Dog Tray, Edward Street

Memories of a now demolished pub

Memory 1:
Does anyone remember the pub called The Dog Tray in Edward Street? Before it was demolished, (probably in the early 1980s) we had a wander around the back onto the waste land behind and came across a strange little gazebo filled with plaster images of poodles. We thought we had stumbled on some strange "Poodle Cult" but I think we found out it was something to do with the art college. I've still got one of the little plaster poodles with a label round its neck which I found there on the ground!

By Jan Hill
Submitted to website on 14-12-2002

Memory 2:
I remember "The Dog Tray" (Tray was the name of the dog, not a dog-tray!) which must have been built no earlier than the 1930's beside the Edward Street entrance of the Southdown bus garage, though Inever went inside (the pub, not the bus garage). The exit from the bus garage on to Grand Parade was only just wide enough for an 8' wide vehicle, which usually had to exit fairly smartly with accompanying plume of exhaust smoke! When the bus garage was demolished, old flint-fronted buildings were exposed, set well back from Edward Street; they might have been an old forge or former farm buildings.

By Martin Nimmo
Submitted to website on 14-12-2002

Memory 3:
The Dog Tray was built after the widening of the west end of Edward St in the mid 1930's. If I recall, it was built in 1936/7. One of the many Brighton 'picture books' has a view of the street, with the pub just in the pic on the left hand side looking east up the street.

In a past life as a minion management person at Sainsburys, I used to have to attend the Law Courts when we had (frequent) shop lifters up before the bench. I used to spent happy sessions in the 'Dog'. Then I think it was early seventies Watney's decor....all Red Barrel motifs and plastic everything - not CAMRA by a long chalk!

By Geoff Mead
Submitted to website on 17-12-2002