Walking on the cliffs

Belle Tout

 

The Belle Tout Lighthouse was built in 1832 and decommissioned in 1902. It has been a tea-shop, a home ; part-destroyed during the second world war, was lovingly rebuilt in the 50's. In 1986, the BBC purchased the lease to Belle Tout for the filming of mini-series The Life and Loves of a She-Devil and a year later it featured in the James Bond film The living Daylights.
By 1999 the erosion of the cliffs was threatening the foundations of the building and drastic steps had to be taken to stop it from falling into the sea. On 17 March 1999 in a remarkable feat of engineering work the Belle Tout was moved 17 metres (56 ft) away from the cliff face. The 850-ton lighthouse was moved using a pioneering system of hydraulic jacks which pushed the building along four steel-topped concrete beams that were constantly lubricated with grease. The site should now be safe for many years and has been designed to enable further moves as and when they are required.
It is currently a luxury hotel.