Ups and downs of Brighton's fun pier

1:05pm Wednesday 3rd September 2008

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The Palace Pier in Brighton has avoided most of the disasters which led to its rival, the West Pier, becoming no more than a forlorn wreck.

But it has had its moments, right from the era of construction in the 1890s when it was designed to replace the crumbling Chain Pier.

That old pier had its revenge when it was finally destroyed by a great gale in December 1896.

Some of the huge timbers, set free by the storm, crashed into the emerging Palace Pier, inflicting damage on it. For good measure they also battered the West Pier and Volk’s Railway.

But the new pier recovered from these setbacks and was opened to the public in 1899. It was an instant hit and more than a century later it is still the premier tourist attraction in the South East.

According to Chris Foote Wood in his new book on British piers, it cost the then enormous sum of £137,000. It covered an area of two and a half acres and contained 85 miles of deck planking.

Designer Richard St George Moore paid homage to the Royal Pavilion, just up the road, in the decor, particularly on the ornate theatre which was opened in 1901.

The pier also took its name from the Pavilion and Foote Wood is among countless admirers who regret the current owners’ change of name to Brighton Pier.

More improvements were added to the pier, including a shoreend pavilion incorporating a bandstand with 1,300 seats and the winter gardens, later transformed into the Palace of Fun. Other attractions included dining rooms, grill rooms, smoking rooms, reading rooms and a bathing station. By the end of the Edwardian age, it was commonly reckoned to be the best pier in Britain.

Sentries were posted by the pier during the First World War in case it was used for an invasion.

Sandbags were piled by the rails and mines wired in case sections of the structure had to be demolished.

During the Second World War, the pier was requisitioned without warning. It happened at the time of the Dunkirk evacuation in 1940 when a German invasion seemed most likely.

The theatre audience, already seated for a performance of The First Mrs Fraser, was ordered out and members were given their money back. A central section of the pier was immediately blown up and not reinstated until after the war was over.

At that time the theatre was an essential part of Brighton.

Many stars appeared there before the war, including Binnie Hale and Vic Oliver.

The theatre had a late flourish in the 1960s and 1970s, with summer shows starring Dick Emery, Ronnie Corbett, Tommy Trinder, and Elsie and Doris Waters.

But in 1973 a barge, undertaking work on the pier, broke free from its moorings during a sudden storm and destroyed many of the piles. Part of the pier head fell into the sea and, although the theatre remained intact, it sagged and was declared unsafe.

The theatre was never reopened and although it was put in storage, its remains have not been seen again.

The pier had two other near misses in 1980. One was when the ship Athina B, driven ashore during another gale, just missed a collision. The other was when a Red Arrow jet crashed into the sea, the pilot ejecting safely nearby.

At that time the pier was owned by a small private company which did not have the money for major improvements. Changes came in 1984, when The Noble Organisation took over.

Noble abolished the tolls and opened the pier in the evenings.

It reinstated the central pavilion and brought in an amusements dome from Hastings to replace the old theatre.

Amid opposition from Brighton Council, it also introduced fairground rides. They are ugly but popular and they raise a great deal of the money used for essential maintenance.

In 1996 the Palace Pier became the first in the world to be authorised as a place for wedding ceremonies to be conducted.

Another disaster was narrowly averted in 2000 when several rides were destroyed by a fire. The blaze looked huge by night but the next day most of the pier was open for business as usual.

Foote Wood, brother of the comedienne Victoria Wood, visited all 56 remaining piers in England, Wales and the Isle of Man last year.

He reckons the Palace Pier is one of the best and says: “It is what it claims to be – year-round entertainment.”

• Walking Over The Waves, by Chris Foote Wood, is published by Whittles Publishing at £16.99.