The Brighton Centre is 30 years old this year, and to mark the occasion they’re holding a free exhibition from 30th July to 30th August, charting the centre’s history over the past three decades, and documenting the hundreds of stars who have appeared there, from Bruce Springsteen and The Who, to Ant & Dec and The Tweenies.
The centre was opened on 19th September 1977 by Prime Minister James Callaghan, who declared: “I was present at the conception, I have watched the gestation, and here I am at the birth of what I hope will be a very lusty infant”. I’m sure my Dad said the same thing when I was born four years earlier. Although I’m not sure he used the word ‘lusty’.
The exhibition includes a number of previously unseen photos, plus programmes, tickets and letters from the past thirty years, but my one complaint is that none of the original items are on display. All we see are pictures of them, accompanied by text explaining the story behind each one.
Fortunately, however, a lot of the information given is surprisingly amusing, and more than makes up for the lack of original artifacts. It includes details of the freebies demanded by various rock stars who performed at the centre. For example, when The Boomtown Rats played Brighton in October 1979 (with a ticket price of £2) they asked for Bacardi, Whiskey, Tequila... and custard tarts. Rockers ‘Bad Company’ requested six bottles of Blue Nun, while Hawkwind merely insisted on “one loaf of white bread with butter”. It’s a shame The Jam weren’t playing that night. They could have got together and made sandwiches.
The Brighton Centre doesn’t just play host to rock and pop concerts of course, and it’s interesting to see the contrasting range of events held there over the years. In the late 70s, Boney M preceded the International Coil Winding Association Exhibition, while the 1996 Pharmacological Society Conference was followed by The Backstreet Boys. Let’s hope they didn’t leave any drugs behind. The pharmacists I mean.
Among the sporting events to have taken place at the centre was an experimental indoor cricket tournament in 1981 using rubber balls and nets to protect the audience, while some of the more controversial incidents documented by the exhibition include Shakin’ Stevens’ refusal to do a sound check until all staff were removed from the auditorium, and the time when that most notorious of hellraisers, Jason Donovan, prompted numerous complaints by inviting his audience to stand up.
According to other information on offer, the stage of the Brighton Centre isn’t the only place you’ll find celebrities. When Radiohead played there in September 1997, audience members included Cameron Diaz, Ewan McGregor and Michael Stipe of REM, whilst a performance by Michael Crawford in July 1992 attracted the likes of Bonnie Langford, Gloria Hunniford and Strictly Come Dancing’s Arlene Phillips. I know which show I'd rather have been at.
Other items on display include cardboard cut-outs of Tom Jones and the Sugababes, plus one of Donny Osmond which makes him look like he’s sitting on the toilet. Then there are tickets for Ian Dury’s 1979 concert, which were printed as ‘Ian Drury’ and had to be altered by staff with biros. There’s also the chance to watch videos featuring behind-the-scenes footage of life at the centre, and clips of celebrities such as Jools Holland and Lulu recording their birthday messages.
None, however, can compete with the words of Lee Curreri who played Bruno in the TV show 'Fame'. He appeared at The Brighton Centre in December 1982 as part of 'The Kids From Fame' tour, when he reportedly said this:
"I love Brighton. I have seen the pier in the Woody Allen film and it is amazing to see it in real life".
And people say Americans are no good at geography.
