Piers of the Realm

Nigel is a retired librarian and records manager and lives in the West Midlands. He spent his working life involved with information research, IT, information law and training. He has worked at universities, management consultancies, accountancy and law firms, and his last post before retiring was as information governance manager at a Birmingham NHS trust.

Nigel has long been interested in family, social, and industrial history. When he retired and was looking for a new direction, he started developing talks for a wide variety of retiree groups. He enjoys both researching and delivering talks and, wherever possible, uses primary sources such as 19th century newspapers as background.

Piers of the Realm – An Exploration of English & Welsh Seaside Pleasure Piers 

The pleasure pier is a quintessential element of our traditional seaside. This talk explores the history of the pleasure pier from the very first structure at Ryde in 1814 to the present day. Both construction techniques and destruction by fire, storm and war are considered. The unique arc Piers of the Realm – An Exploration of English & Welsh Seaside Pleasure Piers 

The pleasure pier is a quintessential element of our traditional seaside. This talk explores the history of the pleasure pier from the very first structure at Ryde in 1814 to the present day. Both construction techniques and destruction by fire, storm and war are considered. The unique architecture of piers and the entertainment they provide are highlighted and the in-depth history of several piers such as the Brighton Chain Pier and Clevedon Pier is presented. The talk includes many illustrations.

Architecture of piers and the entertainment they provide are highlighted and the in-depth history of several piers such as the Brighton Chain Pier and Clevedon Pier is presented. The talk includes many illustrations.