The Argus

Sussex town 'rotting from inside out' could be on brink of rejuvenation

Burgess Hill residents have been up in arms and crying out for change after yet another shop closed its doors. Costa Coffee in Market Place finished trading on July 7 for the final time. Following the closure, people jumped to social media to share their frustrations and blamed the town council, which said it has no control over the closure. One person said the town was "rotting from the inside out", while another called it another "boring ghost town". On a sunny Monday morning I wen...
Read More
Filters & Sorting

Event celebrating Britain's best female talent comes to Brighton Festival

Brown Girl In The Ring, curated and produced by artist and DJ Sweety Kapoor, will be at the Brighton Dome Corn Exchange on May 3. It features the talents of award-winning poets, actors, dancers, musicians and activists, including actors Meera Syal (CBE) and Indira Varma, Kathak dancer Saloni Saraf, poet Nikita Gill and a special performance by Anoushka herself. The evening will be co-hosted by Kapoor and Brighton Festival 2025's guest director Anoushka Shankar, who has said the festival...

Cathedral to celebrate 950th anniversary with a series of events

Chichester Cathedral has announced a series of celebrations to mark the major milestone. A new choral piece has been composed as part of the festivities which will include street parties and an immersive light show highlighting the cathedral’s history. The programme of events started with the exhibition Religion, Rebellion and Reformation, on February 14. The exhibition features nine objects from across East and West Sussex which each represent a century of the cathedral’s history....

'It’s either funny or it’s not' - The Last Laugh was the definition of funny

The show is currently running at the Theatre Royal in Brighton until Saturday. Tommy Cooper (Damian Williams), Eric Morecambe (Bob Golding) and Bob Monkhouse (Simon Cartwright) are three comedic giants that define an age of comedy that is often overlooked in the contemporary sphere. Paul Hendy’s interpretation of The Last Laugh allows each comedian to shine equally throughout the hilariously written theatrical piece, whilst brining a touch of humble humanity to each of the characters....

Why we think Coq Block Bar is more than just another chicken shop

It seems like a new chicken shop opens every week in Brighton, but this... this is no ordinary chicken shop. The infusion of a well-established local watering hole in Block Bar, and an award-winning chicken shop in The Bok Shop, is the stuff dreamt up by true culinary entrepreneurs. The provocatively-named Coq Block Bar opened in St James's Street where Block Bar used to be in January. Myself and Steve, a humble Argus editor, had been itching to head down ever since the news broke....

Hot chocolate, live music and a vegan lunch: my trip to the winter fayre

High winds and storms led to a tent pole collapsing on its opening night and cancelling what was meant to be its first weekend in Valley Gardens outside St Peter's Church. So I went down to the fayre's relaunch on Thursday to experience all that was on offer. The entrance to the Winter Fayre (Image: Ramy Abou-Setta/ The Argus) The first thing was to go through security and have my bag checked. There were around five security guards on duty across the fayre just to make sure that safety p...

Brighton and Hove's long lost cinemas through the decades

Nowadays we have the likes of the Odeon Brighton, Cineworld Brighton and Duke of York’s Picturehouse to fulfil our movie cravings. However, if you have lived in Brighton longer than 20 years then you may remember some classic venues that have been swept away with time. Fond memories of watching the original Star Wars trilogy when it screened, or perhaps James Bond's adventures in 007 Goldfinger?   Or, if you're in your 20s like me, maybe Madagascar, Batman Begins or the first Kung Fu...

Deprived Sussex town where one in three children grow up in poverty

Peter Lamb, Labour MP for Crawley, expressed concerns over the number of children living in poverty in his constituency during a speech at the Building Safety and Resilience debate on Wednesday. Crawley is one of the most deprived areas in Sussex. One neighbourhood in the town, Broadfield South, falls within the 10% most deprived areas in England, the latest data, from 2019, shows. A total of four neighbourhoods also scored in the top 20% most deprived nationally. Mr Lamb told the House...

Life in 'poshest' Sussex village that stars call home

I met Laura when I finally reached West Wittering beach, a well-known stretch of sand which attracts thousands of tourists every year as well as celebrities who live in the area. I was on a mission to find out just how upmarket the village is after The Telegraph named it one of the "poshest" coastal villages in the UK, partly due to its eye-watering house prices. A resident of five years, Laura said: “People here care about the place they live in and the environment, so it drives house p...

Battle to save Sussex homes and beaches at risk from rising seas

Plans to save the Bognor area from rising sea levels are currently being worked on by the authorities. According to a map by Climate Central, parts of the town could be completely under water by 2030, alongside the majority of Felpham, Middleton-on-Sea and Shripney, reaching all the way to the top of Barnham. That is up to seven miles inland swallowed up by the sea in less than six years. This year alone has seen the Tesco superstore car park in Shripney Road severely flooded and closed...

Sussex town 'rotting from inside out' could be on brink of rejuvenation

Burgess Hill residents have been up in arms and crying out for change after yet another shop closed its doors. Costa Coffee in Market Place finished trading on July 7 for the final time. Following the closure, people jumped to social media to share their frustrations and blamed the town council, which said it has no control over the closure. One person said the town was "rotting from the inside out", while another called it another "boring ghost town". On a sunny Monday morning I wen...

A weekend full of coffee returns to the city

Brighton Coffee Festival is back and will be open Saturday and Sunday at All Saints Church in The Drive in Hove. The event has grown into one of the most popular UK independent coffee festivals and aims to promote the best the city’s coffee scene has to offer. The Level Coffee Championships - a competition aiming to level the playing field of coffee competitions (Image: Brighton Coffee Festival) In addition to the local scene the festival will be welcoming some international brands....

Three Sussex outdoor pools and lidos named best in Britain

The Telegraph has released a list of the best outdoor pools in the country as we are still waiting for summer to properly start. Arundel Lido in West Sussex was named due to its good-sized outdoor pool dating from the 1960s, which affords nice views of Arundel Castle. The lido has recently received a funding boost as part of a swimming pool support fund by the government. Though Pells Pool is unheated, it can be an ideal place to escape the heat. (Image: Tripadvisor) Pells Pool i...