Nine brilliant motorway service station facts you never knew as iconic Watford Gap to be demolished
BRITAIN’S first service station, Watford Gap, has come to a junction – after plans to demolish it were unveiled.
As the nation’s oldest and most famous service station prepares to hit the brakes to make way for a replacement, Lee Price reveals some fascinating service station facts.
1) KNOWN as Blue Boar, the services were frequented by a who’s who of the music industry, as touring bands regularly refuelled at the gateway to the North — with the likes of The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Dusty Springfield, Cliff Richard and Pink Floyd all using it as a meeting point.
US rock legend Jimi Hendrix had heard so much about the Blue Boar from pals that he assumed it was a trendy London nightclub.
Watford Gap actually has nothing to do with the sizable town in Herts.
The services are instead named after a small Northants village of the same name.
2) THE forward-facing guns of HMS Belfast permanently point towards the London Gateway service station at Scratchwood, North London.
That’s not at random.
As the Belfast was retired to museum life, Navy chiefs decided its weaponry should illustrate the range of the ship’s armament and selected the entry point to the capital as a target.
3) ONE of the most unique service stations is Tebay on the M6, with its northbound site deliberately chosen to have the best views across the Lake District.
It also has a duck pond, and its farm shops were opened by King Charles in 2003.
4) THE country’s only fully licensed pub at a service station is near Beaconsfield, Bucks, off junction two of the M40.
The Hope And Champion boozer opened in 2014, to some controversy, and continues to serve punters between 7am and 10pm seven days a week.
5) DURING the service station boom of the Sixties, Leicester Forest East became a glam must-visit location — for its waiters dressed in sailor suits and a pianist playing a baby grand piano.
The jewel of the venue, though, was its restaurant on the bridge over the M1, so diners could watch traffic pass as they ate.
6) SALTASH Services in Cornwall offered motorists a place to refuel, grab a bite to eat and, erm, drop off the kids.
In 2001 it became the only service station in the country to have an on-site nursery.
7) LANCASTER services once boasted the highest-ranked restaurant in the country.
Literally — as its main diner was housed in a 65ft tower.
The landmark was closed in 1989 but is now a Grade II listed site.
8) TROWELL services off the M1 in Nottinghamshire opened in 1967 with a unique Sherwood Forest theme.
Security guards wore Robin Hood hats and there was a cafe called Marion’s Pantry.
9) IN the 1980s, the Travelodge in Toddington service station, Beds, offered a “Power Nap” scheme in which a weary traveller could rent a room for three hours, including coffee, for just £5.
Nowadays you must book in for the night.