You know the old saying, if you haven’t seen the house in the middle of the M62 then you haven’t lived – or something like that anyway… But what is it really like to live in the middle of a motorway?
The story goes that a ‘stubborn’ old farmer called Ken Wild refused to move his home when they were building the M62 and subsequently became quite the legend – but only now has his granddaughter came forward and revealed just what it was like to live there, reports the Mirror.
Granddaughter, Kimberley Pollard, insists that living on the motorway was not that bad – and that the sound of cars passing by would even send her to sleep.
She added that M62 drivers would often call by the house for a cup of tea in between trips.
Speaking to The Huddersfield Daily Examiner, she said:
The story is my granddad was a stubborn old Yorkshireman who refused to move – but he’s actually from Lancashire. He had a broad Yorkshire accent from living up here for so long.
However, the old rumour that he was simply too stubborn to move, well – she denies it.
She said:
He was far too subdued for that – and he wouldn’t have had a choice in the matter because the farm was rented from Yorkshire Water.
But living in the middle of one of the country’s busiest motorways isn’t as hectic as it may sound and to be frank, it sounds quite idyllic in a peculiar way.
Kimberley, who is now 23, claims that she had a very happy time growing up in the house, adding that she spent her days feeding lambs and playing in the fields as innumerable motorists sped past.
She said:
It was just a normal life for me. I was more interested in looking after the baby lambs. I used to stay in a big bedroom on the westbound carriageway side. “It had a four poster bed – you could get lost in it. There was triple glazing which kept out lots of noise.
If people broke down they’d climb over the fence from the hard shoulder – but this was when the motorway was a bit quieter! Quite a few people used to come in and have a cup of tea and phone the break down people.
Granddad and his wife at the time, Beth, were very welcoming.
So there you have it.
I have to say, I thought it’d be a helluva lot more chaotic.
