To celebrate the 65th birthday of Welcome Break’s first ever motorway service area, it has created a car made from cake. The unique cake design is based on the Austin/Morris 1100, the most popular car of 1960. The icing has been mixed especially to create ‘bronze yellow’ - the most popular shade of car finish in 1960, even featuring in the Morris advert.
Picture the scene, it’s the summer of 1960 – it’s been a hot but wet month, the Football League has been broadcast live on television for the first time ever, The Beatles have just played their first ever concert and hit number one single ‘Please Don’t Tease’ by Cliff Richard is playing on the car radio. As well as being an exciting year culturally, it was also the year the UK’s first ever motorway service area as we know them today, with food being served as well as petrol being available, opened to the British public – the Welcome Break at Newport Pagnell on the M1.
When the first ever UK motorway service area with a restaurant serving food opened in 1960 at Newport Pagnell, on the M1 near Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, there were fuel pumps, toilet facilities and one café serving simple meals including fish and chips and ham, egg and chips. Now, Welcome Break Newport Pagnell boasts 24-hour service, shower facilities, 28 fuel pumps, 52 electric vehicle charging points, seven brands to grab a bite to eat from featuring flavours from all over the world and a hotel.
Gary Steele, Operations Director at Welcome Break said: “I wonder if the first people who stopped at Newport Pagnell way back in 1960 would have thought that in 65 years there would be electric cars, a variety of different food from across the globe at the roadside and the opportunity to listen to your favourite tunes via your mobile phone, not just relying on the radio!
“So much has changed in the last 65 years, and we’re grateful we’ve been able to help travellers in this century and the last on their journeys across the UK, making their trips easier. What better way to celebrate than with a slice of car cake! Here is to the next 65 years.”
Welcome Break served up the cake to staff at Newport Pagnell to celebrate the 65th anniversary. Lucky travellers today are also able to enjoy a live music performer, get their face painted and be in with the chance to win prizes.
