A Blog about Cornwall's Hidden Places & Untold Stories
A few years ago I visited the Tower of London and for some reason, with all its 1000 years of history, all those momentous episodes that have played out within its walls, the one memory that sticks with me is standing on the spot where Anne Boleyn lost her head. I find her a fascinating […]
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Charlestown is one of the most picturesque of Cornwall’s many harbours. Now well known as a set for film and television productions, perhaps most famously in the BBC’s Poldark, it was once a fishing village and a busy port from which ships sailed with their cargo to destinations across the globe. But don’t ask me […]
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Over a period of twenty years at least eight men and one woman are known to have escaped from Helston Prison. Considering the gaol was only open for twenty-nine years in total that seems a pretty poor track record. In fact, while compiling this article I haven’t really come across many other instances of prison […]
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The deeply wooded banks of the upper reaches of the River Fal are a quiet, sparsely populated place. A place where the pace of life can seems as timeless as the stealthy creep of the tide over the mudflats. There are many hidden corners in this part of Cornwall, places where you can escape the […]
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Beside the dead-end road to Restronguet Barton near Mylor, tucked away under trees and painted bright white, there is a stone cross. This small monument was erected here in 1948 by a group of Ukrainians who had been living and working in the area in the post-war era. This cross was as much a symbol […]
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The church of St Grada and the Holy Cross stands on high ground above Cadgwith Cove. Surrounded by fields with a view of the sea, it is a peaceful place that can only be reached on foot. Although it has been dedicated to Saint Grada since 1310, the church is thought to have had an […]
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With so many well known prehistoric sites on Bodmin Moor and Penwith it is easy to imagine that the central region in between, around Falmouth, Redruth and Truro, is devoid of ancient monuments. However, they are there if you know where to look. Rather than standing alone with a backdrop of dramatic moorland, these relics […]
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When Margaret Kennedy published her ninth novel The Feast in 1950 it was met with considerable fanfare. It had been more than twelve years since her last, The Midas Touch, had been released and fans of her work were desperate for more of her writing. Set in a Cornish hotel after the Second World War […]
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The Helford River is fringed by beautiful ancient woodland. Dominated by oak trees, each of these woods has its own name and its own history. There is Bonallack, Bosahan, Calamansack, Carminowe, Merthen and Roskymmer, old Cornish names that dance on the tongue. Most remain untouched, home to rabbits, the odd deer and perhaps a clamour […]
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On the 19th May 1845 the greatest Arctic expedition ever planned set off from England, its mission – to find to elusive North-West Passage. This was the most technologically advanced and best-equipped enterprise of its age and, despite the failure of many previous attempts, the Admiralty and all those aboard the HMS Erebus and HMS […]
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