Ford Mk1 Cortina - Cuts out when idling and struggles to start?

hey Ben heres a few things to look at that may cure that problem, change your plugs, wires, distributer cap and rotor on, check your coil wire and connections, check the points and condenser for proper gap and that theres no corrosion under the condenser, also check that your battery cables are tight and not corroded ( green or white powdery looking substance on them ) and last check for vacuum leaks... if all checks out good then its a matter of carburetor adjustment or distributer timming