Juddian:
Christ Poplars lasted till 98?
Wasn’t it the opposite side of the road to the current Lymm site?, or is my fading memory up to its usual.
Must have been '76 the first time i went in there, can’t remember the last but it wasn’t that recent, probably stopped going when the pretty stockinged totty vanished…hope a lucky driver went off with her and they lived a good life.
Well it wasn’t me yeh it would be 98 99 ish because the new one was originally called Poplar 2000. If you turn right out of Pops the old site is about 100yds on left down A50. The old slip road for the pumps is still there.
Didn’t Carman Trans ( Brit Euro) have a depot behind it?
Just for a moment imagine this old ■■■■, me, has the memory of a goldfish, haven’t got the foggiest idea if Brits were there, i struggle to remember where i went yesterday…
eagerbeaver:
I also have fond memories of being in the truck with my Dad,Truckman. Im 42 now and my old man drives heavens highway,but I often think back to how ’ exciting it was '. Adjusting my Dads n/s mirror with my spindly 9 year old arms was a work of art. " Up a bit son…no…bit more…erm…down a bit…in a bit…no,too much…back out again…"
In those days I was allowed to wander round yards and ■■■■ about. Forklift drivers would give me allsorts of stuff.
Now its all different and im not sure the old man would enjoy it as much these days. He was a miserable git at the best of times Lol.
And we wonder where it all went wrong.
My little uns used to come with me all the time, the brute who now drives artics himself and has his own brood used to come with me from aged 3, on a landfill job i used to do he’d (aged about 4) be off across the tip and up into the crawler/crusher once waved over, where he’d sit beside the regular driver (who’d feed him cadbury’s) and operate the machine for him, gaffers or especially the H&S nazis would have bloody kittens now but no bugger worried back then, not a hi viz to be seen either, somehow we survived.
We’ve lost those apprenticed from nappies and short trousers recruits that could take a few knocks without fainting and made the industry.
contractdriver:
I remember as a young lorry driver stopping at the M1 Junction 9 Cafe (Watling Street Lorrypark). The old bloke with glasses who worked behind the counter couldn’t talk unless he pressed a button on his throat, and then sounded like Davros, king of the daleks when he talked… I still have nightmares about him 30 years later!
The man you are talking about was called jimmy.He talked like that because he had no roof in his pallete.He was part of the furniture and lived in 2 cubicles knocked together at the back of the café[drivers sleeping quarters].He used to open the café 5.00-7.00 and only served tea and toast during these hrs.He wore a long off white coat and had 2 large jugs,one had milk no sugar,the other milk with sugar added.He used to put about 12 cups on a lipped luminium tray then run along them with a large teapot,tea everywere.AAH the good old days eh.
regards dave.
I remember as a very new driver on long distance (way before anyone had a sleeper cab), stopping there one afternoon. A movement caught my eye. When I looked I saw through the window of someone’s cab, a big hairy arse going up and down. It seemed that it was a favourite place for the ‘ladies of the night’.
The original Watford Gap Cafe was on the A5. They opened up on the M1 because it took all their trade.
Juddian:
Yes, sad loss the old Granada services transport cafes, i was a regular at the Hilton Park one till it shut, not so long ago either…i wrote a stiff letter of protest to Moto boss about the closures but don’t recall a reply.
The old Lymm transport cafe stands out in my mind as a young 21/22 year old driver, Dennis the now long dead and much missed chap who taught me about lorrying on my first artic job took me in there, good breakfast and very good looking girl behind the counter in seamed stockings, those really were the best days in lorry driving.
I take it you mean the Populars, or “Pops”, as it was known.
I remember that place when it was a wooden hut in the middle of a rutted unsurfaced park.
I think it was Poplars, and yes it was a wooden hut.
It was shut about 1998ish I think it was.
Elvanfoot and Kirtle cafe on the A74, Green hut at Thelwall, Sunset at Penkridge…half of you wouldn’t be born
Forton Services up the tower where the gay guy behind the counter used to give you extra sausage…leave it!
I must be getting owd ive been in all them in my time[long ret]the green hut is now a portacabin and I believe its still going.
regards dave
I agree with you Juddian. Once my old man had shown me what a ’ dolly knot ’ was,and how to spot a new rope on the hard shoulder at a 1000 paces,i was up on the flat bed helping to handball 12 kg bags of salt at Cheshire Salt in Northwich. I was only young but I loved ’ helping ’ my Dad. All the other truck drivers were brilliant with me.
It was a simple case of ’ What can the lad do? '. If I could manage the task safely,they let me do it. Roping and sheeting through winter with freezing cold wet salt infested gloves,[zb]'d my Dads hands up though. He suffered with arthritis after a few years of that.
The Elvanfoot at Crawford.
[/quote]
the best café ever. food was great, boiled potatoes, not just chips with everything ,
loved it , 1977/1985, ish I used it.
Juddian:
Yes, sad loss the old Granada services transport cafes, i was a regular at the Hilton Park one till it shut, not so long ago either…i wrote a stiff letter of protest to Moto boss about the closures but don’t recall a reply.
The old Lymm transport cafe stands out in my mind as a young 21/22 year old driver, Dennis the now long dead and much missed chap who taught me about lorrying on my first artic job took me in there, good breakfast and very good looking girl behind the counter in seamed stockings, those really were the best days in lorry driving.
I take it you mean the Populars, or “Pops”, as it was known.
I remember that place when it was a wooden hut in the middle of a rutted unsurfaced park.
I think it was Poplars, and yes it was a wooden hut.
It was shut about 1998ish I think it was.
Elvanfoot and Kirtle cafe on the A74, Green hut at Thelwall, Sunset at Penkridge…half of you wouldn’t be born
Forton Services up the tower where the gay guy behind the counter used to give you extra sausage…leave it!
elvanfoot was excellent, was in penkridge once, but I was young and innocent , never had an extra sausage from a gay guy though.
eagerbeaver:
I agree with you Juddian. Once my old man had shown me what a ’ dolly knot ’ was,and how to spot a new rope on the hard shoulder at a 1000 paces,i was up on the flat bed helping to handball 12 kg bags of salt at Cheshire Salt in Northwich. I was only young but I loved ’ helping ’ my Dad. All the other truck drivers were brilliant with me.
It was a simple case of ’ What can the lad do? '. If I could manage the task safely,they let me do it. Roping and sheeting through winter with freezing cold wet salt infested gloves,[zb]'d my Dads hands up though. He suffered with arthritis after a few years of that.
S’funny, ive still got the cracked rough edge on my right index finger after years of ropes, but i haven’t used ropes in anger for 30 years or more, the car transporters did more damage mainly knees ankles (slipping off Scammell step rings helped lots) hands wrists and two cracked elbows plus umpteen other clouts, its just part of doing hard work for bloody years and every man and woman who’s grafted has the results, should have done better at school
I laugh out loud when the sickie crew phone in cos they’ve got a cold or broke a nail or feel queezy, your dad would have the same two choice descriptive words for them that i have, no doubt.
Lol! You sound like him Juddian haha. I love chatting to other drivers when I am hanging around at deliveries. I make a point when chatting,of telling the older drivers that I am new to driving artics.
The amount of stuff I learn is brill. Plus I find that most older drivers have a blunt but friendly way about them.
Example of which I have never forgotten; “A spade is not a digging device. A spade is not a shovel. A spade is a [zb]ing spade”.
Normans Cafe at Brotherton was a lorry drivers cafe , ■■■■■■■■■■■■ and meeting area for many North Eastern Drivers.
I think it started out as two railway carriges, it had digs ( I stayed in them a few times) I remember when you walked in the door, the grub was all bubbling away in huge cauldrons. It also had a club and pub nearby.
Some say that they used Normans lorry parking area when they filmed the moon landings and that the mince was shipped in by the tanker load every day.
contractdriver:
I remember as a young lorry driver stopping at the M1 Junction 9 Cafe (Watling Street Lorrypark). The old bloke with glasses who worked behind the counter couldn’t talk unless he pressed a button on his throat, and then sounded like Davros, king of the daleks when he talked… I still have nightmares about him 30 years later!
The man you are talking about was called jimmy.He talked like that because he had no roof in his pallete.He was part of the furniture and lived in 2 cubicles knocked together at the back of the café[drivers sleeping quarters].He used to open the café 5.00-7.00 and only served tea and toast during these hrs.He wore a long off white coat and had 2 large jugs,one had milk no sugar,the other milk with sugar added.He used to put about 12 cups on a lipped luminium tray then run along them with a large teapot,tea everywere.AAH the good old days eh.
regards dave.
I’m pleased you remember him Dave! I thought my memory of him was a figment of my overactive imagination when I used to night out there.
Your description of him was perfect, white doctors coat and and a tray swimming in tea with cups full of tea… and that Davros voice!
eagerbeaver:
I also have fond memories of being in the truck with my Dad,Truckman. Im 42 now and my old man drives heavens highway,but I often think back to how ’ exciting it was '. Adjusting my Dads n/s mirror with my spindly 9 year old arms was a work of art. " Up a bit son…no…bit more…erm…down a bit…in a bit…no,too much…back out again…"
In those days I was allowed to wander round yards and ■■■■ about. Forklift drivers would give me allsorts of stuff.
Now its all different and im not sure the old man would enjoy it as much these days. He was a miserable git at the best of times Lol.
bloody hell, that was me as well,done all that myself I reckon that’s why I drive now but as you say its nothing like that now,my dad drove through a small village years back driving an old Bedford km flatbed,as he drove through his mirror caught some womans head,all I heard was BONK,i said dad you just hit a womans head with your mirror,never see him move so fast accelerator down and gone,good days,looked back and she was rubbing her head so was ok
Juddian:
Yes, sad loss the old Granada services transport cafes, i was a regular at the Hilton Park one till it shut, not so long ago either…i wrote a stiff letter of protest to Moto boss about the closures but don’t recall a reply.
Originally it was the Pavilion M-Way services that had a truckers cafe in each, it was Granada taking over that closed most of them almost immediately.
Juddian:
Yes, sad loss the old Granada services transport cafes, i was a regular at the Hilton Park one till it shut, not so long ago either…i wrote a stiff letter of protest to Moto boss about the closures but don’t recall a reply.
Originally it was the Pavilion M-Way services that had a truckers cafe in each, it was Granada taking over that closed most of them almost immediately.
Don’t remember Pavilion at all, told you me memories shot to pieces.
Juddian:
Yes, sad loss the old Granada services transport cafes, i was a regular at the Hilton Park one till it shut, not so long ago either…i wrote a stiff letter of protest to Moto boss about the closures but don’t recall a reply.
Originally it was the Pavilion M-Way services that had a truckers cafe in each, it was Granada taking over that closed most of them almost immediately.
Don’t remember Pavilion at all, told you me memories shot to pieces.
Aust services is now just in the old truckers cafe building. Remember the old Pavilion sites well.
yeh it would be 98 99 ish because the new one was originally called Poplar 2000. If you turn right out of Pops the old site is about 100yds on left down A50. The old slip road for the pumps is still there.
…who knows. (who cares 
)