Brighton Pier
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Brighton Pier |
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| Official name | Brighton Marine Palace and Pier |
|---|---|
| Type | Pleasure Pier |
| Design | R. St George Moore |
| Total length | 524 metres |
| Opening date | May, 1899 |
The Brighton Marine Palace and Pier is a pleasure pier in Brighton, England. It was generally known as the Palace Pier for short, before being informally renamed Brighton Pier in 2000 by its owners, the Noble Organistion.
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[edit] History
Work began on Brighton Pier in 1891 and it opened in May 1899 after costing a record £137,000 to build. This was Brighton's third pier. A condition to be met by its builders, in exchange for permission to build, was that the first, The Royal Suspension Chain Pier of 1823, which had fallen into a state of disrepair, was to be demolished. They were saved this task by a storm which largely destroyed the Chain Pier.
A concert hall opened two years later, and by 1911 this had become a theatre.
In 1986 the theatre was removed, under an understanding that it would be replaced.[1] This has not happened, and the present seaward end building looks fairly modern in comparison with the rest of the structure, supporting a domed amusement arcade and several fairground rides, including several thrill rides, children's rides, roller coasters and a log flume.
The pier was renamed to Brighton Pier in 2000, although this change is not recognised by the National Piers Society.
The Palace Pier suffered a large fire on the 4 February 2003 but the damage was limited and most of the pier was able to reopen the next day. This was a fraught period for Brighton's piers, with much damage occurring to the West Pier (of 1866) shortly before and after this event.
In 2004 the Brighton Marine Palace Pier Company (owned by the Noble Organisation), admitted an offence of breaching public safety under the Health and Safety at Work Act and had to pay fines and costs of £37,000 after a fairground ride was operated with part of its track missing. Judge Nicholas Ainley, passing sentence at Hove Crown Court, said that inadequate procedures were to blame for the fact that nothing had been done to alert staff or passengers that the ride would be dangerous to use. As a result, the current management, none of whome were employed at the time of the incident, began a detailed new training programme and now employ a full time Health and Safety Manager.[citation needed]
[edit] Cultural references
The pier features prominently in the 1971 film, Carry On at Your Convenience, and is frequently shown iconically to "set" film and television features in Brighton, including scenes from Mirrormask, the Doctor Who serial The Leisure Hive and the 2007 film Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
Palace Pier is the title of a novel by Keith Waterhouse, set in Brighton, and is the setting for a scene in the Graham Greene novel Brighton Rock.
[edit] Awards
- 1998 National Piers Society — Pier of the Year
