Pictures: when brand-new TGS bowling opened in Hereford

A £500,000 plan to convert a disused Victorian goods shed near Hereford's railway station was put into gear.

Permission to covert the 9,000 square foot building into an "up-to-the-minute" 12-lane bowling alley and Quasar laser gun combat game centre had been granted the year before, with plans for the two-level building to also contain a bar and children's play area.

TGS Bowling lanes

It was the second application for a ten-pin bowling centre in the city, with a previous plan to convert the former Queensway carpet building at Three Elms dropped due to costs.

Architect David Edwards, who was behind the project, told the Hereford Times in April that year that the technical details, including buying land, had been resolved with Railtrak and that he was hoping to open the centre in the late summer or early autumn.

TGS Bowling Archbishop of Canterbury

And, when it opened, Hereford's TGS Bowling was a hit with locals and visitors from further afield, even welcoming the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr George Carey and his wife Eileen, who joined the Bishop of Hereford, the Right Reverend John Oliver and his wife Meriel for a few hour of bowling in May 1997.

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TGS was given permission to extend its centre by 9,000 square feet later that year, with plans to add an extra five lanes with automatic bumpers, a video games area, glow in the dark bowling, a function room, and restaurant.

TGS Bowling building work

Work to build the extension, designed to stay in keeping with the original building, was finished in 1999, with a star of the small screen heading to Hereford to open the new building.

Eastenders star Carol Harrison, who played man-eater Louise in the popular soap, left the troubles of Albert Square behind to cut the ribbon at the new events room, decorated with palm trees, mirrors, and a dance floor, and capable of catering for up to 600 people, at TGS Bowling in April 1999.

TGS Bowling Carol Harrison

Despite many changes taking place in the station vicinity in the last 20 years, with the Station Approach Trading Estate cleared for redevelopment, and the nearby Rockfield DIY shop replaced by a car park and later student accommodation, TGS Bowling survived.

Now MFA Bowl, the centre still offers ten-pin bowling alongside birthday, corporate, and family functions.

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