Eastdean and Friston is part of the electoral ward called East Dean. This ward had a population at the 2011 Census of 2,258.
The villages
East Dean lies in the valley bottom: Friston is at the top of the hill to the west. Within both villages are a large number of buildings of historic interest. The church in East Dean, dedicated to St Simon and St Jude, has a Saxon tower and an unusual Tapsel gate ; that at Friston is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. The churches have formed a united benefice since 1688. The latter contains Tudor monuments to the local family Selwyn and the grave of the composer Frank Bridge John Eric Bartholomew OBE, stage name Eric Morecambe, of Morecambe & Wise fame, can trace his descent from John Bartholomew c.1791–1854. John was a resident of Crowlink, Parish of Friston in the Census of 1841 and was living in the Parish of East Dean in the 1851 Census. John's son Henry Bartholomew 1829–1908 moved to Overton, Lancashire, near Morecambe in the late 1840s and later into Morecambe itself. Henry's third child John Bartholomew 1860–1934 was the father of George Bartholomew 1898–1976, Eric's father.
Birling Gap
Birling Gap is a coastalhamlet within the parish. It is situated on the Seven Sisters not far from Beachy Head and is owned by the National Trust. Coastal erosion has already removed some of the row of coastguard cottages built in 1878, but those that remain are still inhabited. There is a cafe, shop and visitor centre run by National Trust, and a metal staircase leading down to the enclosed pebble beach and the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs. In time, the houses are likely to be demolished due to the severe coastal erosion; the Government has concluded that the commercial value of the houses does not justify the construction of sea defences. If walkers are cut off at high tide, they can climb the ladder, which is replaced often, to Birling Gap. The beach, which was awarded the Blue flag rural beach award in 2005, is advertised by Naturist UK. It has a large number of rockpools. Noted artist Jean Cooke lived in two cottages at Birling Gap. She painted seascapes there and died in 2008 while looking at the sea. In August 2017 hundreds of people suffered ill-effects after a chemical poisoning incident.
Geography
The main rock type at Birling Gap is chalk. Other rock types outcropping here include flint, loess and soil. The coastline is part of the Site of Special Scientific InterestSeaford to Beachy Head, which falls within the parish. The site is of biological and geological interest. There is also extensive evidence and visible earthworks here for an Iron Age hillfort on the site – although nearly half of it has already been lost to the sea. Information boards at the site show how it would have originally looked; however, even more will be lost due to the geological nature of these chalk cliffs.
