Brighton is a city full of fun and seaside glamour. Alongside its enticing mix of endless beach, historic piers, fish and chips and great nightlife sits another great attraction – the greyhound stadium.
Sitting in the Hove to the west of Brighton’s centre, Brighton and Hove Greyhound Stadium has almost as much heritage and glamour as the city itself. Hard though it might be for younger fans of the dogs to believe, the Queen and Prince Phillip have visited in the past and the track was home to Balleyregan Bob, who became a household name in the eighties when he scored a rather incredible 32 consecutive victories.
Now the seaside track offers a mix of top-class racing and high-quality facilities that make for a great night out! With excellent transport links the stadium is also within easy reach of the capital, so London folk have another great reason to visit this popular seaside town.
What’s On Offer at Brighton & Hove?
The Stadium hosts meetings on Thursday and Saturday evenings, as well as Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons and Friday mornings. Every evening meeting offers great racing but the highlights of the season are the TV Trophy and Brighton Belle Finals in early April.
The Regency and Sussex Cup Finals in late July and the Olympic and George Curtis and Ballyregan Bob Finals in late December are alsoother highlights for the track.
What Can You Expect?
The stadium has been recently refurbed so you can expect comfortable facilities. The track has a capacity of 2,200 visitors and has a number of restaurant and catering options including the Skyline Restaurant that offers three-course meals with a great view of the action. Here’s what else you can expect:
- Fully computerised Totalisor and photo finish systems
- Video race replays
- Off course betting facilities with intertrack betting
- Skyline Restaurant
- Two fast food outlets
- Five licensed bars
- Disabled Facilities including reserved car parking on request
- Nevill Suite function room available for private hire
- Cash machine (Charge applies)
- Baby Change Facilities
- Defibrillators
The Party Pack & the Skyline Restaurant
For evening meetings, the track opens at 5:30pm and there are three booking options:
- General Admission to the course and bars.
- The Party Pack which includes admission, racecard, two drinks and a meal from the grill. This must be booked by 4pm on the day you wish to visit.
- The Skyline Restaurant which includes admission. Racecard, 3-course meal, full table service and Tote operator betting services. All seats have a view of the race track.
Thursday Price
- General Admission: Free
- Party Pack: £15
- Skyline Restaurant: £22
Saturday Prices
- General Admission: £7
- Party Park: £22
- Skyline Restaurant: £35
How to Get There
The stadium is in Hove which is nestled just to the west of Brighton. The track’s address is: Nevill Road, Hove, BN3 7BZ. Here’s how to get there:
- By Road: If you drive from London, use the M23 as far as the A23 roundabout, where the Q8 garage will be on your right. Head up the hill, keeping the garage on the right, then at the summit, continue straight, following the signs for Hove at the roundabout. Take your second turn on the left and the stadium is around 200 yards further on the left. There is free parking available.
- By Bus: Use service 5b (leaving from Churchill Square).
- By Rail: You can get a five-minute taxi from Hove Station on the Victoria – Littlehampton main line. Alternatively head to Brighton Station and the course is around 10 minutes by taxi.
How to Get in Touch
- Tel: – 01273 013334
- Email: – hove.stadium@gvcgroup.com
- Twitter: – @HoveGreyhounds
- Booking Office Opening Times: Monday -Wednesday, Friday 09:00-17:00, Thursday 09:00 – 16:00, Saturday 12:00 -16:00, Sunday Closed
What Else Do I Need to Know?
Brighton and Hove Greyhound Track has been staging races since Saturday, June 2nd, 1928 when nearly 7,000 spectators watched Graham Hopper’s “Costs” claim victory in the first race.
Queen Elizabeth II Visits the Track
The most prestigious moment in its history came in 1962, when HRH Queen Elizabeth II visited the track alongside her husband Prince Phillip. In fact, they kept a link with the track, and unlike horse racing where it was primarily the Queen who took ownership, the Duke of Edinburgh actually owned a high-class stayer trained at Hove in the 1970s by the late Gordon Hodson.
George Curtis
The late 1960s saw George Curtis come on the scene and using Brighton and Hove as his base he became champion trainer three times in the eighties and looked after Ballyregan Bob. The track’s most famous dog broke the world record for the most consecutive wins when he won his 32nd successive race in 1986.
Famous Races
Today, the track hosts an array of top-class dog racing including the Coral Winter Derby, the Coral Regency, the Sussex Cup, the Brighton Belle, the Coral Greyhound Olympic and the above mentioned Ballyregan Bob Memorial Trophy. This is definitely a track to come to if you want to see real quality!
Facilities
As well as top quality racing, the recently refurbished stadium offers all the facilities you need for a great day out. There are two food outlets, five bars and the 400+ seat Skyline Restaurant that offers a perfect view of the action.
As well as locals from Brighton and Hove and the surrounding towns, the track is popular with punters from London looking for a great day out. In addition, with Brighton being a popular tourist destination for many in the south of the country, and even those from further afield, the course sees its fair share of vistors.
Timeline
- 1928: Costs wins the Hove Stakes as the 7/4 favourite in the stadium’s first race
- 1938: Electric lighting installed
- 1948: The Regency introduced
- 1972: Sussex Cup inaugurated
- 1975: Brighton Belle introduced
- 1976: Coral Leisure take over track
- 1986: Ballyregan Bob becomes a household name by winning his 32 consecutive race
- 2000s: Brian Clemenson is three times champion trainer
- 2019: New track distance of 500 metres created