Unbelievable prices
I recently visited The Dome and it started me thinking about the time I saw Stevie Wonder performing there, so I came home and searched out my old programmes to discover he played at The Dome on Monday 17th January 1972 in what was called the ‘Stevie Wonder All American Show’. I went with my husband Frank and I remember it was a wonderful show; we were rocking in the aisles and Stevie was amazing. We sat in the stalls with tickets priced at an unbelievable £1.75. During that same year we also saw Jose Feliciano, Labi Siffre, and on the 22nd November 1971 we saw Cliff Richard and the Shadows with Olivia Newton-John.
Do you remember going to concerts at the Dome? Tell us about them by posting a comment below
Reliving happy times
What wonderful days they were and looking back through my old programmes has evoked many happy memories of those great stars. Sadly my dear husband Frank Gilmour has now passed away, but looking at the old programmes brought back some wonderful memories of that time – happy days. I was born and bred in Hove in 1947. Looking through the pages of this site has been very interesting and I will certainly continue to visit to relive old times.
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This message is for Ann Gilmour: I think I knew you husband Frank in the 1950s. I believe his mother’s name was Iris and, if this is the case, she was friends with my mother. I believe Frank went to Fawcett School as I did myself. I live in the Midlands these days but the name of Frank Gilmour got the memory buds working. Please feel free to contact me on my email address john.wignall@hotmail.co.uk
Van Morrison sticks out in my memory, but I cannot recall the year. Very recently I have visited the Dome for a snack – modern, but is that bar open during the day?
Don’t have any programmes – just a few ticket stubs. But I remember having seen David Bowie in 72 for 75p. Also – Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Kraftwerk, Rory Gallagher and many more. Amazing to think that a tiny little venue would host world famous artists and bands who would only play stadiums nowadays.
Born (in 1942) and bred in Portslade. Remember, in the late ’50s and early ’60s, seeing Terry Dene, Tommy Steele, Cliff Richard, Marty Wilde, Acker Bilk and Kenny Ball at the Dome. In respect of the Tery Dene and Tommy Steele shows, these were at a time that you could turn up on the night and stand behind the last row of seats on the ground floor. Health and Safety, plus fire regulations, would doubtless prohibit this today.
I went to see Jimi Hendrix at the Dome, must have been around 1966, and I recall his amazement at the building, probably because of its proximity to the Royal Pavilion – his first words when he came on stage were, “welcome to the Mickey Mouse Palace “. Our seats were near the stage, I couldn’t hear properly for a week!
I go back to the ’40s, about this time the Dome was refurbished with a removable floor over the seats. Installation of a theatre pipe organ played for many years by Douglas Reeve. Many stage shows, and dancing other days. Brighton’s answer to the Blackpool Tower ballroom and Reg Dixon.
When I was a kid in the early 50s I was attending St. John the Baptist catholic school in Brighton. I along with others were in the school choir run by Mr. McQuaid (spelling?) my teacher in class 4. We sang at the Dome in a school competition in which we came either top or near the top, I can’t remember which but we were good. We sang All in an April Evening.
One night during the war when the Dome was filled with people at a dance, a bomb fell very close by in the garden along the south side of the Dome. The hole then had a static water tank built into it for emergency use during air raids.
My first memory of the Dome was in ’69 when I went to see the Beach Boys in concert. Unfortunately I was sitting by a speaker that blocked most of my view and so all I saw was Al Jardine when he appeared at the front of the stage. Jethro Tull and Genesis in ’71 were incredible and I had a seat with a better view!
Friends and I saw John Coltrane at the Dome in approx. 1962. I was 17. I asked drummer Elvin Jones what he thought of Brighton. He said “Uh, where?” We were profoundly impressed!
I saw more concerts than I can remember at the Dome from 1969 onwards. John Mayall in several different groupings (one brilliant show where Peter Green turned up unannounced), King Crimson more than once, Dr John and of course Pink Floyd 3 times are probably my favourite memories. Ooh – forgot 1 great show by Free.
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