Lighthouse Observatory (1963)

Portland Bill, Dorset. M/S of birds in a hedgerow. A Volkswagen van pulls up in front of the entrance to the lighthouse. Tilt up lighthouse - good shot! Interior. C/U of feet going up the lighthouse stairs. A man and woman, Dr. and Mrs. Ash, emerge onto a balcony at the top of the lighthouse and look through a telescope. Inside the lighthouse, a woman makes her bed and goes over to a dressing table. The lighthouse no longer guides ships; it is a bird observatory with “all the comforts of home“, the Portland Bird Observatory and Field Centre. L/S, from the lighthouse top, of men beating hedges covered by chicken wire to frighten the birds out. M/S of man inside the chicken wire cage encouraging a bird into a trap. He takes the bird, a goldfinch, out of the trap and examines its wings. Another man measures a chaffinch’s wings before releasing it. The ornithologists featured are named in the paperwork as Dr. and Mrs. Godfrey and Tasy Landesdown. Cuts exist - please see sep