KEEN swimmers ignored safety warnings to take a dip in the sea on Christmas morning.

About 30 swimmers from Brighton Swimming Club went into the water at about 8.30am before crowds gathered from 10am expecting to see a more informal dip.

Two fenced entrances were guarded by security workers, advising people not to go in the sea.

But they admitted they could not stop people going in the water and, about an hour later, several hundred people gathered west of the “doughnut” sculpture groyne on Brighton beach.

About 20 more swimmers braved the chilly waters to honour tradition.

Ella Sumrie, 18, who lives in Hove, has been taking a Christmas dip since 2006.

She told The Argus: “It was so cold, you feel like you’re going to die.

“But I would definitely recommend it to others.”

One of the oldest swimmers to take the plunge was Brian Lawton, 78, of Richmond in London.

He said: “I got talked into it a couple of years ago.

“It was pretty cold today. It doesn’t look rough but it is pretty rough.

“It was great fun though.”

Brighton and Hove City Council’s seafront officers were on hand to check for any problems.

Chris Ingall, seafront manager, said: “The concept is to try to disperse a large unorganised event which could be dangerous.

He said they have had a mixed response to the council’s decision to issue a safety warning. “But you can’t keep people happy all the time,” he said.

One person unhappy that the council was trying to control the day’s activities was Helen Kent, from Carshalton Beeches in Surrey.

The 57-year-old said: “I love Brighton. People have been swimming in the sea for hundreds of years.

“I came down here to see this. If no one goes in I might just go in myself.

“They have really spoilt it. Where is their Christmas spirit?”

Charlie Sanderson, 49, of Forest Hill in London, had come down to see the swim.

Talking about the “killjoy” decision, he said: “It’s health and safety gone mad.

“If it was really choppy I would say don’t do it, but on a [nice] day like this it’s draconian.”

However, another visitor, Tom Munchin, 84, from Gillingham in Kent, said: “It’s such a nice day.

“I wouldn't want to go swimming in that, though. I think they must be mad.”

Four locals hoping to see the swimmers were Mike McKinlay, 45, and Rick Woolf, 48, of Clifton Street, Brighton, and Dan Hale, 31, and Simon Rennie, 41, of Norfolk Square, Brighton.

Mr McKinlay said: “In the summer you have drunk stags and hens in the sea and this is a lot safer than that.”