30 Interesting Facts About Brighton

1. The Metropole hotel in Brighton hosted Britain’s first ever land casino, with a spectacular entrance.
2. The Duke of York Picture House is the oldest cinema still in continuous use in Britain. It has also gone on to win a number of awards for being the best cinema in the country.
3. Brighton is home to some of the world’s biggest vloggers, including PewdiePie, Jacksepticeye, Zoella and Alfie Deyes.
4. ABBA won Eurovision back in 1974 with their performance of Waterloo in the Brighton Dome. This is also something that is stated to Brighton University graduates…Every year.
5. Brighton is a central hub for foodies, with 1 restaurant per 250 people, the highest ratio in the country.
6. It’s not just eating, Brighton has more pubs than days of the year, however the numbers are diminishing quite quickly in recent years, with a huge number of them struggling to prevent the reduced figure of visitors and closing down.
7. There are approximately 614,600,000 pebbles along the beach front, however this is pure speculation I’m sure.
8. Brighton had its very own local celebrity Disco Pete, known as the city’s oldest raver, who would party down the seafront every summer. Unfortunately, he hanged up his boots in the winter of 2018 at 82 years old, so there won’t be another chance to see his amazing moves.
9. The worlds first cargo flight took off near Shoreham, back in 1911. The flight was carrying lightbulbs.
10. Brighton has the world’s oldest aquarium, being the Sea Life Centre, built back in 1869. While the cost was £133,000, in modern terms that would be the equivalent of £3.5 million, certainly making it a big investment into tourism in the area. Opened in 1872, the business has flourished, with 3,500 creatures inside, however I’m not a big fan after seeing a sea turtle in a disgustingly small tank.
11. We might call the place Brighton, but the full name is actually The City Of Brighton And Hove. While we see them as very different, with the vibrant Brighton alongside the more relaxing Hove (Hove actually), the towns were joined in a unitary authority in 1997.
12. The South Downs is the country’s newest national park and is a great day trip if you feel like escaping the city life.
13. How did the Brighton Pavilion survive through World War II? Well Hitler had a fancy for the building and wanted to stay there on his holidays! He gave his bombers specific instructions not to damage it at any means necessary.
14. Brighton’s nickname is ‘London by the sea’, due to its popularity with visiting Londoners and its quick train journey (1 hour) for people wanting to see the sea without paying for a flight to Spain. Having lived in both London and Brighton, I can assure you however that it is nothing like London. The only similarity is the ridiculous costs in the area.
15. I’ve already mentioned ABBA’s success at the Brighton Dome, but they weren’t the only ones. The Dark Side Of The Moon was debuted in the building, by Pink Floyd in 1972, going on to become one of the greatest albums in the world.    
16. An open and forward thinking city, Brighton was the first in the country to have a naturist beach, in 1979.
17. With a number of ghost tours available during the summer months, it is unsurprising that the city is considered the second most haunted place in Britain, behind York.
18. Despite the huge amount of piers along the South coast, Brighton has the only Grade I listed pier in the country. But not the decorative one you’re thinking of, nope, I mean the burned down West Pier, opened back in 1866.
19. As previously mentioned, the West Pier burned down in 2003. While the reasoning isn’t definitive, it is believed to be arson. The fire fighters couldn’t get close enough to save the building as the walk way collapsed into the water. There were no reported casualties. Having said this, the Pier had already collapsed in 2002 and had been closed since 1975.
20. After struggling at a private school in Ascot, Sir Winston Churchill became a student to a prepatory school in Hove (Brunswick Road). He also loved going to the Wick park area, which is now called St Ann’s Wells Garden.
21. There are a number of tunnels that run underneath Brighton, many of which are lost or kept secret. The most noticeable is one that runs from the Dome to the Pavilion.
22. Mount Everest might be half way around the world, however George Everest, who it was named after, is buried in Hove. He was the key Surveyor General of India at the time.
23. The majority of ‘Jedi’s’ in the UK live in Brighton. You can even book yourself a Jedi training class, often chosen as a stag do activity.
24. Margaret Thatcher was almost assassinated in 1984 by the IRA, with a bomb planted in the Grand Hotel. She managed to escape, but five people were killed, with a further 31 people injured.
25. We talk about Brighton as a vibrant bustling city, however 40% of the area is a national park!
26. There are 3,360 listed buildings in the city, unsurprising considering the rich history of architecture in the area.
27. The Brighton Pier lights up at night making a beautiful spectacle for tourists visiting the seaside, however it must cost a fair fortune, with 60,000 lightbulbs making it glow.
28. Fat Boy Slim used to hold a massive party on the beach which he would DJ for, however it had to be stopped by the council as it got out of hand in 2002 when 250,000 people turned up and police struggled to control the event. One person died and a number of people were injured. The police wanted to end the event, but they feared a riot would be on their hands if they did.
29. The oldest surviving pornographic movie was filmed in Hove back in 1896. Of course, back then you could it a Blue Movie, to insinuate explicit sexual material, as prostitutes used to wear blue gowns.
30. I have to end my list with Brighton Marina, now home to some great restaurants, but it’s actually the largest man made marina in Europe.

If you do decide to visit the city, don’t hesitate to have a read of my list of things to do in Brighton.