Leigh Delamere services

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Leigh Delamere Services
Leigh Delamere services-by-Rob-Purvis.jpg
The eastbound services in 2008
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Leigh Delamere Services
Location within Wiltshire
Information
County Wiltshire
Road M4
Coordinates: 51°30′41″N2°09′34″W / 51.5115°N 2.1595°W / 51.5115; -2.1595
Operator Moto Hospitality
Date opened3 February 1972[ citation needed ]
Website moto-way.com/services/leigh-delamere-westbound

Leigh Delamere services is a motorway service area on the M4 motorway in England, one mile west of Junction 17, between Bristol and Swindon (close to Chippenham and Malmesbury). It takes its name from the adjoining village of Leigh Delamere. It is one of Europe's largest service stations. The service area is owned by Moto Hospitality.

Contents

History

It was planned to open in January or February 1972, run by Esso Tavernas; other sites of Esso were Birch Services, Washington services, Woolley Edge services, and Southwaite Services. The 43-acre (17 ha) site cost £650,000. In January 1971 a £400,000 contract was given to Sir Alfred McAlpine & Sons. [1] [2] [3]

It opened at 9am on Monday 3 February 1972, with the largest petrol station in the UK. [4] For the first eight weeks, the site only served petrol. At opening, it had 188 restaurant seats and 60 cafeteria seats. [5] [6] In early 1974, the site was improved by Granada. [7]

The station is mentioned in The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde and is supposedly named after the mother of an associate of the main villain. It features several times in the BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey, although scenes purportedly at Leigh Delamere were filmed at Cardiff Gate services in Wales.

Leigh Delamere is mentioned in Flying Dutch (1991) by Tom Holt . In chapter 10 he describes it as follows:

"Leigh Delamere service station is unquestionably the Xanadu of the M4. Bring us, it seems to say, your weary and oppressed, your travel-sick children, your knackered and your bored stiff, and we will make them a strong cup of tea and a plate of scrambled eggs. If only it had a cinema and some rudimentary form of democratic government, no-one with any sense would ever want to leave."

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References

  1. ↑ Times Thursday January 7 1971, page 17
  2. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Monday 29 March 1971, page 18
  3. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Friday 4 December 1970, page 23
  4. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Tuesday 4 January 1972, page 9
  5. ↑ The People Sunday 2 January 1972, page 10
  6. ↑ Reading Evening Post Monday 3 January 1972, page 7
  7. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Tuesday 26 March 1974, page 24

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Leigh Delamere Services at Wikimedia Commons

Next eastbound:
Membury 		Motorway service stations on the
M4 motorway 		Next westbound:
Magor
Severn View (M48)


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