Beachy Head

Beachy Head is the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain, plunging 162 metres straight into the English Channel near Eastbourne in East Sussex. Part of the South Downs National Park, it forms the eastern terminus of the Seven Sisters chalk cliff sequence, a coastline shaped by Jurassic-era marine deposits and still eroding at roughly one metre per year. The red-and-white striped lighthouse at its base, completed in 1902, is now only accessible by boat — earlier cliff-top predecessors were abandoned as the edge crept closer. The headland carries a darker reputation as one of Europe's most frequented suicide sites, prompting a voluntary chaplaincy patrol. For walkers, the South Downs Way traces the cliff edge here, offering some of the most dramatic coastal panoramas in southern England.