Publications
A History of St Peter's Church, Brighton, by P. D. W. Nicholl, published 18 December 2013 (149 pp., Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse, ISBN-10: 1491887419 & ISBN-13: 9781491887417) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/507854] & British Library
Abstract:One of the iconic buildings of the city is St Peter's Church. When it was first built it stood at the entrance to the main part of Brighton, on the road that goes past the Royal pavilion to the Palace Pier. It was the first important design that Sir Charles Barry created. He later became one of the foremost architects of Victorian times being responsible for the Houses of Parliament and Highclere Castle (now known to millions of television viewers as Downton Abbey). St Peter's is a fine example of Barry's work, but this book will record how a chancel was added to the north of the building seventy-five years after the original structure had been completed. We will also see how the incumbent of St Peter's became Vicar of Brighton which put him at the centre of the building and development of other churches throughout the town. In the twentieth century St Peter's continued to be the spiritual hub for civic life in the town, but there was one occasion when the vicar failed to get to the church for the Sunday morning service. Later on the church suffered an arson attack, and the century ended with an extraordinary impromptu time of reflection in the early hours of 1st January 2000. However as the new century began, it was recognised that falling attendances and failing masonry could lead to St Peter's going the same way as other older buildings in the city.