A woman miraculously survived when her car plunged over notorious Sussex beauty spot Beachy Head.

She was saved when her 4x4 vehicle became wedged between rocks on the cliffs near Eastbourne.

The middle-aged driver managed to free herself from her Mitsubishi Shogun and perch on a ledge as a rescue operation was launched yesterday afternoon.

Dozens of people gathered on downland above to watch the drama about 40 feet below.

Coastguard cliff rescue teams and firefighters spent more than an hour trying to reach the woman before winching her to the top, near the Beachy Head pub.

The woman, who has not been named, managed to walk to a nearby ambulance for treatment.

Police said she escaped with minor injuries, including cuts and bruises, and was last night being treated at Eastbourne District General Hospital.

How and why her vehicle went over Beachy Head is being investigated by police.

Officers appealed for witnesses who saw her come off the road to contact them.

Sergeant Lee Lyons said: "It would be fair to say she is one lucky woman.

"It is being treated as a crime scene, which is normal under the circumstances."

Onlooker Marian Stables, from Orpington, Kent, said: "It would be hard to believe this was an accident because there's quite a drive to the cliff edge."

The drama happened a short distance from the last escape at Beachy Head.

In August last year, a woman survived a 150ft fall when she landed on a rock ledge jutting out 8ft.

She suffered broken wrists, spinal injuries and cuts.

The 4x4 was stablised last night to prevent it dropping more than 500ft.

A specialist recovery team was due to winch it to the top today.

The spot where the incident happened is a short distance from where filming took place this month for the Harry Potter blockbuster The Goblet Of Fire.