Trowell services is a
motorway service station
Motorway service areas in the United Kingdom and Ireland, also known as services or service stations, are rest areas where drivers can leave a motorway to refuel/recharge, rest, eat and drink, shop or stay in an on-site overnight hotel. The vas ...
off the
M1 motorway
The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, which lat ...
in
Trowell
Trowell is a village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England. It lies a few miles west of Nottingham, in the borough of Broxtowe on the border with Derbyshire. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,568, falling to 2,378 at ...
,
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
, England, situated north of Junction 25. Opened in 1967 by Mecca Leisure, it is currently owned by
Moto. The services are situated near
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...
.
History
Construction
The service area was going to be slightly further south, nearer to the
A609, with planning permission given in April 1962. It was built by
John Laing. Laing also built
Keele
Keele is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England. It is approximately three miles (5 km) west of Newcastle-under-Lyme, and is close to the village of Silverdale. Keele lies on the A53 roa ...
around the same time; Laing had also built five teaching blocks and eight halls of residence at the
University of Nottingham
The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...
. It was known as the Mecca Village. The site was planned to open in summer 1966, with the contract given on Monday 20 January 1964, and construction was to start in 1965.
It opened on Thursday 23 March 1967, with a special area for dogs, developed with the
RSPCA
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest an ...
. At the opening were around 300 people, with many chairmen of local rural district councils, and the
Sheriff of Nottingham
The Sheriff of Nottingham is the main antagonist in the legend of Robin Hood. He is generally depicted as an unjust tyrant who mistreats the local people of Nottinghamshire, subjecting them to unaffordable taxes. Robin Hood fights against him, ...
, Elliot Durham, and Alan Fairley, joint chairman of
Mecca Ltd.
It had 24 acres, and employed 300, being opened seven months after the M1 motorway section; this section of motorway took two years to be built, and cost £4.75m; the motorway section was built from junction 25 to
Stanton by Dale by
George Wimpey
George Wimpey was a British construction firm. Formed in 1880 and based in Hammersmith, it initially operated largely as a road surfacing contractor. The business was acquired by Godfrey Mitchell in 1919, and he developed it into a constructi ...
, and the next part to junction 26 was built by Robert M Douglas; the section was opened on Thursday 25 August 1966. The motorway section was meant to open in January 1966, part of the
Lockington-
Nuthall
Nuthall is a village and civil parish located in Nottinghamshire, England, neighbouring Kimberley, Watnall, Cinderhill and Basford. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 6,311.
It is part of the borough of Broxtowe.
Nu ...
section.
Decoration
George Dereford
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...
, a Hungarian artist from
Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Marlow (; historically Great Marlow or Chipping Marlow) is a town and civil parish within the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England. It is located on the River Thames, south-southwest of High Wycombe, west-northwest of Maidenhead and ...
, made two three-dimensional mosaic murals about
Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...
, in an Aztec style, near the entrances, being seven foot high called ''The Fighting Horsemen'' and ''The Archer''. He designed the first stamps for the
Isle of Man
)
, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
, when it formed its
own post office system on 5 July 1973. The
Robin Hood Way
The Robin Hood Way is a waymarked long-distance footpath in the Midlands of England.
Length
The Robin Hood Way runs for .
Route
The Robin Hood way commemorates the famous folklore figure Robin Hood and starts from Nottingham Castle running ...
currently follows half of the service road, to the east.
Food
There were 6 catering units; the site could cater for up to 750 in 1966
* Sheriff's Restaurant, 190 seats, open from 7.30am until 2am, waitress service
* North Forest Cafe, seated 150, open from 7am until 11pm, self-service
* South Forest Cafe, as the North cafe
* Truckers had the North Transport Club, 60 seats, from 7am to 11pm and a South Transport Club, but only open from Monday-Friday for both
On Sunday 9 July 1967,
Long Eaton
Long Eaton is a town in the Erewash district of Derbyshire, England, just north of the River Trent, about south-west of Nottingham and some 8½ miles (13.7 km) south-east of Derby. The town population was 37,760 at the 2011 census. It has ...
took 27 visitors from its twin town of
Romorantin-Lanthenay
Romorantin-Lanthenay (), commonly known as Romorantin, is a commune and town in the Loir-et-Cher department, administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire, France.
It is the capital city of the natural region of Sologne.
History
The current co ...
, in France, for lunch in the main restaurant, followed by a visit to
Charnwood Forest
Charnwood Forest is a hilly tract in north-western Leicestershire, England, bounded by Leicester, Loughborough and Coalville. The area is undulating, rocky and picturesque, with barren areas. It also has some extensive tracts of woodland; i ...
and
Melbourne Hall
Melbourne Hall is a Georgian style country house in Melbourne, Derbyshire, previously owned by William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, British Prime Minister from 1835 to 1841. The house is now the seat of Lord and Lady Ralph Kerr and is open to th ...
. Manageresses completed two-year catering and
hotel management
''Hotel Management'' magazine is a trade publication produced by Questex, LLC.
History and profile
The magazine ''Hotel Management'' was established in New York in 1922 by Ahrens Publishers. It absorbed or merged with various other hotel managem ...
courses at
Clarendon College of Further Education.
[''Nottingham Guardian'' Thursday 6 July 1967, page 6]
Buildings
It had 60 petrol pumps, a post office, a
RAC station, a police station, with Robin Hood shields in the entrance. There was a business conference building for up to 250 people. The car parks were for 400 vehicles. It was managed from Trowell Hall.
Use in aviation
The services are also a Visual Reference and Reporting Point for general aviation traffic entering
East Midlands Airport
East Midlands Airport is an international airport in the East Midlands of England, close to Castle Donington in northwestern Leicestershire, between Loughborough (), Derby () and Nottingham (); Leicester is () to the south and Lincoln () nort ...
controlled airspace from the north.
References
External links
Trowell Services — Motorway Services OnlineMotorway Services Trivia website — TrowellOn the road in middle England: Midnight in Nowheresville– article in ''
The Economist
''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...
'' about 24 hours at Trowell services
1965 establishments in the United Kingdom
M1 motorway service stations
Moto motorway service stations
Buildings and structures in Nottinghamshire
Transport in Nottinghamshire
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