The Stuff We Can't Fit In Somewhere Else in Hastings, East Sussex*

The things which can't be categorised

You can tell us more about Hastings.

The Stuff We Can't Fit In Somewhere Else

• The buildings we don't want to see flattened? The Pier and the facade of The Observer Building.
• Farley bank is being flattened!!! New houses and rumours of a college are being built there instead. University in town. Many seagulls to defecate on your car, clean washing, you! And they steal picnics, chips, and empty bin bags everywhere. Or is that the chavs?? Shame also about the big drug problem, sexual assaults, and violent crime. The pier has closed, putting the traders out of business. Best places for teenagers are the skateboard park at whiterock, or the ravenside retail park, nearer Bexhill, (bowling and swimming, Mcdonalds and KFC). Hastings atheletics club is great too. The old town is interesting, as are the cliff railways that run between the town and the East and West hills. Best thing about Hastings overall are the events organised by Hastings bonfire society. Big procession in October, folowed by a beach bonfire, and the most AMAZING FIREWORKS EVER! Also Jack in the Green festival 3 day event over May bank holiday. Hundreds of morris dancers to make you laugh, a parade up to the west hill, lots of dancing, bands etc. Never seen any trouble at this event, even with the 10,000 or so bikers that congregate in the town on the Monday.Far far better organised than the carnival in August. Lots of fresh faced people in the pubs and remaining clubs in town. Just out of town, I would reccommend The Squirrel in Battle, or the Rainbow trout. Lovely family atmosphere in both, good food. Have fun!!
• Hastings is a livley town from the Spring onward, there are several parades and carnivals, a rock festival, the bikers, the morris dancers and jack in the green festival and endless beach parties in the summer. People in Hastings come together to enjoy it..
• Check out http://hastingshappenings.blogspot.com/ - something's occuring!
• Have you seen the most Interesting Antiques & Collectors Arcade at the old Garage in Seddlescombe, Easily a Rival to the shops in the old town of Hastings & Local to.
• Mad March Fayre 12 March 2005, 11-11 Hastings Pier, Ballroom, Hastings, East Sussex A real outdoor music festival, indoors. No mud, real toilets! Bands, kids entertainment, stalls, workshops, food and beer (and pop). www.madmarchfayre.com, info@madmarchfayre.com, 07729331614 Carers and under 12s free. We only use accessible venues
• Black Rock Hydroponics Shop 18,Silchester Road St Leonards One stop grow shop www.blackrockhydro.co.uk

• remember walking around hastings town center for more than 5 mins WILL turn u into a zombie, eitha take a shotgun or a chainsaw or just skateboard
• Help-someone has organised a hen weekend in Hastings, what can we do, where can we go??? Is the organiser mad???
• Being able to go on a night out have a massive range of bars without havibīng to get a taxi
• The St Leonards Easter Festival, 10th, 11th and 12th of April open to everybody with street performances by Radiator Arts, Easter bonnet competition with a prize of Ģ 100 and revival of old easter traditions by the Burton St Leonards Society. Unmisable! More information from the Gensing and Central St Leonards Community Forum.
• I've been here for a while now and toured many of the pubs, clubs etc... but not found a single person i can buy 'stuff' from, does anyone know where i can buy some 'herbal medicine'in hastings?????
• Rock-a-Hula Rope Walk Rye Very kitsch
• hi my name is andy o'leary and i was publicly elected in hastings and rother for this years M.Y.P member of youth parliment i am the deputy as there were to positions which were avalible and i did all my promotion myself how ever the youth parliment excists in every nation and and region of the united kingdom and i just want as many people as possible to know we excist we elected to make adiffenernce and thats what were gonna do we each all have are own policies and mine include , restoring run down areas and buildings in the area, place more sports facilities i.e football pithces basketball courts , skate park etc.... i jyst want you to help be heard through this website i thought this was truely amazing when i heard about the detail well done keep it up ;--) brief details,andy o'leary, age 17 ,my hobbies include skateboarding performing arts and socialising, im out going "approachable" i can even get u a picture if your intrested thanks .below is what i would like you to put in your website somewhere for the hastings area i would be so graetful thankyou My name is Andy O'Leary and i am a member of the MYP member of youth parliment I represent along with Jenny poll as i' am her deputy of the hastings and rother area, we are the voice for young people in this area so if you want any information on the ukyp or have any problems or neways u fink hastings can be improved contact us at Waffacakesuk@aol.com we will then try to make a difference to improve Hastings, last years myp fo hastings rother managed to get bus fairs reduced and they have worked on many other projects to improve the local area so if you want to see a differnce let us know bout what you want changed and with in reason will see what we can do, many thanks deputy MYP for Hastings and rother Mr Andy O'Leary

• Things have moved on in Hastings, new and restored buildings in Warrior Square and on the Sea Front, restoration to Alexandra Park and the Front of Warrior Gardens, property prices are on the up with a planned university centre (more young people), railway station redevelopment and new millennium community housing schemes. Also, its got a whole pier- which is more than you can say for its rival Brighton!
• JOin the Bonfire Society so you can make loads of noise, let off fireworks, start fires and nobody can toch you for it 'cos it's traditional.......
• Probably not a good idea to visit on the Mayday Bank Holiday if you don't like motorbikes - thousands of people ride down for the day.
• Hastings:- don't knock it ,the pier is great. Pig in paradise a fantastic pub, where else can you go with dog and child? Also how many towns have a free morris dancing festival and two carnivals and all the live music. Okay wages are aweful, town needs painting but that is happening now and next year we get a university. if last time you were here is more than about two years ago then come, look again....
• hastings iat as bad as people think ive lived here 18 years and had no problems
• Good to come back to is hastings but the wages are shite. Get the wages sorted and the town will start to get sorted. No wages = no money to spend = crud. I could never live on the wages that are on offer. Get Unionised, get organised.
• absoloute nightmare of a place really an plenty of two faced peep's!!! n my girlfrined is the pretty brunette that looks lik salma haek u go near her u die!!! kool......
• This guide to Hastings is hysterical. I love it! Wheel-chair Billy gets world-wide recognition! I've often bought him a beer!
• who owns that van with the pink floyd album covers painted all over it - parks just up the hill from warrior square station i think
• Hastings seems to be on the up - the Pier is being refurbished, new pubs and restaurants and lots of cultural type activities, so make the most of it before everyone realises its potential!
• Assorted people, good transport links.
• Moved to Canada 20 years ago but I miss Hastings. Dad lives in Cranbrook 20 miles N. Say, isn't that ROBERTSON Street your writer keeps referring to, not Robinson? Seemed to remember that was the drag going W from the fountain to the sea front.
• I live in Hastings and have done so for most of my life. I find it very sad that so many people are so down about the town when it has so much to offer if you're just prepared to look for it. I agree Hastings has huge financial and social problems but show me one town or city that doesn't. Instead of being so negative, why don't people take advantage of the incredible things Hastings has to offer? There is loads and loads free music, most of a truly excellent standard in many pubs almost every day of the week. All styles are catered for - blues, jazz, folk, rock, dance, classical. Hastings boasts a truly unique arts venue in St Mary in the Castle and lots of events (art, music, theatre, sport) take place throughout the year all round the town for all ages. Many professional musicians, artists, writers and actors choose to live here because of the relaxed and inspiring atmosphere. Most people who live here are hard working and pleasant so next time you visit, try to look beyond the Kiss-me-quick hat facade and take the time to seek out the real heart of Hastings because it is worth the effort.
• It makes me angry that in a place like Hastings,we still have this crap, that any from a council estate are scum. I saw this in my own -Trials. i`m now a writer- and in disguise- to a point.Hastings is in Great Danger of losing what I call-a gift, one difficult to live with, but not something cured by "Absolutism.Go to a Magistrates Court+ relate to me , what reality prevails? Answers back, i accept, with great interest. Mostly -THE Honesty, factor.
• Update - Lasermaze has closed down, so has the pier.
• In the middle of march or the start of april, the old metal ramp near the white rock theatre will be knocked down, levelled with the basket ball courts. And replaced with a spunky new sk8 park, I havent seen the actual plans but have been told that it will include the following: Wide mini ramp that links into a quater pipe, a new wooden vert and loads of driveways,rails,grind boxes etc.
• Please put a new outdoor swimming pool in the old Bathing Pool site near Grosvenor Gardens. There used to be one and everyone wants one!
• I was born in Hastings, lived there for 15 years out of 22 so far, and next week I'll be returning home after dropping out of Uni. It is, truly a fascinating place, although I shall be sad to return. The area is economically deprived and crime is quite high for a seaside town. As a result, the councils and local community peoples have introduced a "Talk up Hastings" campaign, which I find really amusing. You see all of these "Thumbs Up" stickers in shop windows. Jo Brand was on a Meridian TV programme intended to raise the profile of the town, and she came out with " Come to Hastings, it's a great place if you want a fight." A true classic, I think you'll agree. That said, the place does have a lot of soul to it. The landscape is typically hilly without being mountainous, so you can go off and find a nice spot of greenery in about ten minutes. The fact that all of the locals try so hard is endearing in it's own way. It is a place which I can neither love nor hate. At 22 years old, I am still finding fascinating ways to entertain myself, and stunning places to take myself. B.C.H.Tullis@hw.ac.uk
• Martial Arts. Hastings Martial Arts is the best Kickboxing club in town. It has 4 Current British Champions and a hard kickass training policy.
• My girlfriend, daughter and I lived on the seafront in Hastings for four months in September 1994-Jan 1995. She from there found it to be very run down and quiet since she had last been, 8 years prior. I, not having been to UK, found it a strange land (of course) and very depressed. The unemployment was incredible, especially in Hastings (20%+). This led to a lot of DHS recipients who were just slumming. The town itself was full of pubs and one that was quite memorable was James Burton's in St. Leonards on Sea. Live music, friendly and warm. The Crypt is definitely a hot spot. But in a towm where everything closes down EARLY, of course it would stand out. Hastings pier has some entertainment value in the arcades and shops. Overall I an nostalgic of this short stay but would not live there again.
• Is Hastings as bad as all that?
  Sort of. If you come to Hastings looking for an expensive, squeaky clean, sanitised, sort of Disneyland sussex, well, you may leave again pretty quickly. But...
  There is something about the place. It's interesting. Almost Bohemian, maybe? Its' got really interesting areas (like the Old Town, stuffed full of what Americans call "quaint") and lots of good cheap places for eating and drinking. And as long as you avoid Dennies, you can have a good time here. It's got a very active local arts scene, and basically people either love it or loathe it.
  Like stew, Hastings has its good and bad bits, but on the whole it's OK. Also if you're not British and you want to know what's good and bad about Britain and get a feel for the place then spend some time in Hastings. It's a genuine place.
• I lived in Hastings for one year while I was working in a conventions center. I think it's an incredible city because it has everything you need, it's a small town but it has enough of everything. I had a lot of fun while living there. The people are very nice and friendly and that made me feel like home, even though I come from a latin contry (Mexico), and you know, the character is quite different. I made wonderful friends from Hastings, Spain, France and Japan. We all had an incredible time. We spent our days working at Hurst Court and the nights at the Pig in Paradise making new friends. What made me feel happier was the weather, because as far as I know, England is rainy, but that year ('89-'90) was very sunny and warm. The people were always outside having fun in the streets or at the beach. The food... I loved it! Specially the fish and chips and the lamb with mint sauce. If only I have to live somewhere in England I would like to do it in Hastings, so cheers for Hastings!
• GETTING OUT: go up to the ladies parlour and throw pebbles over your shoulder, chanting i've got to get outta here.

Parts of this information have been supplied by: Stefan Gutkowski, Doug Lazenby, M.R. Gowen, levi, Tom Bartlett, David Hancock, BeatenUp, Nicola Davis, abigail gilbert, howaRD ROBERTS, Arwen, omega, Bobby Ray Prince, Chris, Jim, vibe, Shaun Lee Bishop, leigh, paul hog, martin phinbow, W Wea ver, ray, ralph howton, hastings, Robin Hollingsworth, terry, Luke Gilson, sam Roberts, Stace, almeh, Brian, geoff martin, joy beddows, Jak, Chull, J Griffits, Eric Firerod, ridhard lacey, Rik, shelley, 10 year old sk8er, ross, Laura, Lachland Munn, BEER MONSTER, Shoaib Mughal, Laura-louise, skatepunx101, dan crease, Jayne, jack ebbets, Liz, tanya richards, pete mummery, Adam dando (MADA), david webb, sarah, oliver mcneil, Dave Jonson, rebecca, Mr Proper, Wee, richard wyland, joanie, Sophie, dan, nick, todd, Pinky, C J, Rudy, louisa, keithduly, Antony, mike, John Humphries, Alan Griffiths, Dan Clarke, john, luke, Mat, Linda Shaw, D.YOUNG, generic, sharon, amanda, Tove Gillham, Mark, mattnc30, Michael, Ann Brooker, miss paal, Adam Hansford, spanky, rob, madam butterfly, Steve May, Tracey, alfie moon, Adam, john mc glinchey, Trevor Bourner, yannis, Evilsockpuppets, Matt Davey, Maggie, Steve Watts, Alison, Tim, Ben Tullis, hastingshappenings, Akeel, LittleDudette, dave walters, Luke da sk8er, vruges, Karen Hayler, vibeman, melly, ADZ, acaukwell, Marc, george, Steve