Places in Brighton that are a mystery to you

[Tricky Dicky]

All I will say is that I used to work with a bunch of highway engineers, who knew a lot about the Southwick Tunnel.

When you say "Highway engineers", you do of course mean "Undercover Government Operatives".

 

[5mins-from-amex]

Have a look at this site http://www.urbexforums.co.uk/ some great places in brighton on there. also some really good photography in some of the old hospitals and asylums.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

if you have never been to the pepper box you don't know brighton - you needed to be a good street fighter in that area in the late forties - not a place for the faint hearted

I always thought it was the Pepperpot, not Pepperbox, but apparently either name is permissable.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

Great shot, thanks. Lived on Sutherland Rd for 3 years and always wondered.

When I was in Leconfield House at Brighton College ( on the top floor of the building with the hipped roof ) in the 1980's we used to try and make paper aeroplanes that would fly across the road into the industrial estate, unfortunately the prevailing westerly wind meant most of them ended up in the middle of Sutherland Road and after a member of the public complained we were found out.......

The old Station Building was still standing in those days but was marooned between Coalbrook Road ( which now lies underneath Gala Bingo and it's car park ) and Freshfield Way, along with the 'factories' on the south side of Coalbrook Road that fronted onto Eastern Road ( they may have used by SETYRES as their vehicle servicing bays were in buildings on the south side of Eastern Road if I remember right , but I can also remember one of them was used as a 'Reproduction' type antique furniture centre ) - I think they may have originally been 'Maltings' used by Kemp Town Brewery, which was located on what is now part of Brighton College ( it was called the 'Woolton Quad' in my day but a couple of additional buildings are there now so it's a bit smaller ), at the junction of Eastern and Sutherland Road. ( See photos of old Brewery, Woolton building and Kemp Town Station building below ).

As for where the branch left the Lewes line, it was just east of the short 'tunnel' that's east of London Road station where there is now another very small 'Centenary industrial estate' perched on whats left of the old railway embankment.

 

[Cat Fish]

I'm intrigued by the fact there's an active rifle range under the platforms at Brighton station. Have considered joining Brighton Railway Club (a social club near Seven Dials, iirc) purely to take a look at it - they're the only people allowed to use it, I gather.

fataddick - You can hire the Railway club out - very cheap too and anyone can be a member now - although all the piss heads from the Good Companions that were chucked out after the refurb now use it which is a shame - it has the potential to be really nice there

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

I've always wanted to walk through the kemp town train tunnel. Where does it go by the way?

Some photos of the tunnel:

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

This is supposed to be the blocked north end of the tunnel under William Clarke Park (known locally as the Patch). This is situated on the site of Hartington Halt, a former railway cutting on the Kemp Town line that was land filled during the 1970s. A viaduct ran across the Lewes Road (where Sainsbury's is), over Melbourne Street & Hartington Road through the patch and then under Elm Grove School playground where it entered a tunnel to Kemp Town Station.

At the north end of the Park is a building called ' Old Viaduct Court', whilst the picture of the cutting is bordered by the back gardens of houses in Seville Street and Bonchurch Road, as far as I can work out.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

Right last one from me on the subject:

Google streetview isn't very clear but just between the tree and the brick cabinet on the junction of Pankhurst Avenue and Down Terrace you can make out a cast iron 'stovepipe' at ground level, set into the cobbles, which is alledgedly the top of the ventilation shaft to the railway tunnel between Elm Grove and Kemp Town Station.

And the Regency Society have come up trumps once again for a picture of the North End of the tunnel, the bridge over Hartington Road and the stump of the Lewes Road viaduct left before the line continued over Melbourne Street. In the 3rd picture the area in the foreground, which was where the railway embankment was ( this is to the left of the 2nd picture judging by the fact that the photo is taken looking uphill, so is pointing eastwards - a look at streetview confirms that the houses on the left are still there, and the land on the right is now modern flats ), is now St. Martins C of E school. The white six story office block on the right is still there and is now Brighton Enterprise Point.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

The same view looking up Hartington Road today.......

Even the tree is still there.

 

[The Large One]

The same view looking up Hartington Road today.......

Even the tree is still there.

Chris Eubank used to live in the last house on the left in the left-hand picture.

 

[Drumstick]

Looks brilliant, I can finally understand it's route now thanks for that wish it was still running.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

I've just realised that if Gala Bingo have taken over the area, then The Star In The East pub ( on the corner of Eastern Road and Freshfield Road ) has also been demolished as well............

God, seeing that pub again takes me back to my schooldays, every time I walked past it on my way back home I reckon I had 'escaped' for the day. And my recollection about SETYRES using the buildings between Eastern Road and Coalbrook Road was right too........

 

[The Large One]

I've just realised that if Gala Bingo have taken over the area, then The Star In the East pub has also been demolished as well............

God, seeing that pub again takes me back to my schooldays, every time I walked past it on my way back home I reckon I had 'escaped' for the day. And my recollection about SETYRES using the buildings between Eastern Road and Coalbrook Road was right too........

Admit it - you're having fun, aren't you...?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I know what two of them are - and I've been in them several times.

I don't think these are a big secret as there are nameplates up. They're council offices but not secure homes - it's where the fostering and adoption services (and I think child protection are there too). When were going through the adoption process we had to attend a lot of meetings there and they have parties for adopted and fostered kids a couple of times a year.

I think that one of them was a secure home about 10 years ago but things have moved on since then.

Ah, right, cheers.

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

I, also, never had the courage to go in here. Did anyone go in and live to tell the tale?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

More mysteriouis than all of these to me in these tough times for business, is why the Concorde doesn't throw open its bar to serve the thirsty hordes trudging back from the beach iof a rare scorchio afternoon (and yes I do know that bands are setting up in the next room, its still no excuse), and why the Fortune O' War sticks steadfastly to its sorry-we-cant-serve-you-on-a-sunny-Sunday-its not-12-oclock policy. Or is that one some stupid kind ofGod-botherer bye-law?

 

[happypig]

I, also, never had the courage to go in here. Did anyone go in and live to tell the tale?

Sort of. I went in there on the way home from school because a mate told me it was only 50p and my mum had given two quid for a haircut; The other £1.50 could be better spent in Woolworth's ex-chart singles bin, twenty pence a record.
There was one lad ahead of me and he asked for a "trim". Cooper says "I know what you need" and proceeds to give him a number one. I decide that's it, fifty pence or not, I'm not risking it and get up to leave.
Cooper says "I'll be with you in a couple of minutes" but I tell him "not f***ing likely mate" and legged it home, vowing not to have a haircut ever again.

 

[Cappers]

I, also, never had the courage to go in here. Did anyone go in and live to tell the tale?

I went in there and lived. Never had my haircut though. My dad and grandad had shops a couple of doors down and they knew him. He did look scary mind you to me, bur i was only a kid.
I believe he was still cutting hair virtually until the day he sadly passed away

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Sort of. I went in there on the way home from school because a mate told me it was only 50p and my mum had given two quid for a haircut; The other £1.50 could be better spent in Woolworth's ex-chart singles bin, twenty pence a record.
There was one lad ahead of me and he asked for a "trim". Cooper says "I know what you need" and proceeds to give him a number one. I decide that's it, fifty pence or not, I'm not risking it and get up to leave.
Cooper says "I'll be with you in a couple of minutes" but I tell him "not f***ing likely mate" and legged it home, vowing not to have a haircut ever again.

I had my hair cut there just the once, because it was a Saturday and big surprise it was the only place without an hour long queue. Must have been one of the last ever to do so. Went in there and the place stank to high heaven of piss. There were cats roaming freely and bowls of cat food all over the floor. Mr Cooper was dressed in slippers and a dressing gown and looked about ninety. He more or less scalped me before asking me for £1.50. I only had a fiver on me, but no matter what demonination that note was, I would have done exactly the same as I did that day; mumbled keep the change and escaped blinking into the welcome light of day, with only an oddly-shaven head as a reminder that it actually happened and I didn't hallucinate the whole thing.

 

[glasfryn]

I, also, never had the courage to go in here. Did anyone go in and live to tell the tale?

yep I went in there when I was a teenager, only once though his un-neutered cat must have know I love cats as he awoke from a deep sleep and curled up on my lap .......pinning me to the chair so I could not escape.
no matter what stye you wanted pointing to the pictures of the hairstyle model
YOU GOT A SHORT BACK AND SIDES .....................bless him