Brighton waves, Brighton raves!

A sea of enthusiasm for BrightonBeach365

100th post, 265 to go!

Fish and chips or moules marinières

‘We promise you won’t find a better view on the South Coast.’ So boasts the Palm Court restaurant, on Brighton’s Palace Pier, which also calls itself ‘The home of the Big Fish’. Have you eaten there? Famously top notch fish and chips are available (the fish is hand cut), as are moules marinières.

It seems unclear exactly when the Palm Court opened for business. However, it stands where once stood the famous Concert Hall, and so, presumably, it was installed as part of the late-1980s transformation (following the dismantling of the theatre). 

Subsequently, in 2018, the Palm Court underwent a significant refurbishment. Out went the darker, old-world styling; in came sea-glass tones, elegant booths, a sleek central island bar, and vast windows offering diners an unbroken view of the channel. Part of the seating area, apparently, was fashioned from a preserved bandstand, giving patrons the feeling of dining inside a Victorian music box (with the sound of gulls for accompaniment). The redesign also incorporated a copper installation inspired by starling murmurations.

Over the years, celebrity endorsements have kept the restaurant in the public eye. According to the pier’s website, Heston Blumenthal (famous chef) declared that Brighton Pier is the ‘Spiritual home of fish and chips’ whilst on a trip to film a one-off special documentary called Heston’s Fishy Feasts. 

The local newspaper, the Argus, reported in 2019 that Brighton crime writer Peter James chose the Palm Court to launch his novel Dead At First Sight. At the same time he announced that his detective Roy Grace would be featuring in a new series of TV dramas. Guests at the event included fellow crime writer Martina Cole, Brighton and Hove Mayor Dee Simson and Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne! And then, in March 2022, the Argus told us ‘the one and only’ pop star Chesney Hawkes and son Casey had ‘stopped off’ at the Palm Court for, what else, fish and chips.

While disputing the idea that I couldn’t find a better view on the South Coast, I’ll allow the restaurant a few final words of self-promotion: ‘Expertly blending seaside tradition with contemporary style, Palm Court serves up British classics, seafood favourites, super fresh salads and vegan specials, focussing on the tastiest ingredients and exceptional customer service. Famous for our fish & chips, each fillet we serve is hand-cut in house, coated in our delicious batter and cooked to crispy perfection, whilst our equally popular Moules Marinières deliver full-on flavour of the sea, French-style.’

Well, it is a hard life!

Brighton Beach is not a place to go crabbing, generally there’s no rocks or rock pools, moreover any kind of fishing from the pier has been forbidden for decades. Nevertheless, of course, there’s crabs out there, in the sea, lurking. Here’s the evidence of one that got into trouble, lost a claw. Oh dear! 

Given the size and shape of the claw, ChatGPT tells me, it could have belonged to a Velvet Swimming Crab (Necora puber) or to an Edible Crab (Cancer pagurus). However, the former has blue-tinged claws with pronounced ‘hair’ on the body and claws; and the latter has thick, heavier pincers with black tips. 

No, this claw most likely came from a European Green Crab (Carcinus maenas). Although native to Europe it is one of the world’s most invasive marine species, having spread to North America, Australia, South Africa, and beyond, where it outcompetes native species and devastates shellfish stocks.

European Green Crabs (Wikipedia image here) are ubiquitous across Europe’s rocky shores, estuaries, harbours, and tidal pools, burying themselves in sand or sheltering under rocks at low tide. They eat molluscs, worms, algae, detritus, and sometimes smaller crabs. They’re also aggressive and territorial, especially during mating season. Moulting is common as they grow, so they shed claws and exoskeleton fragments often wash ashore.

Despite the name, European Green Crabs are not always green, rather they come in a range of colours, olive green, brown, even reddish. Claws tend to be mottled with a granular texture and sometimes tinged with blue or green hues. They are uneven in size with the larger ones used for crushing prey, and smaller ones for more dexterous handling. The inner edges are serrated and used for gripping prey.

The photographed claw (on a piece of nearby driftwood) probably came from a crab about the size of a human hand. It was most likely lost in one of four ways: fighting other crabs (they are very territorial creatures ), autotomy (self-amputation), predation (by birds or larger fish), or moulting mishaps (claws getting stuck between rocks). Well, it is a hard life!

In a silvery sea of time

My struts and columns, battered, beaten, rusted
My arches, beams, joists exposed to every weather
Yet here I am, old, old yet standing, still standing
Proud
Honest
Beautiful
In a silvery sea of time

My bones and muscles, always tired, seeking rest
My ligaments and joints, creaking all day long
Yet here I am, old, old yet standing, still standing
Wrinkling
Watchful
Wizened
With a silvery mop on top

Where gone my dancers, promenaders, those in deckchairs
Gone to winds, and silvery waves, and elemental forces
Yet here I am, old, old yet standing, still standing
Proud
Honest
Beautiful
In a silvery sea of time

Where gone my friends, family and travels
Gone to dust, torn photos and unremembered postcards
Yet here I am, old, old yet standing, still standing
Wrinkling
Watchful
Wizened
With a silvery mop on top

Brighton Beach blue

At low tide on Brighton Beach, you might notice clusters of dark-shelled creatures clinging stubbornly to the groynes, pier supports, or even scattered rocks. These are blue mussels (Mytilus edulis), nature’s little ocean purifiers and master survivalists. They begin life as microscopic larvae, drifting aimlessly in the currents after being released into the water during spawning. Males and females release sperm and eggs into the water, and fertilisation occurs externally, forming a free-swimming larva called a trochophore.

For the next two to four weeks, these larvae progress into veligers - tiny, shelled planktonic creatures that continue to drift with ocean currents, feeding on microscopic algae. After several weeks, they reach the pediveliger stage, developing a small foot and searching for a suitable hard surface to settle on, such as rocks, pier pilings, or even other mussels. Once they find a home, they attach using sticky byssal threads and undergo metamorphosis into juvenile mussels. 

Juveniles grow rapidly in nutrient-rich waters, reaching full size (5-10 cm) in about two to three years. In favourable conditions, blue mussels can live up to 15 years. They often crowd in dense colonies, forming mussel beds that can contain thousands to millions of individuals. These beds can stretch across large areas of rocky shorelines, pier supports, and other hard surfaces. The tightly packed arrangement helps protect them from predators and harsh wave action.

Mussels may seem passive, but they are essential to the marine ecosystem. A single mussel can filter up to 10 litres of seawater an hour, sifting out microscopic plankton and removing pollutants. In some places, mussel beds are even used to help purify water naturally. Their resilience is remarkable. At low tide, they clamp their shells shut to avoid drying out, sometimes surviving for days without water. They can also change sex depending on environmental conditions, optimising their chances of reproduction. And, if they ever need a change of scenery, some mussels can detach and ‘walk’ using their foot to seek a better home. Much more information is available at Wikipedia and the Marine Life Information Network.

While Brighton’s blue mussels are fascinating, other species of mussels have their own quirky traits.

The Deep-Sea Giants: The Bathymodiolus genus of mussels, found near hydrothermal vents, can grow up to 30 cm long - dwarfing their shallow-water relatives!

The Oldest Mussels: Freshwater pearl mussels (Margaritifera margaritifera) can live over 100 years, with some recorded at nearly 250 years old!

The Strongest Glue: The Mytilus californianus (California mussel) produces an adhesive so powerful that scientists are studying it to create waterproof medical glue.

The Fastest Growers: Green-lipped mussels (Perna canaliculus) from New Zealand can reach full size in just one year - much faster than blue mussels.

Mussels That Save Lives: Some mussel species are used in water filtration projects to clean up polluted waterways, acting as natural biofilters.

Guest: Brighton Beach, Possession Bay, South Georgia

Brighton Beach, the fourth of this column’s guest beaches, is an outlier in every sense. It is situated along the north coast of South Georgia, a remote island in the southern Atlantic Ocean some 900 miles east of the Falkland Islands. Discovered by Europeans in 1675, the island had no indigenous population due to its harsh climate and remoteness. Captain James Cook in HMS Resolution made the first landing, survey and mapping of the island, and on 17 January 1775, he claimed it as a British possession, naming it Isle of Georgia after King George III.

Throughout its history, South Georgia has served as a whaling and seal hunting base, with intermittent population scattered in several whaling bases, the most important historically being Grytviken. The main settlement and the capital today is King Edward Point near Grytviken, a British Antarctic Survey research station, with a population of about 20 people.

However, I doubt they head to Brighton Beach at the weekend! This lies between Zero and Adventure Points in Possession Bay, on the north coast of South Georgia. The name first appeared on a chart showing the results of a survey by Discovery Investigations personnel in 1926-30 - the Discovery Investigations were a series of scientific cruises and shore-based investigations into the biology of whales in the Southern Ocean, funded by the British Colonial Office and organised by the Discovery Committee in London.

South Georgia is renowned for its rugged landscapes and abundant wildlife, including vast colonies of penguins and seals, making it a significant location for ecological studies and wildlife observation. Indeed, Brighton Beach was so named to reflect the abundance of fauna, as also found on our own Brighton Beach (when the sun shines!). Access to Brighton Beach and other areas on the island is regulated to preserve its delicate environment: the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands has designated specific visitor sites (with some locations closed due to environmental concerns). ​The outline map here shows the government’s designated visitor points, each one with a code number. The code for Brighton Beach (POS01) can be found in the partial data box, and with that it’s possible to identify where the beach is located on Google’s satellite map - should you wish to visit.

Bark Europa, a tall ship adventure vessel out of Holland, has visited Brighton Beach at least twice. The expedition leader Jordi Plana Morales wrote an entry in his logbook for 4 March 2019 with this title: Possession Bay - Prince Olav Harbour and holding anchor on a blustery afternoon at Brighton Beach. His record of the trip is detailed (and is illustrated with a photograph, as above). Here’s an extract from the log.

‘Winds varying from 20 to 45 kn and snowfall made for a quiet few hours indoors, while the Europa hold her ground at anchor in front of the so-called Brighton beach. To arrive here we had to sail over a shallow reef that crosses the whole bay, that nevertheless helps dumping down the swell that enters Possession Bay. From time to time a clear area between the low clouds let us have a glimpse of the beach and the surrounding glaciers.’

The Infamous John Friend

‘The vivid green, the well kept turf of the Steine contrasted with the bright rust coloured meshes of the fishermen’s nets spread over its seaward end to dry; picturesque fishing boats were drawn up on the shingle of the beach; children were paddling and digging in the sand.’ This is from The Infamous John Friend, a historical novel by Martha Roscoe Garnett partly set in Brighton. As a Jacobite sympathiser, the title character becomes entangled in political intrigue. [This image is courtesy of Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton & Hove]

Born in 1869, Martha was a British author and biographer, known for her literary contributions during the early 20th century. She is largely forgotten today, and there is very little biographical information about her available online. She married Richard Garnett, a writer and librarian at the British Museum, and she was related, by her marriage, Constance Garnett, a renowned translator of Russian literature, and Olive Garnett, another author.

Martha Garnett wrote two other novels: Amor Vincit (1912), a romance of the Staffordshire moorlands; and, Unrecorded: A Tale of the Days of Chivalry (1931). In addition to her fiction, she published Samuel Butler and His Family Relations (1926), showcasing her interest in historical and biographical writing. She died in 1946, aged 77.

The Infamous John Friend, first published in 1909, is set in 1805 during the Napoleonic Wars and follows John Friend, a spy working for Napoleon. The novel begins with John Friend at home, where his wife Mary is seriously ill. The story then moves to Brighton, where Friend takes his family, including his young daughter Susan, for a change of scenery and to improve his wife’s health.

Brighton Beach can be seen to play a significant role in the story as it serves as the backdrop for several key events and character interactions. The seaside town is described vividly, with mentions of bathing machines and Martha Gunn, and the social atmosphere of the time. Brighton’s popularity as a fashionable resort town during the Regency era is evident in the novel's portrayal of the setting.

An American edition of the novel can be freely read online at Internet Archive. Here is an extract from the novel, from chapter II (‘At Brighton’).

‘But the usual tenor of their life was that of the quieter professional classes; and now it appeared that they were to launch into fashionable life. Friend himself was quite unchanged. He was always the same in all surroundings and with all conditions of men. He took Susan out for a walk in the morning, eager for her first view of the sea. Mrs Friend was keeping her room after the fatigues of the journey. It was a different scene indeed from the Brighton of our day. The landscape was all Downs and sea; the little town dominated by its square towered church clustered among hayfields and cornfields. But rows of houses were beginning to spread like extended fingers among the fields, and the roads showed signs of traffic beyond the uses of country lanes. Over at Hove the white tents of the military camp shone in the sun, and glimpses of scarlet and flashes of burnished metal occasionally struck the eye. But the great glittering plain of the sea absorbed all Susan’s attention. She had no eyes for the streets, delightfully clean after the filth of London, nor for the sunshine glowing on the red brick pavements and working color harmonies between them and the dappled grey flint work of the walls. The vivid green, the well kept turf of the Steine contrasted with the bright rust colored meshes of the fishermen’s nets spread over its seaward end to dry; picturesque fishing boats were drawn up on the shingle of the beach; children were paddling and digging in the sand. A row of bathing machines stood in the shallow water, while stalwart females, gowned in faded indigo blue serge, were standing waist deep in the sea and “dipping” the ladies and children who entrusted themselves to their care.’