The Real End Of The Pier Show?

English Heritage Thursday, 29 July, 2004

A credible restoration of the West Pier in Brighton is no longer possible, English Heritage has announced. The conclusion that the pier is beyond rescue is the result of a lengthy review process, and is also in large part due to the damage suffered by the pier in the freak storms of June this year. English Heritage brought forward its announcement, originally scheduled for September, because of the health and safety concerns surrounding the weather-damaged structure.

Dr Simon Thurley, Chief Executive of English Heritage, said "This is a terribly disappointing outcome, but common sense has to prevail when historic structures are so badly damaged that they cannot realistically be saved. The most important thing now is that the marvellous artefacts that have been salvaged from the pier over the years are made accessible and that Eugenius Birch's masterpiece can be commemorated properly."

Since January 2004 English Heritage has been working on an intensive review of all the options for the future of the pier, including commissioning a business plan, costings, and funding and maintenance strategies for a restored pier.

Dr Andrew Brown, Regional Director for English Heritage in the South East, said "Based on our review, I had high hopes that the pier could have been restored to its original 1866 elegance, although it would still have been an enormous challenge to raise over £20 million to make the scheme a reality. Tragically, the storm destroyed the section of the structure where the character of Birch's pier was most apparent - it was the lightest and most graceful part of the design. Although it remains technically possible to rebuild the pier accurately using the drawings and photographs that have been collected over the years, it would not now be the real West Pier but largely a reproduction. Sadly, we have had to conclude that it would be irresponsible for English Heritage to support any further bid for public money for the pier when the heritage merit of the project is no longer clear."

"My thoughts go out to the people who have fought tirelessly for the restoration of the pier over the years. We are very sorry that we have had to conclude that the time has come to let go of the hopes that united us."

A full copy of the July 2004 English Heritage report into the viability of the restoration is available on the English Heritage website http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/