2-847-761 - Historic England Archive/Heritage Images

William Kirby Laing with the Rt. Hon. Ernest Marples, Minister of Transport, at the opening ceremony of a stretch of the M6 motorway through North Staffordshire and Cheshire held at Knutsford. This photograph is from a batch which is recorded in the negative register as having been taken at Knutsford. However, in December 1963 in the Laing monthly newsletter 'Team Spirit', the photograph appears with an article recording that a short ceremony occurred at Keele Service area where a film was presented to the Chairman of Staffordshire County Council. This preceded the official opening, just over two hours later, of the Hanchurch-Lymm section of the M6 by the Rt. Hon. Ernest Marples. It also mentions that the minister had a tour of the motorway by coach. The opening ceremony is known to have occurred at Knutsford but some of the photographs may also have been taken at Keele.