1850s•St Columb Major
The Hurling of St Columb: The Wildest Game in Britain
Every Shrove Tuesday and the following Saturday, the town of St Columb Major transforms into a battleground for one of the oldest and most violent sports in Bri...
Ben
2m0
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Ben
Member since January 202621 stories
This is me. Ben.
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Stories by Ben
1990s•Falmouth
The Great Eclipse of 1999: When Cornwall Went Dark
On August 11th, 1999, Cornwall experienced the first total solar eclipse visible from mainland Britain since 1927. For two minutes and four seconds, day became ...
Ben
2m0
1850s•Redruth
The Cornish Pasty: A Miner's Portable Feast
The Cornish pasty is more than food — it's a piece of engineering designed for the most dangerous workplace in the world: the tin mine. The crimped crust tha...
Ben
2m1
1940s•Fowey
Daphne du Maurier: The Writer Who Made Cornwall Famous
When Daphne du Maurier first saw the ruins of Menabilly House near Fowey in 1927, she was twenty years old and instantly bewitched. "I stood there like someone ...
Ben
2m1
1490s•St Keverne
An Gof and the Cornish Rebellion of 1497
In the summer of 1497, 15,000 Cornishmen marched on London. They were led by a blacksmith from St Keverne named Michael An Gof (which means "The Smith" in Corni...
Ben
2m0
1780s•The Lizard
The Wreckers: Truth Behind Cornwall's Darkest Legend
The image of Cornish villagers luring ships onto the rocks with false lights is one of the most persistent legends of the county. But how much of it is true? ...
Ben
2m0
1990s•Bodmin Moor
The Beast of Bodmin Moor: Cornwall's Mysterious Big Cat
Since the 1970s, hundreds of people have reported seeing a large black cat roaming the wild expanses of Bodmin Moor. Farmers have found livestock killed with wo...
Ben
2m0
1900s•Mousehole
The Death and Resurrection of the Cornish Language
In 1777, Dolly Pentreath of Mousehole died. She is traditionally remembered as the last native speaker of Cornish — the ancient Celtic language that had been sp...
Ben
2m0
1910s•Mevagissey
The Lost Gardens of Heligan: Sleeping Beauty Awakened
In 1990, Tim Smit was exploring the overgrown grounds of a derelict Cornish estate when he found something extraordinary: a door hidden beneath brambles, and be...
Ben
2m0
1910s•Camborne
Dolcoath Mine: The Queen of Cornish Mines
For over 400 years, Dolcoath Mine near Camborne was the deepest, richest, and most famous tin and copper mine in Cornwall — and arguably the world. The Cornish ...
Ben
2m0
1960s•Land's End
The Torrey Canyon: The Day the Sea Turned Black
On the morning of March 18th, 1967, the supertanker Torrey Canyon struck Pollard's Rock on the Seven Stones reef between Land's End and the Isles of Scilly. She...
Ben
2m0
1800s•Mousehole
Tom Bawcock's Eve: The Fisherman Who Saved a Village
Every December 23rd, the village of Mousehole celebrates Tom Bawcock's Eve with a peculiar dish called Stargazy Pie — a fish pie with whole pilchards poking the...
Ben
2m0
1800s•Camborne
Richard Trevithick: The Cornishman Who Invented the Steam Age
On Christmas Eve, 1801, a crowd gathered on the road above Camborne to witness something that had never been seen before in all of human history: a machine that...
Ben
2m0
1980s•Mousehole
The Penlee Lifeboat Disaster: Eight Men Who Never Came Home
On the night of December 19th, 1981, the worst storm in living memory battered the Cornish coast. Hurricane-force winds drove mountainous seas against the cliff...
Ben
2m0
1960s•Mousehole
The Mousehole Christmas Lights: A Village's Gift to the World
Every December, the tiny fishing village of Mousehole transforms into something magical. Thousands of lights illuminate the harbour, telling stories in light — ...
Ben
2m1
1800s•Padstow
The Obby Oss: Padstow's Ancient May Day Ritual
Every year on May 1st, the fishing town of Padstow erupts into one of the oldest and strangest celebrations in Britain. The Obby Oss — the "Hobby Horse" — dance...
Ben
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1990s•Redruth
Cornish Rugby: Where the Whole County Is a Team
Cornwall has never had a professional rugby team. It doesn't need one. When the county team plays, the whole of Cornwall turns out. The County Championship h...
Ben
2m0
500s•Perranporth
St Piran: Cornwall's Patron Saint and His Magical Discovery
Cornwall's patron saint arrived, legend says, floating across the Irish Sea on a millstone. St Piran had been thrown from a cliff by Irish pagans who objected t...
Ben
2m0
1890s•Truro
The Great Blizzard of 1891
In March 1891, Cornwall experienced one of the most devastating blizzards in its recorded history. For four days, from the 9th to the 13th of March, snow fell r...
Ben
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2020s•Illogan
Northern lights in Cornwall
Last week, we had the immense privilege of witnessing a spectacular display in our Cornish sky. As I stood there, gazing upward, I could hardly believe my eyes....
Ben
2m2
1900s•Newlyn
Newlyn: Where Cornwall Still Goes to Sea
Photo: AI-generated illustrationBefore dawn, when most of Cornwall is still sleeping, the fish auction at Newlyn is already in full swing. Buyers crowd around b...
Ben
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