logo
Brighton's original boutique hotel is voted its best still

Brighton's original boutique hotel is voted its best still

Telegraph13-05-2025
I've woken up next to a knitted GPO 706L telephone and underneath a hand-knitted bedspread. Knitted seagulls dangle from a mobile above my head and elsewhere in my 'Do knit disturb' room at the Pelirocco. Artist and knitwear designer Kate Jenkins has created a plate of fish and chips, flowers and er, the curtains. Design trends have come and gone, but 25 years after it opened, Brighton's Hotel Pelirocco is still the queen of kitsch. Guests step through the hotel's Regency Square façade into an intoxicating pink-and-gold explosion of modern and retro art.
At the turn of the millennium, the 'Peli' opened on a budget. Its website calls it Brighton's original boutique hotel – though so does that of Blanch House, which opened around the same time. In the late 1990s, its creator and former owner Mick Robinson (AKA'Ginger Mick') had stayed in the Oscar Wilde room at another Brighton hotel and checked out disappointed. He began looking around and found a run-down property in a central location close to the seafront. 'When we turned up on our first day, the balcony had fallen off,' Robinson tells me at the hotel's 25th birthday party.
Robinson named Pelirocco after his DJ name. At that time he had a radio show called Pelirocco Platters. Pelirocco channelled Brighton's music scene with a record label and one of the earliest, if not the first, hotel soundtracks.
Primal Scream, Howard Marks, Irvine Welsh, Carl Barât, Eddie Izzard, the Happy Mondays, New Order, Tim Burgess, the Scissor Sisters, Mr Scruff, Jessie Wallace and Gilles Peterson have all checked in. Fatboy Slim, the Cuban Brothers and Asian Dub Foundation have performed in the bar.
The 19 themed rooms pay homage to cultural heroes (Leigh Bowery) and musical subcultures (Modrophenia). The country cabin-style Dollywould and Rebel Rebel have fancy dress kits, so guests can get their Dolly or their Bowie on before heading to the bar.
Some are more risqué than others. Botanica has a dancing pole. Taboo, a collaboration with a local adult boutique, has a bed with anchor points. Nookii has other surprises in store.
The building's transformation into a hotel was facilitated through sponsorship with companies including PlayStation, Nokia and Kraken. Robinson spent £40 on the art. 'We trolled Brighton's junk shops and car boot stalls and kept adding to it.' Profile shots of Bowie, Paul Weller, the Specials' Terry Hall and Brighton's own Fatboy Slim stare from hall landings, while film and gig posters and memorabilia celebrate punk, ska, reggae, dub, jazz, country and house music.
Mark Gibson has been here since the hotel opened and has worn many hats. Since taking over as manager 12 years ago, he has navigated a slew of competitor hotels, the advent of Airbnb, a global pandemic and, more recently, a generational shift away from excessive behaviour. Maturing Gen-Xers have creaky hips and Gen Z's idea of Friday-night fun is a low-impact workout and a kombucha.
That the Pelirocco is consistently voted Brighton's top boutique hotel on Tripadvisor is testament to its continued success. How does a hotel rooted in hedonism and fading subcultures stay relevant in the face of stiff competition?
'Guests have calmed down a little over the years,' says Gibson. 'There were times when we partied to the max, bands came back after their gigs, TVs went through windows, the bar didn't close and people partied until the sun came up. That was a weekly occurrence.'
The team is always looking ahead to the next room re-theme, art launch or collaboration. Décor in the hotel's lounge and bar is constantly refreshed with bi-monthly art exhibitions, while annual upgrades keep rooms fresh.
Gibson admits Airbnb has posed a challenge, but 'service' scores highly on the hotel's Tripadvisor rankings. 'We've got lots of staff who came for a 'short time' and are here a decade later, so often a guest's breakfast or cocktail is served by the same person they met years ago.'
Pelirocco has not stopped partying. At its birthday celebrations, DJs include Don Letts, the Grammy-award-winning documentary maker and musician credited with walking a generation of punks down the reggae path. In the Rebel Rebel room, one half of street-art collective the Postman, whose pop-art murals are dotted around Brighton, is showing guests how to create their own piece of pop art.
Pressure Sounds – which doubles as a small recording studio – has become a reggae room for the night and musicians are setting up in Bettie's Boudoir.
On my way out I see Letts, talking to camera. 'I've had a long-standing relationship with the joint. And in a time where we are all glued to screens, places like this, where people can come together for a creative, collective, synchronised experience, should be treasured,' he says.
The next morning I message Gibson. Has anything gone through a window? 'TVs are safe. All body parts are working,' he replies.
The Peli tastes different to when it was bottled, but there's plenty of fizz in the old bird yet.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Ellen DeGeneres: I moved to the UK because of Donald Trump
Ellen DeGeneres: I moved to the UK because of Donald Trump

BBC News

time21 minutes ago

  • BBC News

Ellen DeGeneres: I moved to the UK because of Donald Trump

US TV star Ellen DeGeneres has made her first public appearance since moving to the UK, saying she decided to settle in England the day after Donald Trump was re-elected US comedian and host told a crowd in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, that life "is just better" in the said she and wife Portia de Rossi were considering getting married again in England after some moves in the US to reverse the right to gay marriage, and that America can still be "scary for people to be who they are".She also addressed allegations of a toxic workplace that led to the end of her long-running chat show in 2022, admitting she could be "very blunt", but dismissed the stories as "clickbait". 'We're staying here' Ellen was one of the biggest names on US TV for 30 years, thanks to her daytime chat show, as well as her self-titled 1990s sitcom, for hosting the Oscars, Grammys and Emmys, and for voicing Dory in Finding her talk show was cancelled and a "final stand-up tour", she bought a house in the Cotswolds, a historic and picturesque area mainly spanning parts of Gloucestershire and Sunday at the Everyman theatre in nearby Cheltenham, she was in conversation with broadcaster Richard Bacon, who asked whether reports that she moved because of Donald Trump were correct. "Yes," she 67-year-old said she and De Rossi had initially planned to spend three or four months a year in the UK and bought what they thought would be "a part-time house"."We got here the day before the election and woke up to lots of texts from our friends with crying emojis, and I was like, 'He got in'," she said. "And we're like, 'We're staying here'." Ellen has been giving glimpses of her new rural life on social media, in videos showing her farm animals including sheep - although they have now been sold after they kept escaping."It's absolutely beautiful," she said. "We're just not used to seeing this kind of beauty. The villages and the towns and the architecture - everything you see is charming and it's just a simpler way of life."It's clean. Everything here is just better - the way animals are treated, people are polite. I just love it here."We moved here in November, which was not the ideal time, but I saw snow for the first time in my life. We love it here. Portia flew her horses here, and I have chickens, and we had sheep for about two weeks." Being gay in Hollywood 'is still a problem' On her last tour, she joked that she had been "kicked out of show business twice" - the first being when she came out as gay in effectively led to the end of her sitcom after advertisers pulled out and the network stopped promoting it, she told the Cheltenham crowd on asked whether her visibility had encouraged other people to come out. "I would say no," she replied. "I imagined a lot of people coming out like meerkats poking out of a hole and going back in again. 'How's she doing? OK, no, no.'"But it is "a really hard decision" that doesn't suit everyone, she continued, and that things are better today "in some ways"."If it was [better], all these other people that are actors and actresses that I know they're gay, they'd be out, but they're not, because it's still a problem. People are still scared." Ellen also referenced a recent move by the Southern Baptist Convention to endorse the reversal of a Supreme Court case allowing same-sex marriage. At least nine state legislatures have introduced bills to do the same."The Baptist Church in America is trying to reverse gay marriage," she said. "They're trying to literally stop it from happening in the future and possibly reverse it. And Portia and I are already looking into it. And if they do that, we're going to get married here."Later, in response to an audience question, she added: "I wish we were at a place where it was not scary for people to be who they are. I wish that we lived in a society where everybody could accept other people and their differences."So until we're there, I think there's a hard place to say we have huge progress."However, the younger generation are "more comfortable with it" and are "just kind of fluid", she added. "So I think the younger generation is going to show us the way." 'Does being blunt mean I'm mean?' After some former workers on her talk show made allegations of a toxic workplace culture, the star - who ended every episode by telling viewers to "be kind to one another" - was dubbed as "mean" in the the scandal three producers were sacked amid allegations of misconduct and sexual harassment, and the final season of the show opened with DeGeneres giving an on-air addressed that in her 2024 tour and the accompanying Netflix stand-up special."No matter what, any article that came up, it was like, 'She's mean', and it's like, how do I deal with this without sounding like a victim or 'poor me' or complaining? But I wanted to address it."It's as simple as, I'm a direct person, and I'm very blunt, and I guess sometimes that means that... I'm mean?" She also said it was "kind of crazy" that saying someone is mean "can be the worst thing that you say about a woman"."How dare us have any kind of mood, or you can't be anything other than nice and sweet and kind and submissive and complacent?"She added: "I don't think I can say anything that's ever going to get rid of that [reputation] or dispel it, which is hurtful to me. I hate it. I hate that people think that I'm that because I know who I am and I know that I'm an empathetic, compassionate person."It was "certainly an unpleasant way to end" her talk show, she said. Would 'love' a British talk show Ellen said she misses "a lot" about her show, but doesn't think a similar format would work any more. "I mean, I wish it did, because I would do the same thing here. I would love to do that again, but I just feel like people are watching on their phones, or people aren't really paying attention as much to televisions, because we're so inundated with with information and entertainment."She said she didn't know what she would do in the future, but would pick her next move "very carefully"."I just don't know what that is yet," she said. "I want to have fun, I want to do something. I do like my chickens but I'm a little bit bored."

BBC radio legend dies after incredible two-decade career as devastated colleagues pay tribute
BBC radio legend dies after incredible two-decade career as devastated colleagues pay tribute

Daily Mail​

time21 minutes ago

  • Daily Mail​

BBC radio legend dies after incredible two-decade career as devastated colleagues pay tribute

BBC radio legend Charlie Partridge has died, sparking an out pour of condolences from fans and colleagues. The broadcaster ran BBC Radio Lincolnshire for over 20 years and has been praised for his incredible work. Tributes flooded in for the radio veteran including his former BBC News Foreign Correspondent and colleague Jonathan Charles sharing a heartfelt message on X. He said: 'I am very sorry to hear of the loss of Charlie Partridge. 'More than 45 years ago, he taught me a lot about broadcasting at BBC Nottingham. 'He was a great guy and we stayed in touch, occasionally swapping messages in the years since. 'Sometimes discussing Springsteen. My thoughts are with his family.' Another responded: 'Sad to hear Jonathan, John. Charlie was a lovely man, who believed in truly local radio. 'He was also very kind and supportive. Thoughts with his family.' John Hess also shared a message for the late broadcaster, writing: 'As others have posted online, I'm deeply saddened to have learnt yesterday of the death of Charlie Partridge.' John Gelson wrote on Facebook: 'I'm sharing Lip Dub Lincoln again tonight in tribute to the man who was the creative genius behind it, former BBC Radio Lincolnshire Editor Charlie Partridge, who has sadly passed away. 'When I returned to the BBC as a freelance journalist at BBC Radio York in 2016, Charlie was acting Editor there- we got on well from my first day, as we swapped tales of local radio over the years. 'Thoughts are with Charlie's family and many friends in broadcasting. RIP.' It comes after last month radio presenter Simon Marlow, who had worked for the British Forces Broadcasting Service since 2007, sadly died in London on June 27. The presenter, who made his first break on radio as a freelance voice in 1987, had several stints at UK stations like Radio City, 2-TEN, Chiltern Radio and Classic FM. Tributes flooded in for the radio veteran including his former BBC News Foreign Correspondent and colleague Jonathan Charles sharing a heartfelt message on X He later became a familiar star at BFBS both on the radio and helping behind the scenes with production. During his time with BFBS, Simon was posted across the globe including Afghanistan, Cyprus, Brunei, Germany, the Falklands and Northern Ireland. Known for his deep love of music and his passion for bringing the armed forces community together, Simon's voice was a constant companion to troops stationed around the world. He was described as a 'force of nature' by colleagues. During the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic, Simon was based in Gibraltar and shortly after planned to retire just across the border in Spain. The broadcaster was most recently based in Northern Ireland working as a station manager for BFBS. Tributes have poured in for the star including from BFBS CEO, Ben Chapman who described Simon has 'making a difference'. He said: 'Wherever Simon was, whoever he was with, there was always laughter. He made a difference.' The BFBS official X account also shared the news, writing: 'It is with great sadness that we announce the death of our much-loved colleague, Simon Marlow. Simon worked for BFBS worldwide as a radio presenter and producer, most recently as Station Manager at BFBS Northern Ireland.'

EXCLUSIVE A hero stranger saved my husband's life when he had a heart attack at a gas station... now he's marrying my daughter and they're expecting their second baby
EXCLUSIVE A hero stranger saved my husband's life when he had a heart attack at a gas station... now he's marrying my daughter and they're expecting their second baby

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

EXCLUSIVE A hero stranger saved my husband's life when he had a heart attack at a gas station... now he's marrying my daughter and they're expecting their second baby

It was a normal Thursday afternoon when Gary Stevens popped down to the local petrol station - and one that changed his family's lives forever. The father-of-one collapsed after suffering a heart attack while a worried man parked in the van behind him rushed to his aid. That man was Mark Taylor - and now he's about to marry Gary's daughter Bethany. The couple's love story is one that started with tragedy, Gary's wife and Bethany's mum, Anna Stevens, recalls. On January 27, 2022, Gary, of Watford, was washing his car when he suddenly went into cardiac arrest. Noticing that Gary had suddenly collapsed, Mark, who was sat in the car behind him, instantly ran over to assist him. He then tirelessly administered CPR for up to 20 minutes before the emergency services arrived. As a result of Mark's quick-thinking, Gary, then 56, survived the near-fatal attack, with paramedics praising his 'incredible' ability to keep the father-of-one alive. The hero stranger also quickly hunted down Gary's phone to call for family - and they all rushed down to be at his side as he was raced to hospital. Now, in recognition of Mark's incredible life-saving act, Anna has set up a GoFundMe page to help raise funds for the pair's honeymoon and to also contribute to their children's futures. Sadly, due to an accumulation of long-term health complications, Gary sadly passed away just five months later - with Mark serving as one of the pallbearers at his funeral. But in a heartwarming end to what could have been an entirely tragic story, Gary's daughter, 26, and Mark, 34, are set to marry in January. The pair, who share an eight-month-old son Zack, are also expecting a second baby in December. Adding that while she 'lost a husband, I gained a son', Anna has no doubt that her former husband would be 'over the moon' that his beloved daughter is set to wed the courageous man that once helped save his life. Speaking to MailOnline, Anna said: 'Finding out about what happened to Gary was absolutely horrific. When we left the petrol station, I said to Mark "let me take your number so I can give you some updates." 'We kept in touch and when Gary came out of hospital after about 10 weeks the first person he wanted to see was Mark because he owed his life to him. 'On the night Mark came to visit him he brought him a welcome home cake and it was just so lovely for the two of them to sit down and chat properly.' Mark and Bethany began their unexpected relationship a year after Gary's tragic passing. Given the unique circumstances, Anna insisted that Mark was 'incredibly respectful' as they navigated the early days, even ensuring to check that Anna was happy with the proposed relationship before the pair moved forward. She added: 'They went for a drink as friends and I think they just had this great connection. It's the perfect end to the story. 'Gary would not have survived the cardiac arrest if it was not for Mark. The fact that he helped on the day and I got that extra time with my husband and now have the most incredible grandson, I'll never be able to thank him enough. 'I know Gary would be thrilled that they are together, he loved Mark to pieces. I tell my grandson everyday what an incredible father he has and how Daddy saved Grandad's life.' Anna, who was married to her husband for 25 years prior to his death, even previously donated a kidney to her husband in a bid to help him manage his diabetes which had led to failing kidneys. Speaking to MailOnline about the incredible transplant in 2018, she described it as the 'easiest decision' she had ever made, while Gary said: 'She put her life at risk for mine. 'There's only two words to describe her: "My angel".' Now, as Bethany and Mark eagerly await their wedding day, the couple are adamant that Gary's spirit will be ever-present. Previously speaking to MailOnline about donating a kidney to her beloved husband, Ms Stevens described it as the 'easiest decision' she had ever made, while Gary said: 'She put her life at risk for mine. 'There's only two words to describe her: "My angel" Given her father's absence, Bethany is set to be walked down the aisle by her 'incredible' godfather Alex. As Gary's best friend of more than 40 years, Anna praised him as 'invaluable' in helping the family navigate their grief and ongoing life without Gary. Meanwhile Anna, who is now hoping to honour Mark with a Pride of Britain Award for his life-saving act, described her soon to be son-in-law as 'proof that good still exists in the world'. She added: 'He's just an incredible man. Many would have seen somebody passed out like that and froze or not know what to do, but despite having no first aid training Mark never hesitated and immediately helped out. 'Gary would no doubt be looking down and smiling at how things have turned out, I believe fate put those two men at that petrol station at the right time. It's incredible'.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store