Millions of people pass through Brighton train station every year, but how many are aware of the secrets hidden beneath their feet? Hidden beneath the tracks are mosaic bathrooms, World War II communications rooms and even a firing range.
Brighton's network of underground secrets extends far across the city: a Victorian sewer, a hidden road, and tunnels beneath the Royal Pavilion, rumored to have been built for King George IV to meet his mistress.
The BBC got special access to this seaside maze to find out what it reveals about the city above it. "No one had any idea this could be here," says tour guide Rob Whitehead, fumbling through a bunch of keys before unlocking the door from the busy station concourse.
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It leads to a staircase that is now dilapidated, but once glistened with turquoise tiles. Posters still hang on the walls informing passengers that the crossing will close in 2005. Downstairs are the station's former public toilets, the old Trafalgar Street entrances and a ladies' hairdressing salon - all of which now serve as storage areas for the stores above.
Farther back into the station, a paved road runs along its old east wall. "This is how the old horse-drawn carriages used to get up to the platform," says Rob. "A new outer wall was added when the station was expanded, so the road was hidden."
Brighton Station was built in 1840, but it wasn't until 1928 that toilets and faded mosaics were added.
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Another abandoned space is a former service tunnel at the back of the station, which used to be used for loading goods onto trains but was converted during World War II. "They moved all the telecommunications for the railroad here," Rob explains. "If the station was bombed, they could work from this room."
But at the far end of the tunnel is the station's best-kept secret. "The slight rumble of the train can be heard over our heads," Rob says. "It's a very secluded place, so a shooting range is the perfect use for this space." Built for recreational shooting in the late 1940s, the range is still used by the shooting club today.
The station played a key role in connecting Brighton to the rest of the UK, by 1850 it had grown from a fishing village to a center with a population of over 60,000 and became a tourist hotspot.
Thousands of people traveled here from London as the sea water was rumored to have healing properties.
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But at the time, sewage flowed from houses into cesspools. It wasn't until the late 1800s that engineers built a 48-kilometer-long sewer network near Brighton that cost ?104,000, the equivalent of ?14.7 million today.
This allowed the sewage to flow away from the houses into the sea. The sewage system is still in operation today, although the sewage is treated at a new plant in Mirhaven.
In the 18th century, Brighton became a popular vacation spot for the royal family. The Royal Pavilion was built in 1787 for Prince George IV of Wales, who became Prince Regent in 1811 and King George IV in 1820.
Underneath the pavilion is a network of tunnels that were used in various ways, from storing dirty laundry to accessing George's private bedroom. It was rumored that King George IV built the tunnel to secretly walk underground to the home of Maria Fitzherbet, his lover.
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But Dan Cox, chief tour guide at Brighton and Hove Museums, said those rumors are unfounded. "I'm sorry to disappoint people," he said. "There was nothing secret about their relationship."
However, the King spent ?1,783, the equivalent of ?16,4082 today, on a tunnel to hide his servants from the gardens as they passed between the Pavilion and the stables where the popular Brighton Dome concert venue now stands.
According to Dan, Pavilion staff continue to uncover the building's secrets, which means some of Brighton's buried secrets have yet to be revealed.