Most city centres are cultural deserts, packed with the same old high street shop brands and retailers. Yawn, yawn, yawn. But we're lucky in Brighton & Hove.

Our city is jammed solid with fantstic independent shops and curious eccentric destinations, something more than just a little bit different.

Fed up with following the herd? Come and visit Brighton & Hove and enjoy the weirder side of life!

Anna’s Museum, Upper North Street

Trundle along Upper North Street, parallel to Western Road at the Churchill Square end, and you’ll find Anna’s Museum: point yourself east, walk along the right hand side of the road and there it is, a fantastic collection of strange, weird and wonderful things including skulls, shells, eggs, teeth and bones, all collected by thirteen year old Anna. 

Her ‘museum’ is displayed in the window of a private house, all with handwritten labels. Fabulous – she’s obviously a very clever girl. It isn’t open to the public but well worth a squint through the window into Anna’s remarkable and thoroughly quirky world.

The fruit and veg shop on London Rd

If you’re of an aesthetic persuasion you’ll adore the fruit and veg store on London Road, on the right hand side as you go north, in the section between St Peter’s Church and the old Co-op.

They stock a splendid variety of everyday and exotic fruits, vegetable and foods, all displayed in a stunning splash of colour, all supremely fresh. Worth popping in for the fragrance alone! 

The Yellow Shop, Oxford St

The friendly man in The Yellow Shop can replace your watch batteries, mend the strap and take out links, and it’s all as cheap as chips.

It’s a crazy little place, absolutely spotless, packed to the ceiling with handy bits and bobs including decorative baccy tins, alarm clocks and wall clocks, strange, weird and wonderful ornaments and more, all sold with a smile.

It also seems to be a popular meeting place for local eccentrics, which is great fun, so you can expect unusual, off-beat and off-the-wall conversation while you’re there.

The Perspex Shop

The Perspex Shop on New Road, on your left as you go uphill, just after the junction with Bond Street turn off, is one of those fabulous old-fashioned places where the people behind the counter know absolutely everything there is to know about the stuff they sell, a bit like a Perspex-only version of Dockerills, just down the hill.

They stock every conceivable colour and thickness of Perspex and can cut it to any size or shape you like, perfect for craft projects as well as home DIY.  

C&H fabrics’ haberdashery department

Wind your way up the carpeted stairs to the second and third floors at C&H Fabrics on Western Road, on your right on the way to Hove, and you’ll discover a treasure trove of beautiful and unusual craft materials. Everything from jewel-coloured wools and embroidery threads to silk flowers, beads and buttons, faux jewels, tapestry materials, you name it they have it.

Craft kits, lamp-making accessories, felt, glues, beads, feathers, trimmings, sewing stuff… you can easily spend an hour in there browsing,  a real little paradise for arty and crafty types. 

Ecostream - The Refill Store

Only in Brighton (hidden presently!) can you walk into a shop with empty bottles and walk out with your weekly shopping... Ecostream, the Refill Store on Western Road is a new concept in retail where not only can you save money by dispensing with unnecessary packaging, you can also find a wide variety of everyday food & groceries, many items sourced locally in Sussex. Thus eco-friendly, practical and saving money in lots of ways - what is not to like? Ecostream is at 142 Western Road, BN1 2LA Brighton.