Beachy Head

The beautiful 400 foot tall chalk cliff Beachy Head on the southern coast of Britain is not only a popular tourist spot, but also a favourite suicide location. Over the past 35 years, more than 360 people have ‘fallen off’, a medical archivist explains in this documentary. That is an annual average of around ten, but in the last 20 years, this number has increased to 17. Only two jumpers have survived the fall. Documentary filmmaker Roel van Broekhoven visits them both. Bill, who jumped about five years ago, ‘only’ broke his back. Still, he is glad to be alive. Steve was saved six months ago. He is unable to fathom why his suicide attempts keep failing. Furthermore, Van Broekhoven interviews police officers who sometimes manage to persuade people not to jump in the nick of time, and he follows members of the coast guard who retrieve the dead bodies. Cameraman Martijn van Beenen was responsible for the gorgeous photography of the picturesque landscape, which is not to blame for so many people looking for and finding their end here. Bill tries to explain what a jump from the cliff signifies. ‘It’s not a trip to paradise’, he says, ‘it’s a way out of hell.’ At the end, he dedicates a stark song to the retired holidaymakers in neighbouring Eastbourne, who do their best to make the most of their lives.