THIS huge slender tower rising over Brighton’s seafront may look very familiar to us in 2017 but it is actually a design sketch from a planning proposal submitted in 1964.

The towering building was part of a plan by a Canadian construction firm which included a bespoke jetty with concrete foundations and a dolphinarium.

It is among the fascinating exhibits from the city’s past which will be on display at a forthcoming open day of the East Sussex historical archive, The Keep, in Woollards Way.

The huge proposed tower would have dwarfed 100m of nearby Sussex Heights, under construction at the time of this plan’s submission and clearly visible in the sketch.

Andrew Bennett, Brighton and Hove archivist at The Keep, said: “It was an idea presented to Brighton and Hove City Council by a Canadian firm in 1964.

“The picture we have, the sketch, was made in 1965.

“I don’t know how far along it got - but there is a file on it so it certainly wasn’t dismissed out of hand.

“The idea was to have a viewing deck at the top, in the round bit, and a restaurant as well.”

He explained the submissions also proposed to have telecommunications based in the tower, similar to the function of the Post Office tower in London.

Although at first glance it may appear the huge tower would rise from the end of the West or perhaps the Palace Pier, in fact the plan was to build it on its own jetty, which would have required massive concrete foundations, unlike the extant piers.

The plans are only one of hundreds of exhibits which will be available for the public to view at The Keep’s open day on September 9.

Mr Bennett said the Open Day promised to be a great day for the whole family, with live talks already confirmed on the Volks Railway the “Daddy Long Legs” - a train which ran under the sea from Brighton to Rottingdean.

A talk on the history of the Royal Pavilion is also confirmed, with others still to be arranged.

Interactive displays and children-friendly entertainment will be on offer as weell. Tours are free but booking is advised since last year’s tours sold out.

In the behind-the-scenes tours visitors will be able to discover some of The Keep’s ten miles of temperature-controlled storage and find out how the archivists conserve ancient documents and valuable books.

You can contact The Keep on 01273 482349.