Wansford diner,Cambridgeshire

I'm sure many of you have seen this iconic building at the side of the northbound carriageway of the A1, unfortunately there is no access to interior.

Wansford Parish Council says:



The Little Chef outlet on the corner of Peterborough Road and the A1 northbound carriageway

was built in 1932. It opened as The Wansford Knight, the fifth roadhouse of the ‘Knights of the Road’

chain. In 1936 it changed hands and became ‘The New Mermaid’ in place of the centuries-old

Mermaid Inn, which stood facing down Bridge End from the corner of the Old North Road and which

was demolished to widen the road at that junction.



In its original design and execution, the building was rooted conceptually in the innovative,

continental Bauhaus influenced style then popular; with flat roofs, horizontal canopies, curved metal

windows and painted, white rendering. It is believed to have been one of only five commercial

properties of similar design built in the U.K.



This building was declined listing due to the removal of the largest, curved metal-framed

window and its replacement with another more in keeping with the Little Chef’s corporate house-style.

The plethora of signs both on the building and adjacent has been the subject of much local criticism.

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Have driven past this loads of times and always thought, this could be a second Ace Cafe. Could be a great looking building again if someone with some vision gets hold of it.

Does seem such a shame, but people are only interested in overpriced M&S foodhalls and Burger Kings these days.