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Bognor Regis
Bognor Regis is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun district of West Sussex, on the south coast of England. It is 55.5 miles (89 km) south-south-west of London, 24 miles (39 km) west of Brighton, and 6
miles (10 km) south-east of the city of Chichester. Other nearby towns include Littlehampton east-north-east and Selsey to the south-west. The nearby villages of Felpham, briefly home to the poet William Blake, and Aldwick are now suburbs of Bognor Regis, along with those of North and South Bersted.
Origin of name
Bognor is one of the oldest recorded Anglo-Saxon place names in Sussex. In a document of 680 AD it is referred to as Bucgan ora meaning Bucge's (a female Anglo-Saxon name) shore, or landing place.
History
Bognor Regis was originally named just "Bognor", being a fishing (and one time, smuggling) village until the 18th century, when it was converted
into a resort by Sir Richard Hotham. Bognor was a part of the ancient parish of South Bersted in the county of Sussex, attaining parish status separate from South Bersted in 1828. Until 1894 it formed part of the Hundred of Aldwick, an ancient division of Chichester Rape. From 1894 to 1974 it was part of Bognor Urban District (Bognor Regis Urban District from 1929), and since 1974 it has been a part of Arun District.
On the beach between Bognor Regis and Aldwick lies the wreck of a Floating Pontoon. It is part of the Mulberry Harbour which was towed across to Normandy on D-Day 6 June 1944. This particular section of Mulberry did not make it across the Channel and was washed up on the beach shortly after D-Day. It is clearly visible at low tide throughout the year.
The historic meeting of the crews (and associated handshake) of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project on 17 July 1975 was intended to have taken place over Bognor Regis, but a flight delay caused it to occur over Metz in France instead.
Bognor Regis town centre was damaged in 1994 by an IRA device left in a bicycle outside Woolworth's. Fifteen shops were damaged but no injuries occurred.
"Bugger Bognor"
Tourism gradually took off in Bognor during the 19th century, with the area being chosen as an ideal location for King George V to convalesce during 1929, the King and Queen actually staying at Craigwell House in Aldwick.
As a result, the King was asked to bestow the suffix "Regis" ("of the King") on "Bognor". The petition was presented to Lord Stamfordham, the King's Private Secretary, who in turn delivered it to the King.King George supposedly replied, "Oh, bugger Bognor." Lord Stamfordham then went back to the petitioners and told them, "the King has been graciously pleased to grant your request."
A slightly different version of the "Bugger Bognor" incident is that the King, upon being told, shortly before his death, that he would soon be well enough to revisit the town, uttered the words "Bugger Bognor!" Although there is little evidence that these words were actually spoken
in this context, and although the sea air helped the King to regain his health, it is certain that the King had little regard for the town.
Town.
The shopping precinct
Bognor Regis has a large town centre, much of which has either been pedestrianized or made pedestrian-friendly. Since the end of World War Two the town has been subject to some piece-meal commercial redevelopment, notably in the early 1960s when a new shopping parade and road (called Queensway), a health centre and a high-rise block of flats were built on land just north-west of the High Street. In the three decades between 1950 and 1980 much residential development took place to the west and north of the town, since then mostly in-fill development has taken place, predominantly redeveloping land on brownfield sites that had formerly been used for commercial business.
The town has several areas, and buildings, that still firmly link it with its past Good examples, and prominent local landmarks, are the Royal Norfolk Hotel and Hotham Park.The Anglican parish church is dedicated to St. Wilfrid while the local Roman Catholic church is dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows.
Bognor Regis lies within the constituency of Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, the MP for which is Nick Gibb (Conservative).
Tourism
Butlin's Bognor Regis Resort
Sir Billy Butlin opened one of his Butlin's Holiday Camps in Bognor in 1960.
The camp later became known as Southcoast World until 1998 and is now known as
Butlin's Bognor Regis Resort. In 1999 Butlin's erected a large indoor leisure
park, the buildings construction sharing aspects similar with the Millennium
Dome in London. In 2005, a new £10m hotel, called "The Shoreline" was unveiled
at the Bognor Regis resort. A second hotel "The Ocean" opened on the site in
Summer 2009 and general landscaping and upgrading has also taken place, with a
third hotel "Wave" opened Summer 2012. Postcards featuring the Butlins'
Reception Hall and Sun Lounge were reprinted in the book Boring Postcards
(1999). More luxury hotels are planned for the site. In May 2009 Butlins have
also announced that they will be looking into adding a third hotel to the Bognor
Regis site.
Birdman of Bognor
Bognor Regis Pier at low tide
The International Bognor Birdman is an annual competition for human-powered
'flying' machines held each summer in Bognor Regis. Contestants launch
themselves from the end of the pier, a prize being awarded to the one who glides
the furthest distance. Rarely taken completely seriously, the event provides
competitors with an opportunity to construct improbable machines complete with
outlandish dress. The spectacle drew a sizeable crowd in addition to the local
media. Inaugurated in nearby Selsey in 1971, the Birdman transferred to Bognor
in 1978 when it had outgrown its original location. Competitors have included
Richard Branson.
The Birdman Event of 2008 was transferred to Worthing after
60 feet (18 m) of pier had been removed by the owners due to storm damage in
March 2008. This meant that there were question marks over the possible safety
of the contestants landing in shallower water. The shortened pier was judged
safe for the event in 2010, and the event subsequently returned to Bognor.
Music scene and festivals
Each summer Bognor Rox free music and arts
festival is held. In 2012 the ROX Music and Arts Festival attracted over 40,000
visitors and featured many genres of music in 5 performance areas over 3
days. The town is also home to the Bognor Regis Concert Band, who perform at
various local locations and events, including the yearly "Proms in the
Park".
Theatre and cinema
The Alexandra Theatre is a 352 seat auditorium
showing a variety of entertainment from comedy to drama to pantomime. It
replaced the Esplanade Theatre in the late 1970s. It is well supported by local
people and intends to stay where it is in spite of plans to demolish it.
The
film The Punch and Judy Man, starring Tony Hancock, was made in Bognor Regis.
Several scenes of the film Wish You Were Here, were also filmed in Bognor
Regis.
External scenes from the comedy series "Hope It Rains" starring Tom
Bell and Holly Aird were filmed on the esplanade at Bognor.
More recently,
the BBC TV series Jekyll (TV series) had several scenes throughout the series
set in Bognor
Sport
Bognor Regis Town F.C. play in the Isthmian League Premier
Division Middleton & Bogner Hockey Club play their home matches at
Littlehampton Academy.There are two cricket clubs: Bognor Regis Cricket Club and
Pagham Cricket Club.[27]
The Formula One driver David Purley, best known for
his attempt to save the life of fellow racing driver Roger Williamson during the
1973 Dutch Grand Prix, was born in Bognor Regis, where he was killed after
crashing his aerobatic biplane into the sea off Bognor Regis on July 2,
1985.
Transport
Bognor Regis Railway Station
Bognor Regis railway station is situated on a branch line from Barnham, on
the West Coastway Line. It has half-hourly services to London and to other south
coast towns, some being direct.
Road links
A29. To Dorking to the north,
where it joins the A24 to London. This road bisects the main east-west trunk
road, the A27, at Fontwell and the A272 at Billingshurst.
A259. The coastal
road running along the south coast from Havant in Hampshire to Folkstone in
Kent.
Twin towns
Bognor Regis is twinned with:
Saint-Maur-des-Fossés,
France
Weil am Rhein, Germany
Trebbin, Germany
Bognor Regis is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun district of West Sussex, on the south coast of England. It is 55.5 miles (89 km) south-south-west of London, 24 miles (39 km) west of Brighton, and 6
miles (10 km) south-east of the city of Chichester. Other nearby towns include Littlehampton east-north-east and Selsey to the south-west. The nearby villages of Felpham, briefly home to the poet William Blake, and Aldwick are now suburbs of Bognor Regis, along with those of North and South Bersted.
Origin of name
Bognor is one of the oldest recorded Anglo-Saxon place names in Sussex. In a document of 680 AD it is referred to as Bucgan ora meaning Bucge's (a female Anglo-Saxon name) shore, or landing place.
History
Bognor Regis was originally named just "Bognor", being a fishing (and one time, smuggling) village until the 18th century, when it was converted
into a resort by Sir Richard Hotham. Bognor was a part of the ancient parish of South Bersted in the county of Sussex, attaining parish status separate from South Bersted in 1828. Until 1894 it formed part of the Hundred of Aldwick, an ancient division of Chichester Rape. From 1894 to 1974 it was part of Bognor Urban District (Bognor Regis Urban District from 1929), and since 1974 it has been a part of Arun District.
On the beach between Bognor Regis and Aldwick lies the wreck of a Floating Pontoon. It is part of the Mulberry Harbour which was towed across to Normandy on D-Day 6 June 1944. This particular section of Mulberry did not make it across the Channel and was washed up on the beach shortly after D-Day. It is clearly visible at low tide throughout the year.
The historic meeting of the crews (and associated handshake) of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project on 17 July 1975 was intended to have taken place over Bognor Regis, but a flight delay caused it to occur over Metz in France instead.
Bognor Regis town centre was damaged in 1994 by an IRA device left in a bicycle outside Woolworth's. Fifteen shops were damaged but no injuries occurred.
"Bugger Bognor"
Tourism gradually took off in Bognor during the 19th century, with the area being chosen as an ideal location for King George V to convalesce during 1929, the King and Queen actually staying at Craigwell House in Aldwick.
As a result, the King was asked to bestow the suffix "Regis" ("of the King") on "Bognor". The petition was presented to Lord Stamfordham, the King's Private Secretary, who in turn delivered it to the King.King George supposedly replied, "Oh, bugger Bognor." Lord Stamfordham then went back to the petitioners and told them, "the King has been graciously pleased to grant your request."
A slightly different version of the "Bugger Bognor" incident is that the King, upon being told, shortly before his death, that he would soon be well enough to revisit the town, uttered the words "Bugger Bognor!" Although there is little evidence that these words were actually spoken
in this context, and although the sea air helped the King to regain his health, it is certain that the King had little regard for the town.
Town.
The shopping precinct
Bognor Regis has a large town centre, much of which has either been pedestrianized or made pedestrian-friendly. Since the end of World War Two the town has been subject to some piece-meal commercial redevelopment, notably in the early 1960s when a new shopping parade and road (called Queensway), a health centre and a high-rise block of flats were built on land just north-west of the High Street. In the three decades between 1950 and 1980 much residential development took place to the west and north of the town, since then mostly in-fill development has taken place, predominantly redeveloping land on brownfield sites that had formerly been used for commercial business.
The town has several areas, and buildings, that still firmly link it with its past Good examples, and prominent local landmarks, are the Royal Norfolk Hotel and Hotham Park.The Anglican parish church is dedicated to St. Wilfrid while the local Roman Catholic church is dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows.
Bognor Regis lies within the constituency of Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, the MP for which is Nick Gibb (Conservative).
Tourism
Butlin's Bognor Regis Resort
Sir Billy Butlin opened one of his Butlin's Holiday Camps in Bognor in 1960.
The camp later became known as Southcoast World until 1998 and is now known as
Butlin's Bognor Regis Resort. In 1999 Butlin's erected a large indoor leisure
park, the buildings construction sharing aspects similar with the Millennium
Dome in London. In 2005, a new £10m hotel, called "The Shoreline" was unveiled
at the Bognor Regis resort. A second hotel "The Ocean" opened on the site in
Summer 2009 and general landscaping and upgrading has also taken place, with a
third hotel "Wave" opened Summer 2012. Postcards featuring the Butlins'
Reception Hall and Sun Lounge were reprinted in the book Boring Postcards
(1999). More luxury hotels are planned for the site. In May 2009 Butlins have
also announced that they will be looking into adding a third hotel to the Bognor
Regis site.
Birdman of Bognor
Bognor Regis Pier at low tide
The International Bognor Birdman is an annual competition for human-powered
'flying' machines held each summer in Bognor Regis. Contestants launch
themselves from the end of the pier, a prize being awarded to the one who glides
the furthest distance. Rarely taken completely seriously, the event provides
competitors with an opportunity to construct improbable machines complete with
outlandish dress. The spectacle drew a sizeable crowd in addition to the local
media. Inaugurated in nearby Selsey in 1971, the Birdman transferred to Bognor
in 1978 when it had outgrown its original location. Competitors have included
Richard Branson.
The Birdman Event of 2008 was transferred to Worthing after
60 feet (18 m) of pier had been removed by the owners due to storm damage in
March 2008. This meant that there were question marks over the possible safety
of the contestants landing in shallower water. The shortened pier was judged
safe for the event in 2010, and the event subsequently returned to Bognor.
Music scene and festivals
Each summer Bognor Rox free music and arts
festival is held. In 2012 the ROX Music and Arts Festival attracted over 40,000
visitors and featured many genres of music in 5 performance areas over 3
days. The town is also home to the Bognor Regis Concert Band, who perform at
various local locations and events, including the yearly "Proms in the
Park".
Theatre and cinema
The Alexandra Theatre is a 352 seat auditorium
showing a variety of entertainment from comedy to drama to pantomime. It
replaced the Esplanade Theatre in the late 1970s. It is well supported by local
people and intends to stay where it is in spite of plans to demolish it.
The
film The Punch and Judy Man, starring Tony Hancock, was made in Bognor Regis.
Several scenes of the film Wish You Were Here, were also filmed in Bognor
Regis.
External scenes from the comedy series "Hope It Rains" starring Tom
Bell and Holly Aird were filmed on the esplanade at Bognor.
More recently,
the BBC TV series Jekyll (TV series) had several scenes throughout the series
set in Bognor
Sport
Bognor Regis Town F.C. play in the Isthmian League Premier
Division Middleton & Bogner Hockey Club play their home matches at
Littlehampton Academy.There are two cricket clubs: Bognor Regis Cricket Club and
Pagham Cricket Club.[27]
The Formula One driver David Purley, best known for
his attempt to save the life of fellow racing driver Roger Williamson during the
1973 Dutch Grand Prix, was born in Bognor Regis, where he was killed after
crashing his aerobatic biplane into the sea off Bognor Regis on July 2,
1985.
Transport
Bognor Regis Railway Station
Bognor Regis railway station is situated on a branch line from Barnham, on
the West Coastway Line. It has half-hourly services to London and to other south
coast towns, some being direct.
Road links
A29. To Dorking to the north,
where it joins the A24 to London. This road bisects the main east-west trunk
road, the A27, at Fontwell and the A272 at Billingshurst.
A259. The coastal
road running along the south coast from Havant in Hampshire to Folkstone in
Kent.
Twin towns
Bognor Regis is twinned with:
Saint-Maur-des-Fossés,
France
Weil am Rhein, Germany
Trebbin, Germany