Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Rutland: England's only county without a McDonald's

Rutland: England's only county without a McDonald's

The picturesque county of Rutland boasts a Michelin-star restaurant, dozens of gourmet eateries and regular farmers' markets - but what it doesn't have is anywhere to pick up a Big Mac. This may all be about to change.

These days, it seems impossible to drive anywhere without the golden arches of a certain fast-food chain looming into view. But there is a whole county in England that remains a Happy Meal-free zone.

Rutland has seemingly escaped the US burger giant's attention until now, but McDonald's has set its sights on the market town of Oakham and submitted a planning application for a drive-through restaurant on its outskirts.

Resistance to the scheme is strong among the nearly 40,000 people in this traditional, conservative county. More than 50 people have so far made official representations to the council's consultation, with comments like: "I'm proud that Rutland is the only county not to have a McDonald's."

Many fear the arrival of a big-name, fast-food restaurant will forever change the character of the nation's smallest county - famous for its hunting scene, tourist-attraction reservoir, and independent schools.

"It's disgusting - Oakham is not the place for it," says Sandra Wells, 57, who has lived in Rutland all her life. "I don't like fast food and there are too many McDonald's [elsewhere]."

Gym owner Jade Smith, 35, moved to the county five years ago because she and her partner liked its absence of big chains. She said officials should be encouraging local businesses instead.

"People say it's something for the kids but is that what we're aspiring to? Our beautiful town doesn't need a McDonald's. It will open up the doors [for other chains] and kill it off."

Indeed, business owners are anxious about big-chain competition in such a small area.

"It's such a small town to have a McDonald's," said Gaz Ali, who has managed Indian takeaway Eastern Delights for 20 years. "And at the end of the day it's going to bring riff-raff."

McDonald's has about 1,300 restaurants across the UK, but has not always successfully won over residents. When a McDonald's arrived in Tavistock in Devon in 1997, people boycotted and nine years later, the firm announced it was leaving.

Its failed encounter has seen other fast-food chains back away from the town, according to Steven Eperon, manager of The Cornish Arms pub.

"It's put a stop to anyone else like KFC or Burger King coming here," he said. "We are surrounded by great produce, we do street food festivals and farmers' markets and people come here for the quality of the food. Perhaps the only thing we'd take is a Subway. Some of the kids round here drive half an hour into Plymouth for that."

Mr Eperon believes McDonald's suffered partly because of its location, having chosen an "awkward site outside the town centre".

In Oakham, the burger chain hopes to build off Lands End Way, close to the bypass built 10 years ago.

It is surrounded by a large housing estate developed in recent years while the site itself is already home to a large out-of-town Aldi and a BP garage with an M&S Simply Food store.

"A town with a ring road built around it is often a very attractive proposition for a brand like McDonald's - particularly if there is infill development," said Trevor Watson, executive director of restaurant property agents, Davis Coffer Lyons.

"They will take into account the demographics and the age profile of the surrounding residents but also the kind of people driving past. And if there is no competition in the area, it's going to be attractive."

This is exactly what concerns resident Alan Eager, 51 - he fears the "type of people" it will bring to Oakham and is worried families with young children are "a prime target" for McDonald's.

But those in the town who do enjoy a Big Mac are happy at the prospect of not having to travel to a different county every time they want a fix.

Currently, the closest branches are nine miles away (14km) in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, 12 miles (19km) in Stamford, Lincolnshire or 14 miles (22km) in Corby, Northamptonshire.

Stephanie Simmons, a 41-year-old mother-of-two, visits the latter with her family as often as twice a month.

"[It's] a bit of a treat," she said. "It would be great to have [a McDonald's] on the doorstep."

Lifelong resident Caroline Aston believes the golden arches would eventually be welcomed by reluctant residents.

"Rutland has changed immensely - when I was a girl, I could have had a picnic sitting in the middle of the high street. But it's the march of time. It remains a lovely place to live and I think the people will take to Big Macs," she said.

Oakham's mayor David Romney supports McDonald's plans - it is suggested the restaurant could create 65 jobs - and believes it will lift the town out of the "Dark Ages".

"Do you want to end up with a very sleepy town with shops closed?" he asked.

He said younger people were having to leave town for work once they finish school. Indeed, they are notably absent from Rutland's ageing community - figures show 28% of the county's population is aged over 60 and there are far fewer 20 to 24-year-olds than 15 to 19-year-olds.

Abi Pepperdine, a 19-year-old waitress, says many of her friends are struggling to find work locally.

"People go away for university but when they come back, there's nothing here," she said. "The jobs McDonald's would bring would be helpful.

"Some look down on McDonald's, especially older people, but it would not be that bad - if you don't want to go, don't go."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×