A Day of Two Halves

I went to Brighton today - one of my favourite places. There was a coffee shop I had seen on Instagram and really wanted to try. Small Batch Coffee Company is a Brighton & Hove based business and as expected, the coffee and the shop was amazing - just how a coffee shop should be.

I was there early - before the city woke up - which doesn't usually happen until 11am.

There was a strange, tense atmosphere as I walked towards the sea - very different from the usual laid-back feeling. There was a March 4 England demonstration, a group with extreme feelings against immigration. At the same time there was a protest against the M4E protestors. The plan was for both groups to march on the main seafront road . . .towards eachother!

30 minutes before the protest was due to start I walked close to the main site - hundreds of police, in vans, on horses and bikes. It was very aggressive and it felt inevitable that violence would break out. I took a couple of photographs and then headed back into town which was gated from the demonstration route.

A couple of groups of protestors slipped the police chaperone and ran through the Lanes area. I stepped into a shop and the staff locked us in as we watched 40-50 hoodie wearing, face-covered people trying to enter the shops, organising themselves via a combination of mobile phones and shouting!

An unpleasant experience and nothing like I've ever seen or felt in my favourite City.

So today's Blip details the two sides of my day; the tranquility of an early breakfast in North Laine and the aggression of protestors advancing towards their opposers.