Slow business means Brighton's Palace Pier now closes early (From The Argus)
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Slow business means Brighton's Palace Pier now closes early
12:00pm Friday 26th November 2010 in News By Anna Roberts
Brighton's Palace Pier now closes early
One of Britain's most popular tourist attractions is to shut its gates five hours early to cut costs.
Custom is so poor on Brighton's Palace Pier that bosses have decided to close at 5pm on weekdays.
In 2006 the pier was named the third most popular tourist attraction in the UK, beating the London Eye and the Tate Modern.
But until spring at least the iconic pier will be locked early as its owners try to adapt to a reduction in visitor numbers.
A spokeswoman for the pier, run by the Noble Organisation, said: "Business is tight."
Brighton city centre manager Soozie Campbell did not expect the early closing to have an impact on the rest of Brighton.
She added: "The shops around the pier expect to take a dip in winter - the items they sell are seasonal anyway."
Comments(35)
Bennn
says...
12:30pm Fri 26 Nov 10
PrestigeLyon wrote:Nobody really wants to go to the end of a windy pier when it's frezzing cold and pay 5 quid just to go upside down once on a crppy roller coaster.
That's shortsighted and a touch shocking that an iconic attraction like the pier can't attract enough local business in the week.
I know there's only so much fruit-machine based, sugar-fueled fun you can have but surely they can think of something else to drum up business.
cheezburger
says...
12:35pm Fri 26 Nov 10
jay316
says...
12:43pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Brighton Council should never have sold The Palace Pier to Nobles, they should have kept it and sold the West Pier!
cheezburger
says...
1:03pm Fri 26 Nov 10
jay316 wrote:I have visions of all the legs breaking and seeing the pier float off into the sunset, never to be seen again.
@cheezburger: or it could burn down.. which would please me even more!
Brighton Council should never have sold The Palace Pier to Nobles, they should have kept it and sold the West Pier!
Tippy Toes
says...
1:58pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Granny
says...
2:01pm Fri 26 Nov 10
RickH
says...
2:20pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Tippy Toes wrote:What's so amazing about it? Virtually all my social circle refer to it as the Palace (as opposed to Brighton) Pier. But then again, we've lived in Brighton for 20+ years ;)
Its amazing that even the Argus still call it the Palace pier (and rightly so) even though it 'changed' it's name years ago!
salty_pete
says...
2:44pm Fri 26 Nov 10
paulbton
says...
2:52pm Fri 26 Nov 10
why drop the prices so that more locals use it
why open the bars for familys past 9 pm to watch sky sports
when you can just shut the gates...
Tippy Toes
says...
2:52pm Fri 26 Nov 10
RickH wrote:Errr because officially it's the Brighton Pier now? We all still call it the Palace Pier, it just struck me as funny that even the Argus won't adopt the new(ish) name.
Tippy Toes wrote:What's so amazing about it? Virtually all my social circle refer to it as the Palace (as opposed to Brighton) Pier. But then again, we've lived in Brighton for 20+ years ;)
Its amazing that even the Argus still call it the Palace pier (and rightly so) even though it 'changed' it's name years ago!
Brighton_Toffee
says...
3:36pm Fri 26 Nov 10
jay316 wrote:Hmmm...interesting.
@cheezburger: or it could burn down.. which would please me even more! Brighton Council should never have sold The Palace Pier to Nobles, they should have kept it and sold the West Pier!
Suggest that the Pier's attractions are cr@p, your comment is removed (as seems to have happened to one of my earlier posts).
Suggest that it should be allowed to burn down, your comments remain
Strange set of priorities at work, here
RAS Putin
says...
3:41pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Midnightrunner
says...
3:52pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Hove Actually
says...
3:58pm Fri 26 Nov 10
cheezburger wrote:Cr@p.....
Good. Hopefully they will go out of business and sell it to someone who really does know what they are doing.
The only reason the pier is here is because THEY do know what they were doing unless you know of another pier on the sounth coast in better condition or better used?........no didn't think so, maybe you should think before you post in future
Fight Back
says...
4:09pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit
says...
4:25pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Tippy Toes wrote:Because it IS the Palace pier! The owners changed it in an attempt to try and make us forget that there was ever another pier.
Its amazing that even the Argus still call it the Palace pier (and rightly so) even though it 'changed' it's name years ago!
.
As you know all true Brightonians refer to it as the Palace Pier. Only snivelling, brainwashed turncoats call it Brighton Pier
Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit
says...
4:27pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Acheron
says...
4:35pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Tippy Toes wrote:The Piers Society (yes there is one!!!) is the official 'recorder' of the piers of the UK and they have refused to accept the renaming of the pier. Officially it's still the Palace Pier, unofficially, because Noble's have little respect of hertiage etc, it's Brighton Pier.
RickH wrote:Errr because officially it's the Brighton Pier now? We all still call it the Palace Pier, it just struck me as funny that even the Argus won't adopt the new(ish) name.
Tippy Toes wrote:What's so amazing about it? Virtually all my social circle refer to it as the Palace (as opposed to Brighton) Pier. But then again, we've lived in Brighton for 20+ years ;)
Its amazing that even the Argus still call it the Palace pier (and rightly so) even though it 'changed' it's name years ago!
http://www.piers.org
.uk/pierpages/NPS0ma
p_eng_southeast.html
(sorry, I'll go get what little of a life I have back now!)
Morpheus
says...
4:51pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Brighton_Toffee
says...
5:00pm Fri 26 Nov 10
I know the answer (I hope) but the rest of you may begin your Googling/Wikithingin
g
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
NOW!!
pwlr
says...
6:03pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Seagull John
says...
6:28pm Fri 26 Nov 10
birthofanorange
says...
6:40pm Fri 26 Nov 10
No - times have changed and sadly the pier hasn't. Add some modern attractions and keep the cost reasonable and maybe, just maybe...
dcsussex
says...
7:06pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Granny wrote:Are suggesting if it stayed in the hands of b&h council, they would have made it flourish?
I am not surprised that the pier is losing money.The attraction of Brighton Pier, or the Palace Pier as I prefer to call it, has really gone down since it was taken over by Nobles. I agree that Brighton Council should never have sold it to them when they could have got someone who knew what they were doing, to run it.
your comments suggest b&h council know what they are doing!!!
Are you mad? or blind?
b&h council screw everything up, im glad they sold the pier!
As for closing early, how short sightedness are the owners, can they not use their brains and find a way of attracting custom? they dont deserve to own it..
hubby
says...
7:55pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Ya wine me UP, 'sta
says...
8:22pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Brighton_Toffee wrote:some of us have lives and couldnt care less...........
Why, by the way, Palace Pier in the first place?
I know the answer (I hope) but the rest of you may begin your Googling/Wikithingin
g
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
NOW!!
cheezburger
says...
8:54pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Hove Actually wrote:Actually i worked on the pier, as have many people in Brighton, and i have seen first hand how bad they run the place. Did you know for example, and this is 100% true, that in thefish and chip 'restaurant' kitchen they had a big hole in the floor, with nothing underneath it except the sea. And they used to pour cooking oil and other cr@p directly into the sea. I can tell you other shocking facts but i don't want the Argus getting in bother.
cheezburger wrote:Cr@p.....
Good. Hopefully they will go out of business and sell it to someone who really does know what they are doing.
The only reason the pier is here is because THEY do know what they were doing unless you know of another pier on the sounth coast in better condition or better used?........no didn't think so, maybe you should think before you post in future
MantaRay1
says...
9:17pm Fri 26 Nov 10
salty_pete wrote:I'm sure you're right. How many of us have put off spontaneous visits into Brighton on account of the cost and the unnecessary parking restrictions. Hardly welcoming is it?
I don't suppose that now BHCC has made the town so unwelcoming to cars that this is a real sympton of the anti-car policy?
Lorem Ipsum
says...
10:29pm Fri 26 Nov 10
kkj
says...
11:42pm Fri 26 Nov 10
Brighton Visitor
says...
3:18am Sat 27 Nov 10
The food and drinks at the front are a horrendous price.
Why can't they employ English staff whom would understand what customers are ordering?
eltnog
says...
11:53am Sat 27 Nov 10
dcsussex wrote:I am a seafront trader, and i remember well the days that the pier was owned by the council, and when there was an admission charge. The Nobles, not loved I know, have made the pier what it is today
Granny wrote:Are suggesting if it stayed in the hands of b&h council, they would have made it flourish?
I am not surprised that the pier is losing money.The attraction of Brighton Pier, or the Palace Pier as I prefer to call it, has really gone down since it was taken over by Nobles. I agree that Brighton Council should never have sold it to them when they could have got someone who knew what they were doing, to run it.
your comments suggest b&h council know what they are doing!!!
Are you mad? or blind?
b&h council screw everything up, im glad they sold the pier!
As for closing early, how short sightedness are the owners, can they not use their brains and find a way of attracting custom? they dont deserve to own it..
a tourist attraction that brings people and money to the city. Why cant the Nobles learn to budget their money, as any seafront trader knows, the winter months are long and bleak, and we all have to stretch the summer takings to last the whole year. When the town is reaping the benefits of christmas shopping, we sit and stare at the sea.
Did anyone see how dull the seafront looked last night, how dark and uninviting the seafront is without the lights. Shame on you Noble Org. for your shortsightedness, and shame on you Brighton Council for not making a stand.
John Steed
says...
1:59pm Sat 27 Nov 10
shame about the lack of bright lights of the pier on the seafront but they are not cheap to run.
Jimthefirst
says...
5:22pm Sat 27 Nov 10
In view of what happened to the West Pier it was good that a private company were able to run it.Its very well used in the summer but frankly you need to be desperate to want to use its attractions at this time of the year, so the owners have made a good business decision.
PrestigeLyon says...
12:28pm Fri 26 Nov 10
I know there's only so much fruit-machine based, sugar-fueled fun you can have but surely they can think of something else to drum up business.