Recorded as the tiny fishing village of Brithelmeston in the Domesday Book, BRIGHTON seems to have slipped unnoticed through history until the mid-eighteenth-century sea-bathing trend established a resort that has never looked back. The fad received royal approval in the 1770s when the decadent Prince Regent, later George IV, began patronizing the town in the company of his mistress, thus setting a precedent for the "dirty weekend", Brighton's major contribution to the English collective consciousness. Trying to shake off this blowsy reputation, Brighton now highlights its Georgian charm, its upmarket shops and classy restaurants and its thriving conference industry. Yet, however much Brighton tries to present itself as a comfortable middle-class town, the essence of its appeal is its faintly bohemian vitality, a buzz that comes from a mix of English holiday-makers, thousands of young foreign students from the town's innumerable language schools, a thriving gay community and an energetic local student population from the art college and two universities.

 

Brighton has the greatest concentration of restaurants in the southeast after London. Around North Laine are some great, inexpensive cafés , but for classier establishments head to the Lanes and out towards Hove. Many of the cheaper places fight hard to attract the large student market with discounted deals of around ten percent, so if you have a student ID, use it. Nightlife is hectic and compulsively pursued throughout the year, making Brighton unique in the sedate southeast. There are a couple of outstanding clubs, lots of live music and more cinema screens per head than anywhere else in Britain. Midweek entry into the clubs can cost just a couple of pounds and cinema seats are similarly priced before 6pm. For up-to-date details of what's on , pick up a copy of the monthly Insight (£1) from newsagents or the free monthly listing magazines What's On or Source from the tourist office while the similarly free Gscene , covering gay events, can be found in gay bars, clubs and shops. If you've access to the internet, you can log on to the highly praised website , . Every May the three-week-long Brighton Festival (tel 01273/700747, ) takes place in various venues around town. This arty celebration includes fun fairs, exhibitions, street theatre and concerts from classical to jazz. Brighton is hoping to emulate Berlin by staging its very own version of the latter's Love Parade, a day-and-night-long Dance Parade , held in mid-July.