Font];
-  fonts[Font] = new cFreetypeFont(GetFontFileName(Name), CharHeight);
+  cString fn = GetFontFileName(Name);
+  if (*fn) {
+     delete fonts[Font];
+     fonts[Font] = new cFreetypeFont(fn, CharHeight);
+     }
+  if (!fonts[Font] || !fonts[Font]->Height()) {
+     delete fonts[Font];
+     fonts[Font] = new cDummyFont;
+     }
 }
 
 const cFont *cFont::GetFont(eDvbFont Font)
diff --git a/vdr.c b/vdr.c
index f3218eb2..e28c7281 100644
--- a/vdr.c
+++ b/vdr.c
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@
  *
  * The project's page is at http://www.cadsoft.de/vdr
  *
- * $Id: vdr.c 1.292 2007/06/15 13:20:34 kls Exp $
+ * $Id: vdr.c 1.293 2007/06/17 11:23:08 kls Exp $
  */
 
 #include <getopt.h>
@@ -550,6 +550,12 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[])
         ))
      EXIT(2);
 
+  if (!*cFont::GetFontFileName(Setup.FontOsd)) {
+     const char *msg = "no fonts available - OSD will not show any text!";
+     fprintf(stderr, "vdr: %s\n", msg);
+     esyslog("ERROR: %s", msg);
+     }
+
   // Recordings:
 
   Recordings.Update();