Tag: Eastbourne Events

Beachy Head Lighthouse Challenge 2023.

This walk is organised by The Rotary Club. There is a cost of £8.50 with money going to different charities, including the RNLI and also towards the upkeep of the lighthouse’s famous red and white stripes.

There are very few days when it is possible to walk around the lighthouse as it must be during spring tides and when it is light enough.

The meeting point was at the foot of the Downs by St. Bede’s school in Eastbourne. We then proceeded up the lane for approximately half a mile to Whitbread Hollow where we checked in. Once checked-in, we set off across the Downs to Cow Gap, down the steps to the beach and over the rocks, boulders, sand and slippery seaweed to the lighthouse.

It was a fairly strenuous walk; the beach part the hardest. You could go right up to the lighthouse and climb the steps up onto the base. Stewards were there counting people on and off, ten at a time. Stewards were also strategically placed along the route, as were paramedics and the RNLI shoreside.

Beachy Head is a notorious suicide spot in the South Coast and the sad part of the walk as we came closer to the lighthouse along the cliff base was the rusted remnants of car parts caught in the rocks. We had a silent moment of contemplation for those who had been driven to such drastic measures.

On return, all participants received a certificate to authenticate that we were one of the few people who have undertaken the “Lighthouse Challenge”.

It was a beautiful still and sunny evening for this unusual walk in a beautiful part of the South Coast.

Eastbourne Funk and Soul.

The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show came to the Western Lawns at Eastbourne.

He was part of The E-Festival- Eastbourne’s very own ECO and MUSIC festival held over three fabulous summer days July 29-30-31 across the towns most iconic seafront locations. And what a treat it was. Headlining artists were Toploader, the Symphonic Ibiza Orchestra and of course the Craig Charles ‘Funk & Soul Show’

It was also my first experience of bhangra, from the energetic Bhangra Smash Up; a three piece drumming band based in Birmingham and playing all over the UK. Find them on Facebook and TikTok.

Well done Eastbourne E festival for putting on a high quality, professional event.

Eastbourne Carpet Gardens.

Carpet Gardens early 1900s

The famous Carpet Gardens are the centrepiece of Eastbourne’s Promenade with vibrant displays of bedding plants and special planting features. It was around 1904 that they first appeared on the Grand Parade near the pier. It is not known who first thought of adorning the sea front with some such a gorgeous display of horticulture but Eastbourne Borough Council do a fantastic job in creating year round displays to reflect the seasons.

Above is an early postcard of the gardens. Make a future date to come and see them how they are now in our beautiful town.

English Seaside Saturday.

I often think that there is nothing more depressing than an English seaside town in January, however I quite enjoyed a winter Eastbourne Pier this afternoon.

So a little information about the pier:

Work began on Eastbourne pier with a working capital of £15,000 in April 1866 and was completed in 1872. The pier is 300 meters long and built on stilts, which rest in cups on the seabed allowing the whole structure to move during rough weather. During the Second World War decking was removed to host machine guns to provide a useful advantage point to repel enemy landings. In December 1942, an exploding mine caused considerable damage to the pier and nearby hotels. It’s 1000 seat theatre was then destroyed by a fire in 1970 and was replaced with an evening entertainment venue that has since become home to Atlantis Nightclub, The Waterfront Cafe/Bar. In 2014 the pier caught fire again, this time destroying the large arcade and saloons in the midway. Mr Sheikh Abid Gulzar a local hotelier, brought the pier in November 2015.

All the fun of the Pier.?

The pier also used to have a Paddle Steamer service, (wish I had been around to see this) operated by P and A Campbell, who ran trips from the pier along the south coast and across the English Channel to Bolougne, France from 1906 until the outbreak of World War Two. The service was resumed after the war, but then gradually withdrawn. Culturally the Pier has appeared in various Agatha Christie ‘Poirot’ episodes, the 2001 film Last Orders and the 2008 film Angus, Thongs and Full Frontal Snogging. In addition the 2010 version of Brighton Rock used Eastbourne Pier to stand in for Brighton’s Palace Pier.

Looking out from the pier west towards Brighton.

A wander on it passed a grey January afternoon nicely.

Eastbourne Pride

This was Eastbourne’s 3rd Pride event hosted by the BourneOut LGBT group; held at the lovely Princess Park it was a fabulous afternoon in the sunshine. The theme was Flower Power and the 1960’s as a tribute to fifty years of Stonewall.

Entertainment, compered by drag queen Misty Lee, saw dancers plus live music from various tributes including Pink! and Ricky Martin on the main stage.

Local Lewes brewery Harvey’s, the oldest independent brewery in Sussex : https://www.harveys.org.uk/ provided the bar, the barrels pulled in by two magnificent dray horses, who stayed to say hello.

Beautiful weather and a fun family day. Well done Eastbourne!