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2–3 Pavilion Buildings, Brighton

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Coordinates: 50°49′20″N 0°08′19″W / 50.8222°N 0.1385°W / 50.8222; -0.1385
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2–3 Pavilion Buildings
The building from the east
2–3 Pavilion Buildings, Brighton is located in Brighton
2–3 Pavilion Buildings, Brighton
Location in central Brighton
General information
StatusCompleted
TypeOffices (now bar)
Architectural styleNeo-Georgian
Town or cityBrighton and Hove
CountryUnited Kingdom
Coordinates50°49′20″N 0°08′19″W / 50.8222°N 0.1385°W / 50.8222; -0.1385
Construction started1933
Completed1934
OwnerMitchells & Butlers
Technical details
Floor count3
Design and construction
Architect(s)John Leopold Denman

2–3 Pavilion Buildings in Brighton is a former office building which has been converted into a bar. It was constructed in 1934 as the new head office of the Brighton & Hove Herald, a "leading provincial weekly"[1] newspaper serving the borough and seaside resort of Brighton and its neighbour Hove in southeast England. The Neo-Georgian offices were built to the design of prolific local architect John Leopold Denman and feature decorative carvings by Joseph Cribb. After production of the Herald ceased in the 1970s, the building was used by an insurance company and then as a bar. A firm of insolvency practitioners also occupies part of the premises. Vestigial remains of the neighbouring Royal Pavilion's guest bedrooms were incorporated into the building's rear elevation. The building is on Brighton and Hove City Council's Local List of Heritage Assets and is in a conservation area.

History

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Pavilion Buildings leads northwards from Castle Square (the "commercial hub of the town from the late 18th century")[2] to the southern edge of the Royal Pavilion estate. The Pavilion was built as a house for the Prince of Wales and later transformed into a royal palace upon his accession to the throne as King George IV. His successor King William IV commissioned new buildings at the south end of the estate in 1831, including offices, servants' quarters and guest bedrooms.[1] These were mostly demolished in 1851–52, and Pavilion Buildings was laid out as a road leading from Castle Square to the South Lodge of the Pavilion grounds.[2][3]

In 1933, the owners of the Brighton & Hove Herald newspaper bought the land at the northwest end of Pavilion Buildings, closest to the Royal Pavilion's grounds, as the site of a new head office. The newspaper, Brighton's oldest, was founded in 1806 at Middle Street and later moved to offices in Prince's Place near the Chapel Royal. Originally known as the Brighton Herald, it became the Brighton Herald & Hove Chronicle in 1902 and took the name Brighton & Hove Herald in 1922.[1] The site had been occupied by the Pavilion's guest bedrooms, and parts of the yellow brick, flint and cobblestone walls were left standing and were incorporated into the rear of the new offices.[2][4]

John Leopold Denman was commissioned to design the building in 1933. Born in Brighton, he designed a wide range of commercial and civic buildings, churches, pubs and hotels in the town and elsewhere in Sussex. Described as "the master of ... mid-century Neo-Georgian",[5] he designed three buildings in nearby streets in that style around the same time—20–22 Marlborough Place, the Richmond Hotel and Regent House—and adopted the same style in his work at Pavilion Buildings.[5] The offices were completed in 1934[note 1] and were used by the Brighton & Hove Herald until the newspaper merged with the Brighton & Hove Gazette in 1971.[1] By 1987 the premises were known as the Royal Insurance Building and were used as offices by the Royal Insurance Company.[6] In the 21st century the ground floor has operated as a bar: by 2010 it was the Ha! Ha! Bar & Canteen,[8] a chain pub owned by Yates Group, and as of 2024 it is owned by Mitchells & Butlers and trades under their All Bar One brand.[9] The Brighton office of insolvency practitioner Begbies Traynor is also based in the building.[10]

The interior of the building was severely damaged by fire in November 2020. The bar was not open at the time because of the COVID-19 lockdown in England.[11] After refurbishment it reopened in summer 2022; but in August 2024 it was announced that All Bar One would be vacating the building at the end of September, at which point the whole premises, including the leased offices on the first and second floors, were to be marketed for sale for £2.65 million. It was stated that the ground-floor bar and basement could be rented out separately as an alternative.[12]

The building features prominently in the 1965 film Be My Guest, sequel to Live It Up!, in which the main character Dave gets a job at the Brighton Herald.[13]

Heritage

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The building is within the Valley Gardens Conservation Area,[14] one of 34 conservation areas in the city of Brighton and Hove.[15] The 92.84-acre (37.57 ha) area was designated by Brighton Borough Council in 1973 and has been extended several times since.[16]

The building was included in Brighton Borough Council's local list of heritage assets, which was adopted in 1987. After Brighton amalgamated with neighbouring Hove to form Brighton and Hove Borough (later City) Council, this list was combined with Hove Borough's local list. Buildings with this designation are "identified as having a degree of significance meriting consideration in planning decisions, because of [their] heritage interest".[17] The city council reassessed all locally listed buildings in 2015; 2–3 Pavilion Buildings was retained on the list. The Council considers that it "contributes positively to the area and the approach to the Royal Pavilion" and is a "good example" of an interwar commercial building and of the work of John Leopold Denman.[18]

Architecture

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2–3 Pavilion Buildings is a "very stylish and well-detailed" Neo-Georgian building by John Leopold Denman,[19] produced during a prolific period of the mid-1930s when he was responsible for several similar buildings in Brighton.[5] The three-storey building is constructed of handmade brown and red bricks and Portland stone and has a symmetrical façade with eight bays to the upper storeys and nine at ground-floor level. The latter has a central entrance recessed under a flat-arched doorway with a glazed tympanum is flanked by an arcade of three "attractive"[19] and "delicate" round-arched timber bow windows on each side, also with glazed tympana, and further entrances in the outermost bays.[6][18][19] Above one of these outer doors is a plaque displaying the coat of arms of the Borough of Brighton; above the other is the coat of arms of the Borough of Hove.[2] At first- and second-floor level are eight equally spaced sash windows. The roof is behind a parapet, below which is a projecting cornice.[6] A clock projects over the central entrance at first-floor level.[18]

Joseph Cribb designed a series of carvings on the outside walls—principally the "delightful" acanthus capitals with tiny seahorse and scallop designs.[6][7] The reliefs are carved in Portland stone and are in good condition.[7][note 2] Cribb also worked with Denman on the offices at nearby 20–22 Marlborough Place (1933), where the window surrounds are adorned with carvings.[6]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Some sources state that the building dates from 1932.[6][7]
  2. ^ According to the criteria set by Public Sculptures of Sussex, a project administered by the University of Brighton and the Public Monuments and Sculpture Association.[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Carder 1990, §108.
  2. ^ a b c d Carder 1990, §32.
  3. ^ Dale 1976, pp. 224–225.
  4. ^ Musgrave 1981, p. 233.
  5. ^ a b c Antram & Morrice 2008, p. 25.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Brighton Polytechnic. School of Architecture and Interior Design 1987, p. 33.
  7. ^ a b c "Herald Building Reliefs". Public Sculptures of Sussex Database. University of Brighton. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  8. ^ Collis 2010, p. 239.
  9. ^ "Welcome to All Bar One Brighton". All Bar One. 2016. Archived from the original on 30 March 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  10. ^ "Brighton Office – Insolvency Practitioners". Begbies Traynor Group plc. 2016. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  11. ^ "All Bar One badly damaged in North Street blaze". Brighton and Hove News. 16 November 2020. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
  12. ^ Nicholson, Savannah (30 July 2024). "All Bar One to close Brighton city centre location". The Argus. Newsquest Media Group. Archived from the original on 31 July 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  13. ^ Various authors 2002, p. 63.
  14. ^ "Valley Gardens Conservation Area Study and Enhancement Plan" (PDF). Brighton & Hove City Council (Design & Conservation Department). 13 September 1995. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 October 2013. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  15. ^ "Conservation Areas in Brighton & Hove". Brighton and Hove City Council (Design & Conservation Department). 2010. Archived from the original on 30 August 2012. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  16. ^ "Valley Gardens Conservation Area". Brighton and Hove City Council (Design & Conservation Department). 2016. Archived from the original on 16 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  17. ^ "Buildings of Local Interest (EN/CR/LB/06)" (PDF). Hove: Brighton and Hove City Council (Heritage Team). 26 April 2012. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
  18. ^ a b c "Pavilion Buildings, 2–3, Brighton" (PDF). Brighton and Hove City Council Local List of Heritage Assets (June 2015 revision). Brighton and Hove City Council. 18 June 2015. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 April 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  19. ^ a b c Antram & Morrice 2008, p. 167.
  20. ^ "Public Sculptures of Sussex Database". University of Brighton and Public Monuments and Sculpture Association. Archived from the original on 25 March 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.

Bibliography

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  • Antram, Nicholas; Morrice, Richard (2008). Brighton and Hove. Pevsner Architectural Guides. London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-12661-7.
  • Brighton Polytechnic. School of Architecture and Interior Design (1987). A Guide to the Buildings of Brighton. Macclesfield: McMillan Martin. ISBN 1-869-86503-0.
  • Carder, Timothy (1990). The Encyclopaedia of Brighton. Lewes: East Sussex County Libraries. ISBN 0-861-47315-9.
  • Collis, Rose (2010). The New Encyclopaedia of Brighton. (based on the original by Tim Carder) (1st ed.). Brighton: Brighton & Hove Libraries. ISBN 978-0-9564664-0-2.
  • Dale, Antony (1976). Brighton Town and Brighton People. Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd. ISBN 0-85033-219-2.
  • Musgrave, Clifford (1981). Life in Brighton. Rochester: Rochester Press. ISBN 0-571-09285-3.
  • Various authors (2002). Kiss & Kill: Film Visions of Brighton. Brighton: Brighton and Hove City Council (Royal Pavilion, Museums & Libraries department). ISBN 0-948723-49-1.
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