text: what are the 39 steps?   'the 39 steps' is a book by john buchan. three film version have been made of it. all of the films have changed parts of the book. the 1978 film version did end in big ben but this is not 'the 39 steps'. its generally regarded as the worst of the 3 films, however a fourth is in production. big ben has more steps but this part is not currently open to the public.   the 39 steps is in a small coast town in kent. its a path down a cliff where you could leave / join your waiting boat.