The Great Gatsby Fair takes on Bexhill this Summer

After much upset that the Bexhill Roaring 20s festival will not be running this year, Sharon Blagrove, Event Director of Bentley Fairs, has salvaged the beloved 1920s event by putting a new vintage weekender with a twist for 2018.

'My first thought was how everyone in the town, and those that look forward to it and visit from far and wide would miss this huge event. I decided to step up and put my own event on which ironically was being planned for another seaside location,  but with the title The Great Gatsby Fair it seemed destined for Bexhill after all, and just at the right time' 

The event is held along Bexhill seafront from the Metropole Lawns to East Parade and this years’ event will be over the whole weekend. A big celebration of the 1920's era, of people in period vintage costumes and all the song and dance acts that go with it.

There's something for everyone, with children's entertainment from 10-1 both days and nonstop music on the seafront with Morris dancers, Ukulele players, Dance school productions, Singers, jazz bands, Dixieland bands 40's singers, Dance troupes, competitions for fancy dress and Charleston dances. The Highland piper will play outside the Bexhill Sailing Club at 1.15 signalling the start of the procession towardsThe Metropole Lawns at the De la Warr Pavilion where there are ticketed afternoon parties from 2pm both days. 

Saturday 2pm-5.30pm is The Charleston Party.  Savoy Kicks will lead the way with a Charleston lesson on stage followed by a competition to find the best Charleston dancers who will win cash prizes. The Roaring 20's Orchestra will play and there are fancy dress competitions Bonnie and Clyde (with under 16'sentries too) The Best Dressed Lady and Best Dressed Gent.

Saturday evening entertainment in the large marquee with Swing and Blues bands a bar and food from 7 pm -10.30 pm Sunday Its Peaky Blinders Retro Party with fancy dress and cash prizes for the best Guys and Dolls(with under 16s entries too) and Best Dressed lady and Gent.40's singer Pete Wayre and dancing from 2-5.30. to The Hastings Stompers Jazz group & The Swing Street Orchestra Pop Up Vintage London will curate a fabulous Vintage Fair, and Food and Drink will be brought in courtesy of Food Feast South East.

It is advisable to get your tickets early for the parties. Only Adults need tickets Under 16s go in free. Go to www.thegreatgatsbyfair.co.uk

Chai and Charleston - 1920s Afternoon Tea

Last Saturday, we grabbed our pearls and dusted down your flapper gowns as we headed off to The Hilton Brighton Metropole and stepped back in time to relive the glamour of the Roaring Twenties. On 24 February, we hosted our first decadent Saturday afternoon consisting of delicious afternoon tea, Charleston lessons, feisty flappers and a live jazz band.

This afternoon tea with a 1920s twist came with plenty of tea, cake and dancing. Live music  was from the Soultastics, and Charleston entertainment had our guests swivelling across the dance floor in no time.

Due to the success of the Afternoon Tea we will now we hosting them regularly and have four more in the diary which will be taking place in June, September and a Christmas special so keep an eye of the website for the official date announcements.

Goodwood Vintage Revival

When you run a vintage business, you might think the last thing you want to do with your day off is go to a vintage event, but not me! I’ve heard of Goodwood Revival and this year I finally went with a group of friends.

We had all carefully planned our outfits but when it came to the festival itself no one knew what to expect. Surprisingly, a lot of people still seem to be in the dark about Goodwood Revival, so here is my guide to this event.

Central to the day is the car racing, but if the idea of vintage cars revving their engines and doing laps doesn’t appeal, don’t worry there’s lots more to do and see. 

Our day started in the Butlins tent, which we’d ducked into to shelter from the rain. All the staff were dressed in 1950s Butlins uniforms and they had a roller disco with skates which were free to hire. We popped them on and soon discovered that our skating skills had somewhat diminished since we were twelve years old!

We then went for a wander, admiring as we went the wonderful vintage outfits on display. If you’re thinking of going then you should know this is most definitely a dress-up event. On display were the full range of vintage styles, from land-girls (very practical for that days weather) to sixties chic and some super stylish 30s, 40s and 50s inspired outfits. A quick stop for the loo (and it was quick, the facilities were spotless and we felt extra happy to see the men queuing while the women didn’t have to wait!), then we crossed over the bridge into the main site.

Now none of us our petrol heads but the array of vintage vehicles had us all oohing and posing for pictures by these fabulous old cars. We then found an area with live music by a wonderful band called the The Class of 58  they are a family outfit and really got the crowd going with songs like Hand Jive.

More wandering took us to the fabulous Betty’s Vintage Hair and Beauty Salon where you can get your vintage makeover.  The vibe was so friendly; when my sister used the mirror to fix her hair one of the ladies offered to style her for free!

The whole day was full of similar friendly encounters and if I were to rate this festival on friendliness it was a definite 10 out of 10. Other activities on offer were dance classes in swing and jive, fairground rides (all included in the price of your ticket) and a fashion show that was brilliantly staged with dance, projections and of course amazing outfits.

After a fun-packed day we took the free shuttle bus back to Chichester station and met even more lovely people on the journey.  So we had a final drink with our newfound friends (a group of BA pilots no less) before catching the train home. All in all a great day out and excellent value for money.

Fiona 

Strictly Charleston Raises Over £750

Thank you to everyone who attended The I Charleston Brighton Speakeasy which kicked started the opening weekend of Brighton Fringe at the Spiegeltent. We're chuffed that we raised over £750 for Whoopsadaisy, Sussex based Charity helping children with cerebral palsy, through the Strictly Come Dance-style Charleston Competition. Watch our film about the competition here

In partnership with The Hilton Brighton Metropole, I Charleston Brighton trained three members of staff from the hotel over the past month in preparation of the event. The 3 women, Elizabeth, Agne and Agata were paired with a dancer from Savoy Kicks and braved the dance floor to compete to win votes from the audience to raise money as well as setting up their own JustGiving page

Agata was crowned the 2017 winner. You can see all three full routines here.

The three-hour immersive Charleston dance afternoon included also comparing from Dawn Gracie as well as workshops and performances by Savoy Kicks accompanied by live music from The Soultastics and DJ Basschimp along with the Mighty Dance-off!  

View photos

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported this event including all of our sponsors and we can't wait to return next year. 

One Week Until The Speakeasy

With only a week to go until the I Charleston Brighton Speakeasy I wanted to remind you on what a fantastic line-up we have this year. Our 3 hour immersive dance event includes:

• Pop-up Charleston Dance Lessons

• Dance Displays by Savoy Kicks

• Live music from Soultastics

• DJing from Basschimp

• Compering by Dawn Gracie

We also have our fantastic dance-off where you can take to the floor to compete for £150 shopping voucher at Simon Carter. And if that is not another for you we have three brave ladies from the Hilton Brighton Metropole competing in our Strictly Come Dancing Style competition where we are raising money for Whoopsadaisy and crowning this year’s winner. This is the only event in Brighton Fringe exclusively focused on Charleston dancing so I very much hope you can make it. Tickets can be booked here: www.tinyurl.com/icbspeakeasy See you on the dancefloor!Write here…