Alan Eaglesfield and The Joy of Motoring

Do you know Alan Eaglesfield? Are you Alan Eaglesfield?

A little less than a year ago I wrote a post on this blog about how Alan coined the phrase 'Spaghetti Junction' when he was a sub on the Birmingham Evening Mail. As I recall, I took the information from Wikipedia (naughty, I know).

Then, earlier this week, I received an email from Paola Rezzilli, an assistant producer for a TV company currently making a programme for BBC4 called The Joy of Motoring.

Paola is hoping to speak to Alan about coming up with the phrase 'Spaghetti Junction' but doesn't know his whereabouts or a way of contacting him. I told her I would put a request for information on this blog – and here it is.

So if you know Alan Eaglesfield, or if you are Alan Eaglesfield (and want to contribute to a TV show called The Joy of Motoring), please email The Engine Room or leave a comment on this post.

History's greatest sub-editors: Alan Eaglesfield

Interesting find on Wikipedia.

Gravelly Hill Interchange - Junction 6 of the M6 here in the UK - is better known as Spaghetti Junction. There are several Spaghetti Junctions around the world, from Florida to Melbourne, but Gravelly Hill is the original. Incidentally it was voted as the favourite landmark of frequent motorists in a recent RAC survey.

But who was it that first coined the nickname 'Spaghetti Junction'? Alan Eaglesfield, sub-editor (copy editor if you will) on the Birmingham Evening Mail in the 1970s when the interchange opened.

Mr Eaglesfield, as one sub to another, I salute you.