Whilst the main Brighton Festival tends to involve more high brow and mainstream theatre, dance,…read moremusic and literature events, Brighton Festival Fringe offers a platform for aspiring and underground artists and madhatters. As my fellow Yelpers photos show, there's always a fun circus / performance element to the fringe with free events involving stilt walkers, jugglers, flame-throwers and live performers. The real body of the fringe however, involves local and national comedians, performance artists, film-makers, theatre companies, artists and photographers putting on their own shows and exhibitions in venues right across the city. Most of the events are cheap as chips so it's well worth taking a risk and going to see a handful of different events. Pick up a free brochure around the city in the weeks running upto the festival or check the website for further details and teaser trailers. What have you got to lose?

Brighton Festival Fringe has, as the name suggests, grown out of the Brighton Festival. It is an…read moreopen access Arts festival, which brings together all sorts of events, including theatre, visual art, dance and comedy, to create a month long cultural extravaganza of fun! The intent is to entertain but also to educate audiences through varied and exciting art. What's great about Brighton Fringe is that its open to new and emerging talent as well as established performers and companies. This inclusive policy means that all sorts of people stage events and the Fringe festival continues to grow annually. As well as more traditional art forms, the festival also includes innovative new music as well as cinema, performance art and even club nights! The festival takes place in May each year. Every year I vow to myself that I will go to more events and every year I fail miserably. Even if you don't get yourself organised enough to check out specific events, you will feel the festival in the air, for the Fringe exploits Brighton's inherent spirit of fun and frivolity, and creates a happy buzz all over town! The Old Steine is an especially great place to soak up the atmosphere, as there is always a giant beer tent (some times the E4 Udder Belly) set up as well as the Speigeltent, where the Silent Discos are held.

The Uckfield Picture House is a lovely local, independent cinema. The staff are friendly and the…read morefilms very current. They have a membership scheme for regular visitors and online booking. We are new to the area and the Picture House a local business that serves us really well. It is well proportioned and a great place to see anything from an independent film to a blockbuster.

Amazing place, went for the first time this evening and watched a show...made in Dagenham, amazing…read moreperformance, crew, cast, orchestra were perfect. Kings theatre is just great for a really awesome night out, friendly and welcoming staff. Brilliant.

The Kings Theatre was built in 1907 when you go to see a show at the Kings its hard to not look…read morearound and gaze at the beautigul architectureof the place,from the angels on the walls to the beautiful murals of cherubs painted on the ceiling,the red velvet seats are fitting with the historic history of the Kings.and if you go to the foyer you can actually see the original Aurora who once stood proudly on top of the Theatre. I recently went to see Alan Carr there great entertainer and the view from the gallery was amazing!!

I LOVED the Brighton Museum. I was beyond pleasantly surprised…read more The museum is in a lovely building right beside the Royal Pavilion, so there is no reason why you cannot pay it a visit. The collections were rather hodgepodge, and sometimes it was difficult to figure out the connecting theme of what I was looking at, but everything was interesting - from the little alcove about Ancient Egypt to the Main Hall to the exhibits on Clothing as well as Modern Art (and I don't even care for modern art.) This museum also had a quality that escapes most others - it was great for both adults and children. I can easily say that, of all the sights I saw during my day in Brighton, this was definitely my favourite.

I always enjoy a visit to a museum, what's not to love about learning for free?…read moreSet in the heart of Brighton's Royal Pavillion gardens, you can really feel the culture when you visit the area. If you're stuck for ideas on what to do in Brighton when the weather is less than ideal, you could do much worse than making the trip here. Although small, the museum houses some interesting collections. My personal highlights are the Egyptology section and the history of Brighton room. Seeing the old photos of the west pier in all its glory and how the Pavillion looked over the years is fascinating.

Opposite Boots (the chemist) and next to Maison Blanc there is an alleyway. At the end of this…read morealleyway you will find The Barn, a hip vegetarian cafe with an active music scene in the evenings. The vibe is reminiscent of bohemian art student, the food is healthy and delicious (wraps, bagels, muffins, etc) and the coffee is great. Downstairs (ground floor) is set out cafe style with a small collection of two and four person tables in front of the kitchen and coffee bar. Upstairs seating is arranged as soft benches around long coffee tables which would seem to be a good use of space when there is a band present. I was there during the day and it was quite quiet so online radio provided the background music rather than a live band. However I understand that upcoming gigs (music and art) are listed on their website. I enjoyed my visit and shall return next time I am in there area. It was refreshing to visit a good cafe that stands apart for the normal high street effort.

I picked the wrong day to come down to this event, me and a friend came down to watch Jurassic…read moreWorld. Built into the village u.ve got food stalls, drinks and place to buy blankets. The set up is brilliant ibis hotel beds available if you want comfort or sprawl out on the cobbles. Unfortunately it was raining The event has special seating for the weather but puts a dampner on the film if yr sat in high winds and rain. Worth a visit just check the weather forecast

Toad Hall Adventure play is open 7 days a week and offers soft play facilities for children from…read morebabies through to juniors. There's a good under 3s section with a ball pit and 2-stage climbing frame (soft). There are some sit-on soft toys and some blocks. The floor is a bit suspect and there's a bit of an old smell to the area - nothing terrible but you do notice it. The play equipment appears safe but could be in better condition. The main soft play is a triple height affair with climbing, balls, slides and chutes. It's safe and in better condition than the toddler area. At weekends and after school this place can get packed but, during the day it's not too bad. A cafe facility is available serving teas, coffees, soft drinks and snacks. The prices are reasonable. Tables are kept away from the soft play being behind a low wall. They are OK but there's not a good view of the play area meaning that it's hard to have a coffee and take care of your child. For many parents this just seems to mean that they don't watch their child and so you do have to be careful that your child doesn't get set upon by unrully kids. It's not a particularly comfortable place but it's a good local option for a rainy day. Car parking is available.

It's a nice enough aquarium, no great change since it's days as the SeaLife Centre so you know what…read moreto expect before you walk in and there are no big surprises. The kids will love it but it's a bit pricey for the time you'll spend there.

As the name suggests this is a site that contains large tanks filled with fish and other creatures…read morefrom the sea. It was originally called the Sea Life Centre. Many of the exhibits have been donated by local fishermen who have caught the fish in their nets. A very interesting place to visit for young and old. Good parking nearby. My only complaint is that it is fairly expensive to get in but you can spend quite a long time looking around.

Amazing National Trust place to visit! Both the house and the gardens have a lot of character and…read morehistory and there are activities for children. I travelled 40 miles to get here: it was definitely worth the journey! It was full of information boards and facts and all interior and exterior design was original. Bateman's contains a tearoom (which I didn't visit) but it looked great. All well kept. I also enjoyed visiting the Mill. Definitely worth a visit, I shall definitely be returning. I'd recommend this to anyone! Tip: If you are a NT member, remember to bring your cards for parking and entry. If you aren't a member, bring some change for parking!

We really enjoyed touring the home and gardens of Rudyard Kipling. We arrived at 9:30 before it…read moreopened and took a long walk through the fields surrounding the house. The gardens opened at 10 and the house at 11. The gardens are relatively small compared to some of the other houses we have visited. I especially liked the old mill. That was there when Kipling bought the house in the early 20th century it he made changes to it. The house itself was beautiful and devoid of many modern conveniences. I found it to be more like an early 1800s home than 1900s when he lived there.

This event takes place on the first Saturday of the Brighton Festival each year, and has opened the…read morefestival since 1989! If you're in town you can't help but notice it, even if it's just due to the chaos of road closures and the distant noise of marching bands; the parade runs from the North Laine area, through town and down West Street, making its way down the sea front to the finale at Marine Parade - with over 4000 participants from over 75 schools, not to mention the tens of thousands of spectators (think of all the doting families for each child!), the event is chaotic but pretty spectacular. I had the pleasure of being right in amongst it this Summer when I was in charge of marshalling right through the event. The event was really well organised with the kids' safety a top priority. I dealt with many a shirty driver and stressy parent in the run up, but the parade itself was great - being the product of local schools of course the quality varied considerably, as did the morale of the kids (the ones without crazy dancing teachers and bands lookes a bit miserable sometimes!), but overall it was a visual extravaganza! The best thing I saw this year was dozens of infant school kids dressed as wasps (the theme was the harvest) - they were adorable! Although more an event for the kids and their families, it's well worth catching if you're in town (and you can't miss it if you're shopping in the North Laine that morning). The finale at Marine Parade is worth checking out too as there's music and street entertainers.

It's because of events like the Children's Parade that I love Brighton. Please don't become alarmed…read moreby that sentence, I refer to the quirkiness and underlying community spirit that you don't always see in cities. The majority off the times that i have witnessed the parade has been whilst in the North Laine on the front line as a chef. Thankfully, the *insert* hits the fan afterwards, so we always got to see the amazing costumes that the kids had made. I always take this event as my official start to the Brighton festival and this year I don't have to cook. I had just known it to run through the North Laine and I think that Tasha is on the money to suggest getting down to the seafront. To witness the culmination of the procession and all the mix match of costumes coming together for the finale would really put the event in context. If you don't have kids then it would be easy to dismiss the event, but it really is worth the effort of getting into town for the morning. If you do have kinds in Brighton then it is likely that you are going to be there anyhow, but if not get them involved because this is part of the festival that they will love the most.