Leigh Delamere services

Last updated

Leigh Delamere Services
Leigh Delamere services-by-Rob-Purvis.jpg
The eastbound services in 2008
Wiltshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
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 [1]

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. [2] [3] [4]

It opened at 9am on Monday 3 February 1972, with the largest petrol station in the UK. [5] For the first eight weeks, the site only served petrol. At opening, it had 188 restaurant seats and 60 cafeteria seats. [6] [7] In early 1974, the site was improved by Granada. [8]

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.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corley services</span> Motorway service station in Warwickshire, England

Corley services is a motorway service station between junctions 3 and 3A of the M6 motorway in the county of Warwickshire, England. It is close to the village of Corley, with the nearest city being Coventry several miles to the south, with Birmingham being situated slightly further to the west. A footbridge, made of concrete but now clad in green fibreglass panelling, spans the motorway to link services on both sides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moto Hospitality</span> British motorway service station operator

Moto Hospitality Limited, trading as Moto, is a British service station operator which operates 59 motorway service stations across the United Kingdom. It is currently the UK's largest service area operator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knutsford Services</span> Motorway service station in Cheshire, England

Knutsford services is a motorway service station on the M6 in Cheshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southwaite Services</span> Motorway service station in Cumbria, England

Southwaite services is a motorway service station, between junctions 41 and 42 of the M6 motorway near Southwaite, Cumbria, England. It is about 7 miles (11 km) south of Carlisle, within the civil parish of Hesket

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newport Pagnell services</span> Motorway services in Buckinghamshire, England

Newport Pagnell Services is a motorway service station between junctions 14 and 15 of the M1 motorway near Newport Pagnell in the City of Milton Keynes, north Buckinghamshire, England. It is owned and operated by Welcome Break.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northampton services</span>

Northampton services is a motorway service station off the M1 motorway and A43 interchange near Northampton, England. It is owned by Roadchef, and used to be called Rothersthorpe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medway services</span>

Medway is a service area on the M2 motorway south of Medway, near Junction 4 in Kent, southeast England. It is managed by Moto and was previously named Farthing Corner, which is the name of the nearby settlement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heston MSA</span>

Heston services is a motorway service station on the M4 motorway in the London Borough of Hounslow, built on land that once formed part of the now defunct Heston Aerodrome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Membury services</span>

Membury services is a motorway service station on the M4 motorway, located on the original site of RAF Membury in the civil parish of Lambourn in the English county of Berkshire, close to the border with Wiltshire, 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Junction 14. It is owned by Welcome Break and is situated adjacent to the Membury Radio Mast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Severn View services</span> Motorway service station near Bristol, England

Severn View services, formerly Aust Services is a motorway service station on the M48 motorway near the village of Aust, northwest of Bristol, in South West England. It is owned by Moto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woolley Edge services</span> Motorway service station on the M1 in Yorkshire, England

Woolley Edge services is a motorway service station on the M1 motorway within the borough of the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It lies between junctions 38 and 39 close to West Bretton and west of the village of Woolley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trowell MSA</span>

Trowell services is a motorway service station off the M1 motorway in Trowell, Nottinghamshire, England, situated north of Junction 25. Opened in 1967 by Mecca Leisure, it is currently owned by Moto. The services are situated near Nottingham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grantham North services</span> Service area operated by Moto located on the A1 at Gonerby Moor Roundabout

Grantham North Services is a service area operated by Moto located on the A1 at Gonerby Moor Roundabout, four miles north of Grantham in Lincolnshire, England. The service station has a main car park and coach/lorry park, off which is a BP petrol station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Extra (service areas)</span> British company operating service stations

Extra MSA Services Ltd is a company that operates nine motorway service stations in England, mainly on primary routes. It is based at Beaconsfield services, previously being in the centre of Lincoln. It is also known as Extra MSA Forecourts Ltd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toddington services</span>

Toddington Services is a motorway service station on the M1 motorway between junctions 11A and 12, just north of Luton and Dunstable in Bedfordshire, England. It takes its name from the nearby village of Toddington. It is owned by Moto Hospitality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hartshead Moor services</span> Highest motorway service station in the UK

Hartshead Moor services is a motorway service station on the M62 near Brighouse, West Yorkshire. It is the highest service station in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birch Services</span> Motorway service area near Manchester, England

Birch Services is a motorway service station located on the M62 motorway between Junction 18 (M60) and Junction 19 Heywood, close to Rochdale and Bury. There are two sides to the service station, the Eastbound services being quite old and the Westbound services being more modern. The services opened in 1972.

A.F. Budge was a British civil engineering and construction company based in Nottinghamshire. It built many sections of motorway in Yorkshire and the north Midlands.

Sydney Green & Sons was a civil engineering contractor from Oxfordshire in England, which built sections of British motorways, notably the M2 in Kent, M5 and the M40, mostly in the Home Counties.

References

  1. ↑ Motorway Services Trivia – Chronology Archived 2 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 21 January 2009
  2. ↑ Times Thursday January 7 1971, page 17
  3. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Monday 29 March 1971, page 18
  4. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Friday 4 December 1970, page 23
  5. ↑ Bristol Evening Post Tuesday 4 January 1972, page 9
  6. ↑ The People Sunday 2 January 1972, page 10
  7. ↑ Reading Evening Post Monday 3 January 1972, page 7
  8. ↑ 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)


Autoroute icone.svg

This United Kingdom road or road transport-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.