This is the June 15th Notice to Quit Stand No. 37 opposite Arch 259 Mr. Herbert Tennent received from Town Clerk acting as agents for the Military Authorities. This followed the evacuation of Dunkirk with the probability of Hitler’s impending invasion. The beach area had to be fortified with barbed-wire, mines and guns and so all businesses had to cease trading along the seafront.
1940
In June 1940 Mr. T was given notice (see above) to quit his popular seafront café location by the west side of Palace pier groyne. This was from Town Clerk on behalf of the Officer commanding troops in Brighton. This followed the evacuation of Dunkirk with the probability of Hitler’s impending invasion. The beach area had to be fortified with barbed-wire, mines and guns and so all businesses had to cease trading along the seafront. After the fall of France, Clifford Musgrave was asked to take charge of the Royal Pavilion on a ‘care and maintenance’ basis until the end of the war. At that time the building was totally unfurnished except for eight large standard lamps and one piano. There was also a regular Saturday booking by a Borough Councillor for indoor cricket practice in what is now the Banqueting Room Gallery.
1941
Whilst walking amongst the Canadian troops in the gardens with his wife, Louise and their eldest daughter June. Mr. T thought of an idea which would set his family up for generations. He approached the Brighton Corporation to seek permission (see letter from Mrs. Alma Harris in 1991) for a café in the Royal Pavilion Grounds. This was passed by committee and a concrete plinth was constructed upon which Mr. T re-erected his wooden hut previously used on the seafront and stayed open until 8pm most evenings. The site of the hut was in a very good position adjacent to the north side of the Royal Pavilion on Eastern Lawn by the main thoroughfare between London Road (Marlborough Place) and East Street. At this time the Royal Pavilion Eastern Lawn was opened for deckchairs because of the beach fortifications. During the War the Dome became a ballroom for the locals and troops, dancing seven nights a week to the Alan Green orchestra. My mother June remembers watching Canadian soldiers and local girls, all dressed up going to the Dome ballroom. During the war a customer remembered a Spitfire being parked by the Royal Pavilion entrance. They asked people to donate pennies towards the purchase of new Spitfires at £5000 each.
1941-1947
The Hut opened during the day, into the evenings and up until Christmas. Deckchairs, lavish Mayor’s Garden Parties, promenading and Mr. T baking all his own cakes, even with food rationing were part of the first few years of the café existence. Early in 1945 Clifford Musgrave his wife Margaret and two sons Roger and Steven agreed to live in the Royal Pavilion to be on hand to oversee its increased usage. They were to occupy the Director’s two-three bedroom first floor flat for another twenty years with the prestigious address of the ‘The Royal Pavilion Brighton’. It wasn’t all glamour as the sound of mice running around was never far away. After the war Clifford Musgrave was made permanent Director of the Royal Pavilion and retained all other responsibilities for Brighton Libraries, Museums, Art Gallery, Dome, Corn Exchange and Pavilion Theatre. Mr. T became good friends with the Musgraves (see Royal Pavilion Review Feb 2006). One story was that Steven preferred to watch Mr. T bake his cakes one day than have lunch with his parents and war time Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Pauline and Ann Tennent (my aunts) played with Steven in the Royal Pavilion exploring every nook and cranny. They loved to watch all the craftsmen at work below stairs using gold leaf to decorate furniture etc. During the war there was a huge brick water tank built and placed on the middle of the Western Lawn as an emergency water supply in case of fire from incendiary bombs.
The photograph of a Barrage Balloon with the slogan ‘Spare Time for Britain’ placed on the Western lawn was taken by Sir Clifford Musgrave from the balcony of the Royal Pavilion.
1948
After the war the water tank was removed and in its place appeared a
barrage balloon which had a slogan “Spare Time for Britain” on the side. This slogan was used in a recruiting campaign for the Territorial Army (see photo above). At night the balloon was lit up by a huge searchlight, powered by a big generator which was parked exactly where the café is today. I understand both the balloon and the searchlight were Second World War surplus.
1949
It was decided that a more permanent café in the gardens should be built and Brighton Art College ran a competition to design the new café. The site chosen near New Road was close to the original Ice House that had served the Pavilion since the 1790‘s. Although Mr. T first had the idea for a café and ran the current one in the Pavilion Estate he still needed a fair amount of lobbying to be successful in getting first refusal at the new premises at a rent of £250 per year. (see Argus).