County Durham - Cliff Bottom

Series

Series Name
Mining Review 19th Year

Issue

Issue No.
10
Date Released
Jun 1966
Stories in this Issue:
  1. 1County Durham - Cliff Bottom
  2. 2Tom McGuinness
  3. 3Merseyside - Fashion City
  4. 4Northumberland - Throckley works

Story

Story No. within this Issue
1 / 4
Summary
BFI synopsis: The marine grotto on Durham’s coast is a noted pleasure spot for Durham miners and holiday-makers. Views of Marsden beach, Marsden Rock (arch rock formation), caves and cliffs; horses racing along beach; grave of Peter Allan who blasted out more caves. View from beach of the Marine Grotto building with lift going up cliff. View from cliff top of the lift. People get into lift, view from lift as it goes down of the beach and seashore, pans left to show beach and sea. Scenes in the bar of the grotto, woman hands out pints as men and women sit drinking intercut with views of fish and carvings on the cave walls, the few young women featured have heavy eye makeup. Three girls lean over rocks with the lift in the background. Waves on beach; boys run from waves; sea coal on the beach; boys throw stones into sea; horses race to camera.
NCB Commentary - The spectacular Durham coastline offers wide views out across the North Sea.
At Marsden, the relentless pounding of the waves has hollowed out the cliffs into rocky grottoes, rich in legend handed down over the centuries.
Successive generations of smuggler, quarry men and miners all did their part in further extending nature’s work until, in 1828, Peter Allen finished the job by blasting out 15 chambers in the rocky cliffs.
Today the place is known as the Marine Grotto.
For many miners and their families who visit this noted pleasure spot the ride down from cliff top is reminiscent of the start of another day’s shift - but this time out in the open air where the scenery’s certainly more congenial.
At cliff bottom the door opens on to relaxation. Five bars look after visitors’ needs in the honey-comb of galleries and chambers, and each has its own store of legend and history.
If you drink like a fisg, don’t go to Marsden Grotto. You’ll be overlooked.
And outside, under the eyes of holiday makers and local visitors, the sea carries on its endless fight against the coastline.
As the waves retreat they still leave behind pieces of sea coal, as they have done for thousands of years, reminders of the riches still being won even deeper under Durham’s shore.
Keywords
Entertainment and leisure; Mining
Locations
England; County Durham
Written sources
British Film Institute Databases   Used for synopsis
The National Archives COAL 32   /13 Scripts for Mining Review, 1960-1963
Credits:
Sponsor
National Coal Board
Production Co.
National Coal Board Film Unit

Record Stats

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