Marston Green is a village in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

of Bickenhill and Marston Green, in the

Metropolitan Borough of Solihull The Metropolitan Borough of Solihull is a metropolitan borough in West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, England. It is named after its largest town, Solihull, from which Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is based. For Eurostat purpose ...

in the West Midlands. It lies within the historic county of

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

. The Parish which includes the village had a population of 7,432 in the 2021 Census. Situated at the eastern fringe of the West Midlands conurbation, the village is adjacent to

Birmingham Airport Birmingham Airport , formerly ''Birmingham International Airport'', is an international airport located east-southeast of Birmingham city centre, west-northwest of Coventry slightly north of Bickenhill village, in the Metropolitan Bor ...

and the

National Exhibition Centre The National Exhibition Centre (NEC) is an exhibition centre located in Marston Green, England, near to Birmingham and Solihull. It is near junction 6 of the M42 motorway, and is adjacent to Birmingham Airport and Birmingham International rail ...

. Marston Green railway station lies on the Birmingham loop of the

West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...

railway and is served by

West Midlands Trains West Midlands Trains (WMT) is a British train operating company. It operates passenger trains on the West Midlands franchise between London and the English Midlands under two trading names: within the West Midlands region as West Midlands Rai ...

local services to

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

and

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

, and a small number of semi-fast services to

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

and London Euston. Notable features of the area include a number of shops, the Marston Green Tavern, St Leonards Church and Marston Green Infant and Junior schools. It is also home to the long established sports clubs o
Marston Green Tennis Club
(Est 1923) an
Marston Green Cricket Club
(Est. 1926).

History

Marston Green began as a small village surrounded by agricultural land in the estate of Coleshill at this time, the village was known as ''Merstone'' The village grew into a leafy suburb in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, due to the construction of many detached and semi-detached homes in the 1930s, which were typical of many

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

an homes in the area. The growth of homes here was encouraged by the presence of a rail station. Following the expansion of the nearby

, the construction of the

and the local housing estate of Chelmsley Wood, Marston Green has grown largely into a

commuter Commuting is periodically recurring travel between a place of residence and place of work or study, where the traveler, referred to as a commuter, leaves the boundary of their home community. By extension, it can sometimes be any regular o ...

village with many of its residents working in Solihull and Birmingham. There was a

Canadian air force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Cana ...

base in Marston Green during the Second World War. Afterwards, the buildings were used as a maternity hospital and then a psychiatric hospital, then were demolished in the 1990s.

Notable people

* John Malcolm Hirst DSC FRS (1921 - 1997), aerobiologist known for inventing of the ''Hirst spore trap,'' * David Willey (born 1947), known as the ''"Mad Scientist"'' on

the Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the fourth and sixth installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Jay Leno, it aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009, replacing ''The Ton ...

, born in the village police station, where his father was the policeman *

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...

(born 1948), songwriter, media personality, lead singer with heavy metal band

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...

. * Dave Willetts (born 1952), singer and actor, brought up in

Acocks Green Acocks Green is a suburban area and ward of southeast Birmingham, England. It is named after the Acock family, who built a large house there in 1370. It is occasionally spelled "Acock's Green". It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual p ...

. * Mark Thwaite (born 1965), also known as ''MGT'', musician and guitarist for a number of rock bands and artists * Miles Hunt (born 1966), singer, songwriter and guitarist; lead singer of the alternative rock band

The Wonder Stuff The Wonder Stuff are a British alternative rock musical ensemble, band. Originally based in Stourbridge in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England, the band's first lineup released four albums and nearly 20 singles and EPs, enjoying ...

, lived in Marston Green with his family in the 1970s and 1980s.

Sport

* Frankie Bunn (born 1962), footballer, has played 232 games, including

Luton Luton () is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census. Luton is on the River Lea, about north-west of London. The town's foundation dates to the sixth century as a Saxon settleme ...

, Hull City and

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

; holds the record for the most goals scored (6) in one game. * Terry Fleming (born 1973) football manager, coach, and former footballer who played over 450 games * Stewart Talbot (born 1973), footballer, has played 356 games, including 137 for Port Vale. * Terry Cooke (born 1976), footballer who has played 266 games, including

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

and

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

References

External links

*
1891 Ordnance Survey map of Marston GreenMarston Green & District Lions Club serving Marston Green and Chelmsley Wood since 1977

Marston Green Lawn Tennis Club founded 1923

Marston Green Cricket Club founded 1926
{{authority control Villages in the West Midlands (county) Geography of the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull