Wetherspoons opens first motorway pub
JD Wetherspoon opened the UK's first pub at a motorway service station today.
The pub group was granted permission to operate the first licensed bar and restaurant on the motorway network last year.
The Hope and Champion is a new £2m development at Extra's motorway service area on junction two of the M40, near Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire, opened at this morning. Its trading hours are from 4am to 1am, but it is only licensed to serve alcohol from 9am.
Commenting on the launch, a spokesperson for Wetherspoon said: "The pub opened for the first time at 4am. From 6am onwards there was a steady flow of people eating and drinking.
"Sales were predominantly made up of food and coffee, but there has also been a few pints drunk by some people.
"There's some controversy about opening up a pub on the motorway network but we feel comfortable that we won't get lots of people drinking irresponsibly. It's a case of Wetherspoons as a company being fairly innovative."
