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FINALLY: Watford Gap: M1 services that hosted Stones and Beatles faces demolition
(www.theguardian.com)
This is the best summary I could come up with:
It has been a place of dubious welcome for countless drivers and a favoured late-night haunt of 1960s pop stars including the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, but now Britain’s oldest motorway service station, Watford Gap, faces demolition under plans to revamp the site for a new electric era.
Originally known as the Blue Boar, the name of the local petrol station that grew into a huge business when the motorway sprang up, its 24-hour offering made it a big draw for those seeking late-night action.
Ministers initially deliberated for months over whether the services should be allowed to serve alcoholic drinks (to the indignation of the Guardian, which declared in 1960 that “there can be no doubt but that the proper decision be to forbid the sale of intoxicants on all motorways”).
An autograph book auctioned off in 2009 by a former Watford Gap nightshift worker contained the signatures of Sir Paul McCartney and most of the original Stones, including Brian Jones, as well as the Eagles and Dusty Springfield.
He added: “Rather than preserve the building itself, we’d advocate recording and celebrating some of the amazing stories – from a stop-off point for cramped family car journeys, to a meeting place for travelling rock’n’roll bands.”
A spokesperson for Roadchef said the company would “significantly increase EV charging capacity”, adding: “We’re proud to run Britain’s most iconic service station [and] the site needs to evolve to ensure it’s fit for the future of road travel.”
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