Bignalls Corner - now the site of South Mimms services - existed before the M25/A1(M) junction obliterated the scene.

On the junction was the Middlesex Arms. The pub had been built as a road house in 1931 but was demolished in 1973 to make way for the A1(M). Run by landlords Gordon and Hilda, there was lorry drivers’ overnight accommodation next to it. Drivers used to sleep in bunks four to a room.

The motel of the other side of the junction was a well known haunt for ‘ladies of the night’ who earned a living from the passing lorry drivers.

Further north up the A1 was the Budgie transport cafe, immortalised in the TV series of the same name. Also beside the A1 was the eventually abandoned and derelict ’San Marino’ which had a swimming pool in the back.