Brighton & Hove Museums: Director's Choice

The Royal Pavilion and Museums Trust cares for five venues in Brighton and Hove, including the spectacular Royal Pavilion, George IV’s summer retreat. The Royal Pavilion and Museums Trust cares for five venues in Brighton and Hove, including the spectacular Royal Pavilion, a royal palace created by George IV as his summer retreat, designed in its final form by John Nash in a Moghul Indian style and set in landscaped picturesque gardens. The Trust’s other venues are Brighton Museum and Art Gallery that holds important local history and archaeology, world art, and decorative art collections; Preston Manor a large house preserved in the Edwardian style with a beautiful walled garden; The Booth Museum of natural history; and Hove Museum and Art Gallery. The Trust cares for around one million objects, many of international importance and covering a wide range of subjects and types. In this enjoyable and richly illustrated guide, Hedley Swain, the Trust’s CEO, shares highlights from The Trust’s vast collections.

Hedley Swain became the first CEO of The Royal Pavilion & Museums Trust, Brighton & Hove in November 2020. Hedley is an honorary lecturer for University College London and has lectured and published widely on museum and archaeology matters.