Architecture
From Indian inspired domes to stylish Art Deco details, Brighton Dome has undergone radical architectural transformation
Royal Stables and Riding House
Brighton Dome was originally built as a stables for George, Prince of Wales, later George IV. The Prince of Wales enjoyed riding, hunting and carriage driving, and decided that he needed a grand new stable block and riding house for his seaside pleasure palace, the Royal Pavilion at Brighton. In 1803, he commissioned architect William Porden, who had previously built a house on the Steine for Mrs Fitzherbert, the Prince’s longtime companion.
The stables exterior was inspired by an aquatint of the Jama Masjid of Delhi (also known as Masjid-I- Jahnuma), published between 1795 – 1807 by William and Thomas Daniell. The interior of the stables owed a debt to the design of the Halle aux Bles (or Paris Corn Exchange), whose segmented glass ceiling was echoed in the original dome construction.
Built between 1803- 1808, the stables contained 44 stalls for horses, 5 coach houses, and living quarters for stable staff. The domed glass roof of the stables (80 ft in diameter, 65ft high) was one of the largest constructions of its type in the world and many thought that the structure would collapse. Porden himself wrote 'The cupola is now on, and the workmen are swarming about it like jackdaws. The whole proves fully equal to expectation. The dome now supports itself, without assistance from the scaffolding, and has not yet fallen'
The dimensions of the riding house (178 feet by 58 feet, with a 34-foot-high unsupported roof) were equally ambitious, and significant delays were incurred in the search for sufficiently large single spans of roof timber. The space also contained a viewing box and loose floor surface for exercising the horses.
Dome Concert Hall and Assembly Room
In 1850, Queen Victoria sold the Royal Pavilion Estate to the Brighton Town Commissioners for £53,000. In 1867, architect and Borough Surveyor Phillip Lockwood converted the stables into a concert hall and assembly rooms. His Moorish interior design included richly coloured paintings, stained glass windows, and the original hay racks were left around the walls, indicating the sites of the stalls.
The transformation included a grand organ, built by master organ makers Willis and Co of London. The organ was inaugurated on the 20th November 1868, with two public concerts, and went on to feature heavily in the ‘Brighton Musical Festivals’ of the late 19th Century.
A magnificent gas-powered chandelier, measuring 26 ft in height and 14ft in diameter formed the centrepiece of the room. Fitted with over 520 gas jets, the chandelier proved costly to use. In 1884, local inventor Magnus Volk converted the chandelier into an early hybrid of gas and electricity.
Corn Exchange 1868
The riding house became a corn market in October 1868 when the business transferred from the nearby King and Queen Inn, providing shelter for merchants trading in corn samples. Corn exchanges rarely operated for more than a few hours a week, so the building was let out for other purposes like public meetings and fairs.
Jackfield Tiles
The mosaic floors and highly decorative tiles in our entrance corridors were designed and installed by the architect G Harold Elphick in 1906. The turquoise and pale green interlocking tiles, known as Jackfield tiles, were made by Craven Dunnill of Ironbridge, Shropshire.
Art Deco Transformation
Between 1935 – 1935, Brighton Dome was transformed into the venue we see today by the architect Robert Atkinson. While the exterior architecture remained unchanged, the interior of the Concert Hall and Corn Exchange received a radical Art Deco redesign.
Raked - or sloping - seating was introduced into the concert hall for the first time but a temporary floor was also provided for when the building was used for dances or exhibitions. Atkinson also installed a new orchestra pit and organ, while the walls at the back the interior, on both floors, and in front of the new balcony were panelled in walnut, set diagonally to augment the hall’s acoustics.
The Corn Exchange also underwent restoration. The viewing box was removed, and the interior, which had been divided, was restored to a single grand room. One of the most recognisable features of the redevelopment is the statue of Ceres, the Roman Goddess of agriculture, which stands above the entrance to the Corn Exchange in Church Street. Ceres was sculpted in 1935 by renowned sculptor James Woodford OBE RA (1893-1976).
Brighton Dome Studio Theatre
Built in 1935, Brighton Dome Studio Theatre stands on the original site of Mrs Fitzherbert's stables and a coachman’s cottage later known as ‘Dome Cottage’. This was the home of Mr F W Brown who was works supervisor of the Pavilion Estate. In 1934, work began on this site to establish new kitchens for the Corn Exchange and a supper room used for conferences, public meetings and dinners. This building eventually became the Pavilion Theatre, renamed the Brighton Dome Studio Theatre in 2012.
Brighton Dome Concert Hall Refurbishment 1999 - 2002
Brighton Dome embarked on a major renovation from 1999-2002. The Concert Hall now boasted improved sight lines, a seating capacity of 1,800 and removable stalls to house a standing audience or extended stage. The acoustic was also upgraded to serve both concert performances and amplified sound.
Brighton Dome Corn Exchange and Studio Theatre Refurbishment 2017 – 2023
Our latest refurbishment has stripped back the original Corn Exchange timber beams and revealed how the vast single span roof was assembled. High in the ceiling, invisible from ground-floor level, are the carpenters’ marks which guided the workers constructing the arched timber roof. Since Medieval times carpenters have used a system of marking timbers with Roman numerals to enable workers on site to interpret the overall plan of construction.
