Kathryn Ferry

A huge welcome to Kathryn Ferry as our newest Placecloud expert. Kathryn is a historian interested in architecture, design and seaside culture. She writes books and articles, contributes regularly to television and radio, and lectures to a wide range of audiences.

Kathryn will be enriching our staycations with a series of viewpoints on English seaside architecture to be published this month:

Hippodrome, Great Yarmouth

Purpose-built circus of 1903 with Art Nouveau decoration and the original sinking ring that fills with water to allow synchronised swimming performances.

Bottle Alley, Hastings/St Leonards

Part of a £3 million seafront redevelopment by the ‘concrete King’ Sidney Little, the lower walkway of his double decker promenade is decorated with concrete panels set with broken glass from local rubbish dumps. 

Carlisle Street car park, Hastings

World’s first underground car park designed by Borough Surveyor Sidney Little and opened by Minister of Transport Mr Hore-Belisha in 1936. 

North Pier, Blackpool

Earliest surviving pier by Victorian engineer Eugenius Birch, the greatest pier builder ever.

Brighstone Holiday Centre, Isle of Wight

Unique as the sole surviving 1930s holiday camp to retain its original chalets and layout. 

Beach huts, Ventnor, Isle of Wight

The beach huts at Ventnor are cut down bathing machines, operated by the Blake family which first providing changing accommodation for visitors in 1857. 

Pier Towers, Withernsea

The castellated entrance to a pier that no longer exists, the Pier Towers have recently re-opened amid hopes that the pier itself can be rebuilt. 

Saltdean Lido, Saltdean nr Brighton

The first lido to receive statutory listing in 1987 and a triumph of Modernist design that is being restored to its 1938 glory. 

Margate railway station, Margate

One of the earliest buildings by Edwin Maxwell Fry, the 1926 station provides a grand Beaux Arts-style welcome to the resort. 

Grand Hotel, Scarborough

The largest hotel in Europe when it opened in 1867, Cuthbert Broderick’s luxurious hotel dominates the cliff above Scarborough’s South Bay. 

Eastbourne bandstand

The blue tiled dome of Eastbourne’s much-loved bandstand has been a seafront landmark since 1935 and continues to host a regular programme of open-air concerts.