Watford Gap services
| Watford Gap Services | |
|---|---|
 Watford Gap service station (Northbound) | |
.svg)  Watford Gap Services Location within Northamptonshire | |
| Information | |
| County | Northamptonshire |
| Road | M1 |
| Operator | RoadChef |
| Previous operator(s) | Blue Boar |
| Date opened | 1959 |
| Website | RoadChef |
Watford Gap services is a motorway service area situated between junctions 16 and 17 of the M1 motorway, near Watford Gap, in Northamptonshire, England. It is owned and operated by RoadChef Costa Coffee (previously RoadChef).
History
Opened concurrently with the new motorway on 2 November 1959, it was the first such service station in the UK [1]. The structure was built on the site of derelict farm buildings. When the motorway first opened the new buildings were incomplete so food was served from temporary sheds. The original plan had been for trucks to use this service station while cars used the Newport Pagnell services to the south. In practice, however, both service areas were unrestricted.
Ownership
Initially, the service area was owned and run by Blue Boar Limited, a private family company that owned the Blue Boar petrol station on a nearby roundabout on the A5 road. The roundabout was known as the Blue Boar because an inn of that name stood there.
The owners of Blue Boar Limited petitioned that their business would be destroyed by the opening of the new services and the government agreed to grant them the franchise. Subsequent franchises at other service areas were allocated on the basis of a more commercial cost-benefits assessment. Blue Boar were also offered the Newport Pagnell franchise but rejected it as beyond their capability; this was one of the reasons why both service areas catered for cars and trucks.
The Highways Agency, who own the land on behalf of the Crown, leased the site to Blue Boar for fifty years in 1982. Blue Boar subsequently sold their motorway businesses to RoadChef in 1995. RoadChef have since rebuilt the entire facility. In 2000 the Department for the Environment, Transport and the Regions valued the freehold interest in the land at £1.67 million.
Catering
When the restaurant did open, early in 1960, it offered a finer dining experience than the roadside cafés that were the previous norm. With strong late-fifties styling and hostesses to complement the table staff, it was noteworthy for many of the travellers, who first used it. The owners soon found, however, that travellers were unprepared to pay the prices needed to cover such service and the waitresses were replaced with self-service trays. The quality of the food also declined to that of its competitors and, because of its prominent location, the services became a byword for poor catering.
In popular culture
Roy Harper wrote a song criticizing the food at the Watford Gap on his 1977 album, Bullinamingvase[1]. In the north of England, a common phrase used (when talking about something that is good) is "that's the best ___ this side of Watford Gap!" In popular culture, the Watford Gap is often stated as a dividing line that separates the North and the South of Great Britain [2] and that during the 1960s and 1970s, it was a popular stopping venue for bands such as Pink Floyd [3] and the Rolling Stones [4] It has been noted that the Watford Gap Services are an example of banal names that have 'become part of this distinctively national mythology' [5]
Location
Watford Gap services are located between junctions 16 and 17 of the M1 in Northamptonshire, there is a single site for each direction on the motorway. They are about 8 miles (13 km) to the south east of Rugby and about 75 miles (121 km) to the north west of London. The Watford Gap services live approximately one kilometre away from the village of Watford, Northamptonshire.
References
- ^ a b Harrison, Ian (2008). Britain from above. Pavilion Books.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Wales, Katie. Northern English: a cultural and social history. Cambridge University Press.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ Mason, Nick (2004). Inside out: a personal history of Pink Floyd.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Penrose, Sefryn. Images of change: an archaeology of England's contemporary landscape.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ Moran, Joe (Routledge). Reading the Everyday. p. 107.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check date values in:|date=(help)
- Craig, David. 'Watford Gap Services', From Watford Gap to Camelot. Retrieved June 29, 2005.
- Gazza72. 'Watford Gap Services', Motorway Services Trivia. Retrieved June 29, 2005.
- National Asset Register 2000, (London: The Stationery Office, 2001)
External links
