Chideock

Chideock is a village in south-west Dorset, 2.5 miles (4 km) west of Bridport and 5 miles (8 km) east of Lyme Regis, 0.75 miles (1.2 km) inland from the English Channel. It had 618 residents in 2021. The parish lies in the Dorset National Landscape and includes part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.

The coast is at Seatown, less than a mile south, which has a long shelving pebble beach. Above it rises Golden Cap, 191 metres (627 ft), the highest point within a mile of the south coast of Great Britain. A coastal footpath from Seatown reaches the summit in around 40 minutes, and the National Trust owns the hill. Fossil ammonites and belemnites turn up on the beach as the soft blue lias cliffs erode. The Anchor Inn stands right by the beach at Seatown.

Chideock has a strong Catholic history. John de Chideock built Chideock Castle just north of the village in 1379 to 1380, and its earthworks are a scheduled monument. The moat survives in a field reached by Ruins Lane, marked by a crucifix in memory of the Chideock Martyrs, five Catholic men who were beatified on 15 December 1929. The Catholic church of Our Lady Queen of Martyrs and St Ignatius was built in 1870 to 1872 in an unusual Romanesque style, and the Grade I listed St Giles dates from the 14th and 15th centuries.

The Clock Inn serves food and drink in the village and welcomes dogs throughout. The A35 passes through Chideock, so the main street can be busy with traffic.