YouTuber criticised for camping near cliff that regularly crumbles into sea

A YouTuber has been slammed for camping just a foot from the edge of a dangerous cliff that regularly crumbles into the sea.

Liam Brown set up his tent and cooking stove close to the more than 500ft drop off the edge near Beachy Head on the East Sussex coast.

He spent the night in the South Downs National Park near Eastbourne erecting a tent, before cooking dinner on a camping stove. In the video that has so far gained more than 12,000 views online, Liam pitched his tent near the cliff, before posing for a picture sitting on the edge with his feet dangling off.

Liam, whose hiking and camping videos have amassed more than nine million views, uploaded footage yesterday (Sunday 12th May). After waking up, Liam walked over to the edge and peered over the edge of the cliff as he went on another hike around the picturesque area.

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Hiking & wild camping in the South Downswww.youtube.com

One snap posted on Twitter showed him walking a couple of metres from the edge and in another Liam stood with his back to the ocean.

Coastal erosion has caused tonnes of the chalk cliff to tumble into the sea in recent years, with around 50 similar incidents taking place between April 2020 and 2021.

There were also some 13 incidents of hikers becoming stranded on the beach below after being cut off by the tide. Last August a large section of cliff at nearby Birling Gap fell off causing a footpath to a famous lighthouse - that was already moved back 50 metres in 1998 - to be cut off.

HM Coastguard said the size of the fall illustrated the dangers of going too close to cliff edges, following a recent surge in people leaning over the edge.

Despite the dangers, more than 350,000 visitors go to the cliffs at Birling Gap and Seven Sisters every year - adding to the strain on the beauty spot.

On Instagram and Twitter, Liam also posted a string of pictures of his trip, with the caption: “You can't beat a bit of camping next to the ocean, even if you're tent's a foot away from the edge.” After erecting his tent, he told the camera: “We are quite literally a metre away from that cliff, so hopefully it doesn’t fall.”

In the 22-minute film titled ‘Hiking and wild camping in the South Downs’, Liam can then be seen eating breakfast and packing away his tent.

His channel - has 117,000 subscribers on the platform - used the tagline “I become uncomfortable being comfortable”.

The YouTuber has since received a backlash from concerned members of the public, who branded him an "idiot".

One viewer said: "Stupid and dangerous to camp so close to that cliff edge. Chalk erosion and cliff falls are common in that area.

"Emergency services have better things to do than picking injured or dead idiots off the rocks below.”

One commenter added: "Idiot of the week."

While another wrote: "Have you got a death wish?"

Another user posted a meme of someone hanging off a cliff, with the caption: "Natural selection in progress."

In the description of the video, Liam added: “This was one of the most picturesque camping spots I have ever stayed at.

“I plan on wild camping in all 15 of the UK's national parks - this time it was the South Downs; 13 down, two to go.”

Since beginning the channel last June, Liam has uploaded videos of him camping in Dartmoor in Devon, the New Forest that covers Hampshire and Wiltshire as well as Exmoor in the south west and John O'Groats in Scotland.

SWNS Reporting by Chris Dyer

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