THE most difficult house move in Sussex is over.

And the Roberts family are looking forward to getting back to normal now their lighthouse home has been saved from falling into the sea.

Work to transport the 165-year-old Belle Tout 50 feet inland from the edge of Beachy Head was completed at 2.20pm yesterday.

And for Mark and Louise Roberts it was a happy end to a two-and-a-half-year struggle to rescue the structure from the effects of coastal erosion.

Before the move, which started on Wednesday, the lighthouse was only ten feet from the brink of the 285ft cliff.

Mark, 34, said: "It's great to have all the work finished at last. It's a whole world away from all the worry we've had recently.

"We can put three long days behind us now."

Belle Tout's new position is expected to guarantee its safety for at least the next 50 years.

But new underlining means it could be shunted further inland on girders in the event of future rockfalls.

Mark said: "Now Belle Tout is safe for the rest of our lives and, more importantly, its owners after we've gone will sleep a bit more easily in their beds."

Workmen will lower Belle Tout two feet on to its new foundations early next week.

And it should reopen as a bed and breakfast on May 1.

It is a far cry from last November when the Roberts family had to run for their lives after a 25ft section of cliff crumbled early one morning.

Efforts to move Belle Tout, originally set for the summer, had to be brought forward to this week.

Engineers were working round the clock to prepare for the move until former owner Joy Cullinan, 93, pulled the lever for the hydraulic pumps at 9.15am on Wednesday.

Television viewers from around the world watched the move, believed to be the first of its kind for a lighthouse, as cameramen filmed the whole day's events.

But yesterday afternoon the crowds had all gone and a relieved Louise, 30, said: "We'll never get all this sort of attention again and in a way we've enjoyed it all.

"Even so, it will be nice to get back to normal once again."

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