The new owner of Hastings Pier plans to turn it into a "Covent Garden by the sea".

It has been little more than a month since Ian Stuart signed on the dotted line to save the dilapidated historic seaside attraction.

Already the 50-year-old Andorran businessman has kick-started a huge operation to restore the pier to its former glory.

Hastings-based engineering firm Quadmost is handling the painstaking job of replacing the metal supports and boarding which have suffered from years of buffeting from the elements.

But it is above decks where the most noticeable changes will take place.

The arcade machines and video games will make way for bars, cafes, a theatre and a lavish ballroom.

Mr Stuart is in no doubt the radical change in direction for the 1873 Eugenius Birch-designed pier is the right one.

He said: "The new pier will have buskers and cafes instead of amusements. It will be very much a Covent Garden by the sea.

"I want it to be somewhere families can go without necessarily having to part with their cash.

"I'm lucky to be in a position where I don't have to worry about people having to spend money. I just want to restore the pier to what it once was."

The exact look of the finished pier remains a mystery as Mr Stuart does not work from drawings and refuses to submit plans to Hastings Borough Council.

Councillors attended a site visit last week but none have voiced any objections to the scheme.

Mr Stuart said: "We haven't got time to talk to people about what should or shouldn't be done. I have told the council we will build the pier and if they don't like it we will change it."