Dear Editor,

I was wondering whether I could get some help please. I live in Bingley,West Yorkshire. Fifteen years ago I had a stroke and now, as a rehabilitation exercise, I am trying to trace my family history.

In 1860 a distant ancestor died at “Beresford Lodge, West Hill, Brighton” and I am trying to find out whether this property still exists. Could you or your members locate it for me perhaps?

Thank you,
Godfrey Lomas

Dear Editor

Further to the recent correspondence about 1 Clifton Street (Aug/Sept), on a lighter note, let me tell you a story.

In 1964 my mother and I lived at 36 Guildford Road. The house belonged to Alan and Marie Ross who lived in Clifton Street, not sure which number. They were part of a local social circle of very interesting people, artists, academics, film makers etc who took my mother and me into their realm. One of this circle was a man called Norman, who was a Yoga teacher and he introduced my mother to Yoga. Also, he worked at Heathrow airport as a translator; he spoke many different languages. He tried to encourage me to come out of myself more. And so, coming up to my seventeenth birthday in early April he said to me, “I will give you a party at my house.” He told me to invite all my friends. The problem was I did not have many friends, as such. I explained this to him so he said, “What about that coffee bar you go to down the road, (the Bar J opposite St Peter’s Church) why don’t you invite the people who go there?” So I did just that; word got around and on the night of my party half of Brighton turned up, (it was a village then!) including two units of local police in their Panda cars. The girls were pinching their hats and helmets and running off with them into the party. It was a great success and literally over night my life changed. I kept bumping into people who had been at the party and asking me when I was going to have another one. From that day I made a whole load of new friends. And, forever more, thank you Norman, who lived at No 1 Clifton Street.

Reginald Gennaro Woodhouse, Albert Road