Mailboxes, meteors and other stories (#8)
TL;DR of local press and stories from Brighton and surrounding areas.
News
Good news everyone! The Saltdean Lido is on track to reopen in the second half of 2023.
In addition to the £2 capped fare until March 2023 on all single bus journey, people aged 19 and under can travel for 50p when unaccompanied, for free when accompanied by an adult, until 2025.
The Royal Pavilion and Brighton Museum & Art Gallery are free to visit on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th January!
Bomb!
For the next 18 months Western Road will be resurfaced and improved. Bus routes are being diverted accordingly.
Meet Spinny and Gusty the wind turbines. This is why.
(More info about the aforementioned bomb if you’re curious)
Check out more pictures of the Electric Garden, the controversial neon installation on Madeira Terrace. It already required a repair because of water damage. Meanwhile, the cliff wall is being inspected by surveyors ahead of the upcoming works.
More articles are being written about the Census 2021 data. In particularly check out this Breaking news-worthy article about the ‘gayest’ neighbourhoods in Brighton and Hove and how are students scattered across the city.
We find this hard to believe but it’s too good not to mention it: a US mailbox was found on the Cuckmere Haven beach, and it is believed to have been travelling across the ocean from Florida.
Terre à Terre has been mentioned among the world’s best restaurants for vegans by readers of the Financial Times.
Michelle Pfeiffer shared a picture of an artistic Christmas tree made in Rottingdean, the real news here is how the Argus juxtaposed the smiling Michelle on the controversial Rottingdean planter in the heading picture of the article.
Adur District Council awarded a Community Hero Award to Shoreham artist Dominic Burch. Dominic creates beautiful art out of plastics he picks up along Shoreham’s beach. A wholesome aspect of this story is that his walks along the beach with his dog Luna started as a therapeutic way to cope with mental health issues. Even Fat Boy Slim got one of his works!
A waterfall flowing up a cliff and said cliff collapsing shortly thereafter.
After selling out the early bird memberships, Sea Lanes swimming pool released the full price membership.
Snacks and the City
Suriya’s Thai Kitchen
Reliable, authentic Thai by the nicest people in Kemptown
Full disclosure: When we visited Suriya’s, it was to review the restaurant’s new(ish) offering, Sushiya, which we’d ordered from before but never had the chance to eat in the traditional Japanese-style basement space. So I was disappointed to hear Sushiya was gone; it didn’t take off and the chef returned to London (shame on you, Kemptown). That said, having to eat at Suriya’s is never disappointing. We ordered spring rolls with shiitake mushrooms, steamed veg dumplings with sticky ginger sauce, rich and coconutty Tom Kha soup, spicy Tom Yum, and dark soya noodles with crispy tofu and a side of vibrant stir-fried broccoli. It’s hard to fault any of the dishes. At a push, the dumpling stuffing was a little watery, but still delicious. Suriya’s also doesn’t hold back on spice and the Tom Yum did nearly give my partner an aneurysm (“it’s okay if I just shut down my respiratory system while I eat”) but that was really an “us” problem. I love this place and I need you all to keep visiting to avoid it going the way of Sushiya.
9/10
Music
“Formed in Brighton 2018, All Better’s blend of high energy punk riffs and infectious alt-rock/pop hooks have so far led them to tour the UK and mainland Europe a number of times, sharing the stage with scene favourites Remo Drive, As It Is, Roam, Spanish Love Songs and Pkew Pkew Pkew.”
“It has been announced that Brighton band All Better are hanging up their seagull costumes and calling it a day.” Last two dates in Brighton and tickets here.
Cryptic crossword
Across
1. Expanse fools birds (8)
4. Ocean breaking right on paddler (6)
6. Greek monster has hundreds of eyes daily (5)
7. A narrow escape for walkers (8)
9. Tailless rodent turns eighteen in place of worship (7,5)
11. Creaky joint found on shoulder (4)
13. Backwards cap with spot on spice container (6,3)
18. Tea brewed to ingest (3)
19. Seafront walk is below Richard (10)
20. Short editor is presuming chap (2)
23. Penny gets sentiment wrong for pub (7,3)
24. Nordic bread sounds Ironic (3)
Down
1. Crazy prankster gets morning in nature reserve (7, 4)
2. One on beach, hoping to find a school (6)
3. Shaw’s all at sea in waves (5)
4. Headless bird of prey gets caught on the arts (7)
5. Palace sovereign sits atop large tent (5, 8)
8. You ‘n’ I provide learning environment (3)
10. Nice cow hides, planet-friendly (3)
12. Hedonist decanted awkwardly (8)
14. Elevated cabaret venue (5)
15. Newquay is contemporary, so to speak (4)
16. Shoppers’ paradise found in north, elan essential (3, 5)
17. Hove cafe serves French egg (4)
20. Wired and avant-garde (4)
21. What Brighton beach lacks is polish (4)
22. Station abbreviation is better than nothing (3)
History corner
“Black Rock Station is located at the east end of Madeira Drive, 5 minutes walk from Brighton Marina. Accessible public toilets can be found at the Marina.
Despite some resistance to the Railway from local cabbies and fishermen, it continued to gain in popularity. New carriages were introduced in 1892 and 1897 to help to meet the increased demand. This also encouraged Volk to extend his railway again in 1901, this time out to Black Rock. In order to accommodate the increased distance the line covered, and the ongoing demand of 1 million passengers per year, a further 3 cars were introduced in 1901.”
“Black Rock Pool, or Black Rock Lido (1936-1978) was an Art Deco open-air swimming pool development opened in the mid-1930s at Black Rock, Brighton. The site closed in 1978, and seems to have been demolished in around 1979.” Check out the pictures in the article and this video footage from the early days of the lido.
I really didn't need to add "Do a cryptic crossword" to my perfcrastination task list today.