Circus Street so far.

Loooking south from Ivory Place

Morley Street frontage, residential

Entrance to Woodland Court

Woodland Court. Students left & at end; Residential right.

Circus Square looking south-west towards The Dance Space.

Looking north-west into Circus Court. Residential

Student block.

Looking north along Circus St. The Office near right; residential beyond.

Looking north-west from Kingswood Street.
The Office to the left; student block to the right.

No. 10 Ship Street

In the early 19thC. 10 Ship Street was occupied by a Ladies Seminary. By the mid 19thC.  a Civil Engineer & Architect was in residence. Later in the 19thC. it was rebuilt in  extravagant style as The Bodega, a Wine & Spirit Merchants which by the mid 20thC had become a silver service restaurant. Later on it became the Smugglers' Arms and more recently the Walrus, run by the southern  England and Wales chain City Pubs. 

It was Grade 2 listed by Historic England in August 1999.

It is good to see a splendid classical Victorian frontage nicely maintained.

The "Surrey Style" in Hove.

In the closing decades of the 19thC sources as diverse as the writings of William Morris and the cottage paintings of Helen Allingham had created an idealised version of country life in the collective Victorian mind.  Wealthy Londoners, encouraged by the expansion of railway lines serving the capital, began to look beyond metroland to the hills and woodlands of Surrey for their retirement homes. In what was then a mainly rural county the supply of suitable properties was limited and they turned to architects such as Lutyens (influenced by Gertude Jekyll), Falkner, Bailey and Nevill to help fulfil their rural idyll. 

Apprised of their clients' domestic and comfort needs the architects turned to the Surrey vernacular for inspiration and found it in the various combinations of red-brick, red-tiles and the occasional timber framing. The Surrey style was born. Unaccountably what later came to signpost the Surrey Style were  imposing chimneys which, whatever decorative features they incorporated, were always large.

The architect of 11 Grand Avenue, Hove, was A. Faulkner. It was built by William Willett, 1900-1903. The manner in which it has, over the years, withstood the ravages of time in what is quite an exposed location bears witness to the quality of the build. It is Grade II listed with Historic England.

Court Farm Cottages (2)

Following up an earlier post on Court Farm Cottages, Vale Avenue, Patcham, work has at last to started to develop the adjoining vacant plots. Three 4 bedroom detached house are to be built to the east of the existing cottages and a further semi-detached dwelling tacked on to the west side. The existing cottages are to be restored and reconfigured to meet modern standards including new windows. The westward addition will unfortunately spoil the symmetry of the Edwardian cottages but matching bricks and detailing are proposed throughout the development so the overall effect should be reasonably harmonious. Seven parking spaces are to be provided at the rear.

Proposed front elevations from the south.

Single storey garden rooms to be added to the rear 

Portslade Norman Manor.- Video

On-going work at All Saints, Patcham.

Masonry repairs to the tower buttresses, one on each side of the corner. 

The exposed flintwork glows in the afternoon sunshine.

Black Rock Gasworks redevelopment

This brownfield site’s use as a gasworks dates back to 1818 and the days when coal was unloaded from colliers on the beach and hauled up through a tunnel cut in the chalk, parts of which are said to still exist. After gas production on site ceased in 1860 the site was used for gas storage and distribution. For much of this span of time activities on the site went unrecorded leading, as far as redevelopment is concerned, to significant uncertainty and risk of unknown underground obstructions and contamination.The site forms part of the council's strategic site for redevelopment DA2 which includes the Marina. 

Now prospective developers St William have launched a public consultation on their landscape-led proposals for the site. St William is a joint venture between National Grid and the Berkeley Group to regenerate redundant gasworks sites across the South of England to deliver new homes and jobs.

EPR Architects are project leaders and landscaping is by Brighton-based Andy Sturgeon Design.

A key feature of the site has been identified as it ability to open up a new green link between the South Downs National Park, the city and the sea.

The site is identified specifically to deliver new homes and employment floorspace, with the potential for ancillary retail. 

Artist's impression.

A feedback form can be found at:- https://brightongasworks.co.uk/feedback/

A Cannon Place Hotel?

Visualisation of the hotel viewed from King's Road

The owners of the Hilton Metropole Hotel (Topland), are seeking the views of local residents on a proposed development of a new 221 room hotel on the northeast corner of the Metropole site.

The site  comprises vacant hotel exhibition space to the rear of the Metropole which is no longer required by Hilton,  and also incorporates 31-32 Cannon Place, on the corner of Cannon Place and St. Margaret’s Place. This Grade II listed building, which currently accommodates a fire escape for the Hotel, is to be retained and fully integrated into the new proposals with the splendidly porticoed entrance reopened to provide a second entrance to the new hotel. The main entrance will be on Cannon Place also giving access to a large reception area opening on to a landscaped courtyard.

The existing blank wall of the Exhibition Hall creates an unwelcoming atmosphere on an important pedestrian route to the seafront from Western Road. The frontage of the new hotel provides a good opportunity to improve on this.  Main concerns are likely to be with the bulk and height of the building and the extent to which this can be ameliorated by sensitive design.

The former Newburgh Assembly Rooms on St. Margaret's Place.

See also: https://www.brighton-society.org.uk/brighton-society-response-to-the-cannon-place-hotel-public-consultation/

To respond to the consultation go to:- https://www.cannonplacehotel-consultation.com/blank-5

For some background see: Extinguished Splendour

The Brangwyn Estate

There is some mystery about how the Brangwyn Estate between Withdean and Patcham Village was so named. It was built in the 1930s by developer W.H.Lee who, according to Carder, upset Sir Frank Brangwyn of Ditchling by using his name. However the London Road entrance to the estate was ultimately adorned by two massive lamp columns designed by Brangwyn which suggests a placatory gesture from Lee. It still leaves open the question as to why Lee chose the name in the first place. Was he a friend of Brangwyn or just an admirer of his impressive artistic oeuvre?

Although the estate is built in the ever popular Tudorbethan style Brangwyn, who had no architectural training, has looked to the fading Art Deco for inspiration and these rather grotesque creations are the result. The lamps themselves are graceful, but whereas they could have been adequately supported on cast-iron lamp standards, they are instead perched like "peas on a drum" on redundantly massive brickwork. Nevertheless the intricate decorative features are clever and must have posed a good test of the bricklayer's skill.

The lamps are never lit. In the 1930s the electrical supply will have used rubber-insulated cables which have limited life and no doubt were never renewed.

The columns are grade II listed by Historic England.

"An Illustrated Guide to the Buildings of Brighton"

For anyone interested in the notable architecture of the city and its environs this paperback is a must have.

Its genesis is also of some interest. It was compiled by the students and staff of the School of Architecture and Design of Brighton Polytechnic. It was published in 1987 to mark the 16th World Congress of the International Union of Architects which was held in Brighton that year. The theme of the Congress was "Sheltered Cities - Building Tomorrow's World".

The book is well illustrated and comprehensively indexed. In many respects, as work of reference, it is superior to "Brighton & Hove" in the Pevsner Architectural Series.

It is, of course, long out of print but there are secondhand copies available on ABE Books starting at £6 including postage.

Brighton Place - then & now

2nd April 2010

20th April 2019

It is gratifying that the attractive development of Hanningtons Lane has yielded a glimpse of the end wall of Puget's Cottage, the oldest building in the Old Town, and beyond it, the cupola of the Leeds Permanent building in North Street.

See also: Brighton Place

Madeira Terraces restoration - architects appointed

BHCC have awarded the contract for the architects that will lead the design team for the first phase of restoration to Purcell Architecture Ltd.

Purcell are known for their experience of restoring heritage sites and incorporating environmental sustainability into their designs.

They also have extensive experience with heritage architecture and cast-iron structures, with a good understanding of the challenges involved in bringing sustainable practices to a heritage restoration project.

Their portfolio of restoration work includes major heritage sites, such as the Houses of Parliament, the Elizabeth Tower (the tower that hosts the bell Big Ben) and Canterbury Cathedral.

Read on.

Progress at All Saints, Patcham.

 

Through the scaffolding it is already possible to get some idea of how All Saints will look stripped of its modern drab rendering. The rough flint walling is being flush pointed, and the brick quoins repaired. 

Old Patcham, which was a prosperous farming village when Brighthelmstone was still a poor fishing hamlet will soon be able to view its parish church in something like the state its medieval builders left it. 

Previous post: All Saints Patcham to get a face-lift.

The Shakespeare's Head - then & now

1 Spring Street

The Shakespeare's Head was built in the 1830s as part of the development of Spring Street which had started in the late 1820s. It was sited on the southern corner of Hampton Street on the back plot to 157 Western Road which later became part of Boots the Chemists. Boots originally occupied 157 to 162 Western Road to the west of Spring Street. The photo shows the Shakespeare's Head in 1935 after most of the north side of Western Road between Hampton Place had been demolished for the Mitre House development. By then Boots had moved to purpose-built premises between Spring Street and Dean Street taking some of the street numbers with them.

The Shakespeare's Head was rebuilt in typical 1930s style retaining the corner entrance to the public bar and flourished for over 3 decades under landlord Sidney Berger. It closed about 10 years ago and two side entrances to other bars were replaced with windows. It now serves as the breakfast room of the Britannia Study Hotel in Mitre House.

In 2020

Today the only remaining hint to its history is in the coloured plaque of Shakespeare's head surmounting  the corner doorway.

See also - Spring Street - then & now
                 More on Spring Street shops

Amon Henry Wilds' offices

84 Western Road

Brighton Street Directory for 1845

Brighton's famous Regency architect built the Western Pavilion for his own residence in 1828 and occupied offices conveniently close at 84 Western Road.  He was still there in 1846 but gone by 1850 when he retired to Shoreham.

The Circus Street development

On the Circus Street side the work is still mainly covered in scaffolding but elsewhere something of the completed development can be seen.

Looking north from Carlton Hill

Looking north along what was once Carlton Row

In Morley Street looking west

In Morley Street looking south west.

Withdean developments

An earlier post 'Suburban creep' (4 years ago) lamented the gradual loss of semi-rural Withdean, its 1930s houses, mature gardens, and the 'country lane' look of the roadsides. In 2019 unfortunately there is no sign of relief. The two photos immediately below show 4 completed properties in Withdean Road. Some trees have been replanted and will no doubt eventually soften the view somewhat but nothing will disguise the hard fencing.

Elsewhere, unprotected by conservation area status or any other listings, the demolitions have continued. 

Withdean Avenue

Withdean Road

Withdean Road

The clearances so far, with no doubt most of the mature vegetation, has resulted in a large vacant plot which was the subject of planning application BH2016/06478 for a two-part, 3 storey building comprising 26 residential apartments.

7 Ship Street Gardens, then & now

20 October 2013
See: 7 Ship Street Gardens

Planning Application
See: 7 Ship Street Gardens update

2019