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Town centre church demolition

Having a sort out of my old photos, I came across these of a church being demolished.

I’m sure it was near Churchill Square, but the name of the church escapes me.  The photos were taken sometime in the 1980s.

Can anyone identify the church, and perhaps suggest the year it was demolished?

 

Church demolition
Photo by Stuart Joseph
Church demolition
Photo by Stuart Joseph

Comments about this page

  • I think that you will find that this was Union Church. I know this from the 1950s as I attended the Scout Troop that used to meet in Union Hall that was known as the 35th Brighton.

    By John Wignall (21/05/2010)
  • It looks like the Union Church to me too. It used to stand on the corner of Air Street and Queen’s Square. Fond memories of going to jumble sales there as a kid in the 70s.

    By Carol Homewood (21/05/2010)
  • Central Union Church, demolished about 1985 I think.

    By Peter Groves (21/05/2010)
  • There are several photos and more information re this church and surrounding area in the wonderful James Gray Collection (Volume 21). Cheers

    By Jean (21/05/2010)
  • It’s a common mistake to call the Square alongside the Union Church ‘Queen’s Square’ but the traditional name for this (far from square) square is Queen Square. The mistake is so common, and understandable, that it might be considered to represent a change by popular demand.

    By Peter Booth (20/07/2010)
  • The Union Hall on a Saturday night in the mid 1970s also became a great venue for young bands to hire who couldn’t get gigs of their own. Does anyone remember So and So’s Travelling Whatsits with future Pirhanas in their ranks, High Priestess, Senator, Bean Machine and even Freeway? It was rough and ready and very affordable. Some bands had thunderflashes that went off, not during crucial dramatic moments in a song but when they were tuning up!

    By steve andrews (22/02/2011)
  • The Union Church Hall was also used by Brighton Arts Theatre Group to perform their plays.

    By June Churchill (08/03/2012)
  • Does anyone recall what happened to the Brighton Arts Theatre after Union Hall was closed? My Uncle Gabriel (aka Gabbus) Denney was Director and my Aunt Irene Denney was a leading player and (as of May 2015) is 100 yrs old and can still remember the plays. If anyone has any info on Brighton Arts Theatre it would be good to hear from you.

    By Richard Inwood (31/05/2015)
  • We were married in the Union Church by the Rev. Geoffrey Beck in March 1975.

    By Mike Stapleton (23/05/2017)
  • The Union Hall was used as a 24 hour centre by the Brighton Bank Holiday Project (Easter, Whit and August Bank Holidays) which had been set up late 60s to support the myriad lost youths floating around Brighton at Bank Holidays. There were sleeping centres elsewhere in particular London Road Methodist Church (can’t remember the others). The Bank Holiday Project was still going in 1975 (I had been one of the co-ordinators in 1974, before moving to Birmingham in the autumn of that year).

    I remember having to go to a church meeting to get reapproval for its use for the 1974 Bank Holidays; my trepidation dissolved from the discussion with the “committee” who were delightfully humanitarian.

    By Julian Baker (02/08/2021)

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