Visit to Taplow 9th Aug 2015 / Marsh Lane /The Pineapple

[Graham]

Very nice pix, Nats, but please tell me: did you do your tour on foot or did you drive?

I've already said that on my first visit to Taplow, I parked near to Taplow Station and did the tour (A4, Old Station Inn site, A4 again, Marsh Lane all the way down to Dorney Court, and back again. I was too knackered to return via Hunterscombe Lane) on foot on a stinking hot summer day, and it nearly saw me off. If you're walking the route, Nats, it's plenty far!

And also please tell me: did you stand where The Old Station Inn once was, and if so could you see the entrance to the corn-field, as your playwright pal claimed he could? Moste made the valid suggestion that perhaps your friend was referring to The Pineapple. Did you check that out?

Purely out of possibly very limited interest, I had some customers in Slough, mostly on the Industrial Estate, including one whose premises were in the building shown on the opening credits of 'The Office', a show I detested.

Graham

[Natalie Severn]

Yes-that is true-I went down Huntercombe Lane today too- but the point I was wanting to make was that these places are not miles apart but surprisingly close to each other-especially Taplow Station.Anybody could have followed the couple's movements from The Harvester opposite and reaching The Old Taplow Inn was easy from Slough -there are a number of bus stops dotted along the Bath Road and several buses went past travelling from Sough to Maidenhead quite apart from the train service.
Liked the story of the origin of the name of the Pineapple pub!

[NickB]

Great photos!

from either pub it would take about five minutes to reach the entrance of Marsh Lane

My understanding is that after leaving the pub they did not take this turning into Marsh Lane but continued on the A4 and took a later turning to Huntercombe Lane.

By the way, the Pineapple pub website says "we owe our name to the fact that Britain’s first pineapple was grown 200 yards away in the village of Dorney and presented to King Charles II in 1661 as an alternative to Nell Gwynn’s oranges."

[Natalie Severn]

The junction of Marsh Lane and the Bath Road which caused a slight hesitation when deciding which way to go and showing the two sign posts saying Madenhead[on left] and Slough [on the right].They of course went Right as the gunman stated he was "sick of Maidenhead'.[mabe he had been keeping watch on Gregsten arriving to look at his new flat there!]

[Natalie Severn]

Hi Everybody.I went to Taplow ,Taplow Station and its 'Approach Road' ,the site of the Old Station Inn where BMW Car Sales now stands where a Swiss Chalet type Building replaces the Old Taplow Inn this Chalet standing directly opposite a big old Pub called the Harvester from which anyone wanting to follow the couple could have parked and watched the couple leave the Old Station Inn driving onto the Bath Road and then driving along a very short distance to Marsh Lane .I also went to the 'Pineapple Inn' referred to by Paul Foot because at its rear lies the cornfield where the gunman entered the Morris Minor.Opposite the pub stands an old red telephone Box circa 1930's [but ER is stamped on the front so maybe later after 1954 but I very much doubt it.Two pics of the Pineapple Inn - the long one shows the old telephone box and the pub standing just opposite which isn't showing it to be the Pineapple very clearly but it was the best I could do.
To my great surprise I found all the sites much close together than I had thought and certainly within easy walking distance from Taplow Station---eg its about a five minute walk from Taplow Station to the site of the Old Taplow Inn with the Harvester pub standing opposite and from which anybody going in or leaving the Old Station could have been watched in comfort.Both the Old Station Inn and The Harvester are about five minutes from Taplow Station and from either pub it would take about five minutes to reach the entrance of Marsh Lane -but not the cornfield which is a little way down past about a dozen big and some smaller detached houses.
Here are some of the photos I took today .Do look at the little picture on the right of the cornfield with the trees and which clearly shows the signposts pointing to Maidenhead on the left and Slough on the right.
[PS-I also started a new thread titled Marsh Lane Sightings which for some reason has missed the allocated M^ threads and has been placed under 'Other Mysteries'.