THE owner of Bolton's first Mother Hubbard's Famous Fish and Chips has been bowled over by the response to its opening.

People queued up for an hour and a half on the day of its grand opening ­— for fish and chips at 1972 prices ­— 45p.

Owner Siraj Patel said yesterday: “It’s been great so far, we’re even busy for a Monday and I’ve seen some of the same people I saw on the opening day."

Mother Hubbard's in Bolton.

Mother Hubbard’s opened its first store in St Helens Road, Bolton, on Saturday.

Already in 20 other locations, Mother Hubbard was originally opened in 1972 in Bradford by Coronation Street stars Stan and Hilda Ogden.

Siraj said: “This is something different to Bolton. This is a busy road as well.

“I wasn’t sure about fish and chips at first, but when I tried it, I found it was amazing.

“You have every other takeaway here but not fish and chips, so this is new to the area.”

Siraj and his family also own the next door Nisa store.

After visiting the Bradford Mother Hubbard’s with his family, Siraj fell in love with the fish and chips and had his staff train there.

He said: “I thought it was amazing and just had to bring it to Bolton.

“We all loved it and the way the shop interior is designed is not really a typical thing for a fish and chip shop.”

Inside the Bolton store, are pictures of Bolton from the past, which the market hall also on display.

Mother Hubbards in Bolton.

Mother Hubbard's in Bolton.

At the time of the 1972 opening, the price was just 45p and this is why the opening of each store pays homage to this price.

The former electrician of 17 years was happy to see the eager customers on Saturday and has already seen the same faces come back in just two days.

“It’s the quality of the food that is important, all the fish is fresh and the way it’s presented makes it good and of course, it’s all fresh," said Siraj.

Due to the success of the 45p per fish and chips box, the Bolton store had to extend the offer to a further 500 people, not wanting to let down those who had been waiting more than an hour to try it.