_(April_2013).JPG) The Brighton Centre in April 2013 | |
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| Address | Kings Rd, Brighton. BN1 2GR |
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| Location | Brighton,East Sussex, England |
| Coordinates | 50°49′16″N0°08′46″W / 50.82111°N 0.14611°W /50.82111; -0.14611 |
| Owner | Brighton & Hove City Council[1] |
| Operator | Brighton & Hove City Council[1] |
| Capacity | 4,270 (seated), 5,515 (standing)[2] |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 19 September 1977 |
| Renovated | January 2012 |
| Architect | Russell Diplock & Associates |
| Website | |
| www | |
Brighton Centre is a conference and exhibition centre located inBrighton,England. It is the largest of its kind in southern England,[3] and is regularly used forconferences of the UK political parties and other bodies of national importance. The venue has the capacity to accommodate up to 5,000 delegates,[3] although rooms in the building can be used for weddings and banquets.[4]
It has also been used as a live music venue since it was opened byJames Callaghan on 19 September 1977.[5] It was designed in aBrutalist style by architectsRussell Diplock & Associates, who made extensive use of textured concrete.[6] The venue is situated in the centre of Brighton on the sea front and is within 200 metres of major hotels. In 2004, it was estimated that the centre generated £50 million in revenue for Brighton.[7]
Bing Crosby's final performance was at Brighton Centre on 10 October 1977. He died of a heart attack four days later, while at a golf tournament in Spain.[8]
The Jacksons performed on 10 February 1979 as part of theirDestiny World Tour.[9]
The Who performed on 10 and 11 November 1979 as part of theirWho Are You Tour, and returned as part of their Face Dances Tour in 1981, and in 2006 as part of their Endless Wire Tour.[10]
Queen performed on 10 and 11 December 1979 as part of theirCrazy Tour.[11]
Bob Marley and The Wailers performed on 8 and 9 July 1980 as part of theirUprising Tour.[12]
Between 1978 and 1995 it was the venue for theBrighton International tennis tournament, an annual event on theWTA Tour. Champions of the event includedChris Evert,Martina Navratilova andSteffi Graf.
From 29 to 30 November 1983, pop duoWham! performed their final dates on their debut UK tour, titledClub Fantastic Tour.
On 11 December 1982,The Jam played their last gig in the Conference Room at Brighton Centre.
From 9–15 September 1989, theLiberal Democrats held their firstLiberal Democrat Conference at Brighton Centre, after the party's formation in the previous year.[13]
In 1991 and 1992, theWorld Wrestling Federation (WWF) came to the venue as part of their 'World' and 'European Rampage Again' Tours. The promotion would return to the venue (as WWE) numerous times in the 2010s.[14]
In 2003 and 2004, Brighton Centre hosted the2003 and2004 British Open snooker, from 8–16 November.
On 17 December 2006 comedy rock duoTenacious D performed as part of theirPick of Destiny Tour,Neil Hamburger was the opening act.[15] On 13 May 2024 they returned as part of theirSpicy Meatball Tour opened byDave Hill.[16]
In March 2003, there were proposals to demolish the centre at the end of 2005, and replace it with a new exhibition and conference centre by 2008.[17] The centre was given a £1 million renovation in 2012.[18] In November 2014, demolition proposals were made again, but these were to demolish the centre to extend theChurchill Square shopping centre, and then build a new 10,000 capacity exhibition and conference centre on derelict land near the Brighton Marina.[19] In November 2019, these plans were revisited.[20]
Media related toThe Brighton Centre at Wikimedia CommonsAuthority control databases: Geographic |
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