James Gray: This was taken in 1931 soon after the buildings at the West Street end had been removed for the erection of Bostel House. The Lamb and Flag Inn, which bore the date 1885, replaced an earlier Inn of the same name opened in 1855. It was reconstructed in its present form in 1935. jgc_07_065
2020: The basic shape of the pub remains but it has changed over the years. It is now a busy pub called Crown’s Brighton, serving food and drink. The wall to the right of the pub in the 2020 image is an outside wall of Churchill Square. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: The building shown in the previous photograph [jgc_07_073 on the West Street (Brighton) (North) page], Nos 35-37 West Street and 1 and 2 Cranbourne Street, has been demolished, and the cleared site is ready for the erection of Bostel House. This photograph shows the extreme narrowness of the street at this period. jgc_07_074
2020: West Street was widened between 1928 and 1938 and many of the buildings on the western side of the street demolished. The 1930 image illustrates some aspects of this process. Bostel House is still a prominent feature of West Street. It houses offices with shops and restaurants on its ground floor. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: An unusual view of the rear of the houses on the south side of Cranbourne Street. The date was 22 October 1972, when the future of the intervening area was uncertain. Judging by the number of ‘ANCIENT LIGHTS’ signs, many of the inhabitants, mainly residents, were anxious to preserve their right to light. jgc_07_120
James Gray: Three small photographs [jgc_29_131, 132 and 133], taken by an amateur, of the Lamb and Flag Inn, at the corner of Cranbourne Street and Upper Russell Street, 1935. The inn built in 1885 was then about to be reconstructed. jgc_29_131
James Gray: See caption for jgc_29_131 above. jgc_29_132
James Gray: A photograph taken by an amateur in 1965 of Cranbourne Street, with its fairly neat frontage, but the backs of the houses were a jumble of nondescript architectural features. jgc_29_151
2018: The Lamb and Flag stood at the junction of Cranbourne Street and Upper Russell Street. The pub is now called Crown’s Brighton. (Photographer: Suzanne Hinton)
James Gray: See caption for jgc_29_131 above. jgc_29_133
2018: The Lamb and Flag (now Crown’s Brighton) stood at the south-west corner of Cranbourne Street at its junction with Upper Russell Street. The buildings to the right (west) of the pub in the James Gray image have now disappeared under the massive wall of the Churchill Square shopping mall. (Photographer: Suzanne Hinton)
James Gray: A party of men, which obviously included many fishermen, gathered outside the Cranbourne Arms, in Cranbourne Street, about 1902, when the licensee was Mr W J Mabey. Many fishermen lived in nearby Wellington Place and Blucher Place, so this would be their local public house. jgc_29_143
2018: The Cranbourne Arms is now the Western Pub and Kitchen. (Photographer: Suzanne Hinton)
James Gray: A snapshot photograph taken by an amateur photographer, and said by him to date from 1965. It shows little change from today’s scene, except for the work on Churchill Square going on in the distance. jgc_29_145
2018: Cranbourne Street is still a street of small shops. At the far end (west) Little Russell Street and Grenville Place have been replaced by the Churchill Square Shopping Centre. One constant in both photographs is the white building in the far distance. This is the Prince of Wales pub, formerly at the top of Cannon Place, now on the western edge of Churchill Square. (Photographer: Suzanne Hinton)
James Gray: See caption for jgc_29_145 above. jgc_29_146
2018: S W Bostel of 8 Cranbourne Street was a menswear shop. At right angles to the back of this shop was another Bostel in Upper Russell Street (see jgc_29_154 to jgc_29_157 on the Upper Russell Street (1) page). The Upper Russell Street firm seems to have been a builders merchant. To the right (west) of the images is a pub: the Lamb and Flag in 1955, Crown’s Brighton in 2018. (Photographer: Suzanne Hinton)
James Gray: See caption for jgc_29_145 above. jgc_29_147
2018: M Lyons at 7 Cranbourne Street was a bootmaker. In 2018 it repairs mobile phones and laptops. The work visible to the right (west) of the 1955 image has been completed and the steps up to Churchill Square can be seen. The pub called Crown’s Brighton in 2018 was formerly the Lamb and Flag. (Photographer: Suzanne Hinton)