The Crumbles

I grew up in a house that was built on the shingle of Eastbourne’s crumbles.  This wasn’t my first home, that was another house in another part of Eastbourne, but since the age of three this was home.  In those days the crumbles covered an enormous expanse of land from the sea shore of Eastbourne to Pevensey Bay and beyond and, in some parts such as where I lived, to a mile or so inland.  My road was one of the first to be built on the shingle and throughout my early childhood we could look out of our house right across the crumbles with nothing but shingle beach between us and the sea, which was visible from the upstairs bedrooms. 

Sadly, there is little left to see of the crumbles.  It is now largely buried under various housing developments, a school, the long awaited (and fabulous!) Sovereign Harbour, and the swimming pool, all with their obligatory car parks.    

Adjacent to Sovereign Harbour is a retail park currently called; The Crumbles Retail Park.  OK, so it’s just another shopping centre but with so much of the real crumbles gone it’s comforting to know that the history of the area is at least acknowledged in the name.  But for how long? 

Developers are moving in again.  They intend to give the shopping centre a facelift and with the facelift they want to give it a new name.  Their suggestion is, wait for it, SOVEREIGN CENTRAL.  Yikes!