Swaythling passenger cars in the UK, leaving the Southampton made Transit as their only British-made vehicle. In 2009, with the new Kocaeli, Turkey, plant in full production, Ford reluctantly halved production at Southampton and reduced the workforce to just over 500. Employing 500 workers, the factory produced up to 35,000 Transit chassis/cab variant vehicles annually, of which 50% were exported. The Ford Southampton plant closed on 26 July 2013. The very first branch of the DIY chain B&Q was opened in Swaythling in 1969. The shop was owned by Messrs Block and Quayle. Swaythling railway station is on the main line
Anthony Quayle Anthony Quayle Sir John Anthony Quayle, (7 September 1913 – 20 October 1989) was an English actor and theatre director. He was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his supporting role as Thomas Wolsey in the 1969 film "Anne of the Thousand Days", and played important roles in such major studio productions as "The Guns of Navarone" (1961), "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962), "The Fall of the Roman Empire" (1964), "Operation Crossbow" (1965), "QB VII" (1974), and "The Eagle Has Landed" (1976). Quayle was knighted in 1985. Quayle was born in Ainsdale, Southport, Lancashire, to a Manx family.