On Wed, 28 Aug 2013 17:30:09 +0100, David Hill wrote:

The strange thing is they were heading North East.

Is it that odd? Maybe they don't like crossing large bits of open
water so head off towards England before Kent and the shortest
crossing of the English Channel that they have no choice but to make.

A lot of birds that migrate Europe to/from Africa avoid crossing the
Mediterranean but stick to land going round the eastern end or cross
at the straights of Gibraltar.

--
Cheers
Dave.