Man dies after New Year's Day swim at Brighton beach

A man has died after getting into difficulty at Brighton beach on New Year's Day.

Sussex Police were alerted to a man having been recovered from the sea after getting into difficulty at around 10.35 on the morning of Thursday, 1 January.

He had been in the water to the west of Brighton Palace Pier, the force said.

The 51-year-old man from Kettering in Northamptonshire was brought to shore and received medical attention, but was pronounced dead at the scene.

His next of kin and the coroner have been informed.

The death is not being treated as suspicious.

A spokesperson from HM Coastguard said it was first alerted to "an incident involving a male swimmer in difficulty in the water" at about 10.10am.

"Coastguard rescue teams from Shoreham and Newhaven were sent alongside Brighton RNLI [Royal National Lifeboat Institution] inshore lifeboat."

It comes after Devon and Cornwall Police over Christmas urged people to avoid coastal swimming after two men, in their 40s and 60s, went missing in the water off a beach in Devon on Christmas morning.

The search for them was called off on the evening of Christmas Day.

(c) Sky News 2026: Man dies after New Year's Day swim at Brighton beach