Author: Hastings In Focus
Chris New at The Stables – a trilogy of new plays and the ‘witchcraft’ of teaching
Chris New is in the middle of a busy year at The Stables Theatre in Hastings with three new plays and a busy teaching schedule. After graduating from RADA Chris enjoyed huge success in the West End, starring opposite Alan Cumming in the 2006 revival of Martin Sherman’s Bent for which he won an Evening […]
Emergency cabinet meeting will hear of council’s desperate financial plight with millions in savings needed now!
On Friday afternoon the result of years of what is being described as ‘financial mismanagement’ will be laid bare before members of Hastings Borough Council’s (HBC) ruling Labour cabinet at an emergency meeting to discuss the authority’s looming financial crisis as it faces having to make multi-million pound savings. HBC is broke and unless it […]
The sad history of St Leonards Parish Church
Once again courtesy of Derelict In The UK we bring you photographs of iconic and deserted buildings, this time St Leonards Parish Church. Standing grand on the St Leonards seafront, this beautiful building was completed in 1961 to replace its predecessor destroyed by a direct hit from V-1 ‘doodlebug’. It originally had structural building problems […]
Crowley’s curse – you can check out any time you like but you can NEVER leave
Was Hastings cursed by the occultist Aleister Crowley? Much has been written about Aleister Crowley, the famous dabbler in ‘sex magick’. He reached the end of his days in a boarding house on The Ridge in 1947 – he’d run out of money and he’d run out of friends. The Victorian house known as Netherwood […]
From land and sea the iconic structure that defines the St Leonards seafront
Stuart Baillie finds out about the history of a building that has always intrigued him… I was standing on top of the East Hill at the weekend showing some friends who were visiting the town some of the landmarks of the area. They pointed west and asked, ‘what’s that?’ What they were asking about was of course Marine […]
The Concrete King’s million gallon masterpiece
Even today more than 30 years after it closed people still fondly remember ‘the old bathing pool’. It’s a place where memories were made. If this feature evokes some memories in you we’d love you to share them with us, or if you have old photographs we’d love to see them email us at tellmeyourstory@hastingsinfocus.co.uk […]
Remembering old Humphrey…
Spare a thought for Old Humphrey. In case you are wondering, Old Humphrey was one of the pen names used by George Mogridge, a very popular religious writer in the 19th century and who remains popular in some countries today. Alas, he is virtually forgotten in Hastings despite Old Humphrey Avenue just off All Saints Street […]
Drag queens bring Hastings Pride to care home’s back garden
Hastings drag queen, Paris Grande, brought the town’s ‘Pride’ to a care home’s back garden in a celebration of diversity and inclusion. Paris, together with Kikiara George and Nicole Grande from the Hastings Queer Collective, brought a rainbow of colour, dancing and singing to residents at Hastings Court Care Home on The Ridge. Lifestyles Manager, Kimberley […]