Bognor Regis 'royal hall' idea moves one step closer

At the council’s economy committee meeting on Tuesday, April 16, members chose to potentially rebuild the derelict pub behind the Alexandra Theatre on the Esplanade, as a two to three storey ‘multi use’ building.

This could see new restaurants, a rooftop bar and a ‘royal hall’ event space for 400 to 800 people depending if they’re seated or standing, on the site which has been derelict since April 2023.

Deputy council leader Roger Nash (Lab, Pevensey) said the council should be ‘ambitious’ when deciding what happens to the site, saying a brand new building was something residents can be ‘excited about’.

Members were given four options, with options one and two seeing the building renovated back into a royal hall and rentable events spaces, expected to cost £4.89 and £4.92 million respectively.

Option three would see an additional floor and partial demolition on top of the renovation for more rentable spaces, expected to cost £7.6 million, with option 3a, the one taken by the council, to see the building demolished and rebuilt entirely.

Estimates included for the other three options by construction engineers Ridge Consultants, saw a rough timeline of two years, completing the pub’s renovation in May 2026.

Option 3a will delay the process as it will require further feasibility studies to determine potential costs, contractors and time to complete the scheme.

Members also voted to approve use of the site as offices for contractors working on the Alexandra Theatre renovations, whilst further plans for the pub site are drawn up.

Council officers said that the theatre’s renovations could dwarf the pub in size and scale, leading to it not being ‘in-keeping’ with the theatre, but the internal renovations would be ‘relatively straightforward’.

Concerns were also raised by officers about the condition of the roof and other internal parts of the building that could need renovations.

The site was previously used from 1911 to 1975 as a theatre known as the Kursaal, which also had a skating rink, a team room and other shops.

This was demolished in 1975 to make way for the Bognor Regis Centre which opened in March of 1980, including a royal hall space, which was finally sub-let to Brewers Fayre owner Whitbread in 1996.