Colin Leggo has made another great tune about Cornish place names whilst visiting the lovely county recently.
Here it is!
Great work Colin and we look forward to the next one! Check out Colin’s other videos on his You Tube Channel.
Posts Tagged 'Cornish'
Who makes the best pasty over the Tamar?
Published February 23, 2013 Cornish Produce , Food and Drink , Recipes Leave a CommentTags: Bakehouse, Cornish, Oxford, Pasty, Pasty shops, Steak, Traditional
Just a little bit of fun on this February afternoon. I (a Cornishman) have just driven into central Oxford and bought one thing…… a Cornish pasty. It was not my intention but there I was ambling down the street and all I could smell was pasties coming from a Cornish Bakehouse shop. Ansom Waz! So I bought a giant (wasn’t that big compared to me mothers) steak (yes STEAK) traditional Cornish Pasty. I had to lock it in the boot of the car to keep the smell at bay.
Still, it was proper tasty! Certainly one of the best I’ve had north of the Tamar and highly recommended.
Where ‘s your favourite pasty from north of the Tamar? Please answer below.
Looking for Valentines Inspiration?
Published February 3, 2012 Food and Drink , Photography Leave a CommentTags: Cornish, Cornish ware, Cornishware, Cornwall, Original Cornishware, T G Green, Trago Mills, Valentines presents
Well, one idea anyway. Why not treat your loved one to some Cornishware this Valentines?
Cornishware originally had blue and white bands and those colours influenced the banner at the top of this blog. Shortly after moving away from Cornwall, whilst visiting back home I was straight down to Trago Mills to get some household goods as now I had to look after myself. So, down in the aisles of Trago with various things in my basket I have probably never used I stumbled on some Cornishware. It was all seconds but suited a young bachelor like myself. So I picked up 2 mugs, my parents gave me sugar, tea and coffee jars that Christmas and my collection has grown ever since. The mug collection grew, a couple have bitten the dust, one of the survivors is sporting a chip and the other a large crack that if you left it for long enough all your tea would probably drain away. So they are now in semi retirement, and are just used when the dishwasher is full of our other mugs.
Our old mugs up by the chicken shed from when we had been mucking out - How romantic!
Cornishware is made by T. G Green and the blue and white striped design started production in the 1920 with many households having some Cornishware in their cupboards. Now the old stuff is quite collectible but T.G Green is having a bit of a revival and becoming increasingly popular and trendy! It is said that an employee of T G Green said the blue and white banding reminded them of the blue sky and white crested waves of Cornwall.
So treat your loved one (and yourself) to a pair of Cornishware mugs this Valentines – Now available in Red and White!
Past Valentines day as you read this? Doesn’t matter Cornishware makes a great gift any day of the year!
Click on their link above to take you to the T G Green website.
The Penlee Lifeboat Crew Remembered – 30 years ago today
Published December 19, 2011 A bit of history , Cornwall in the headlines , Stories Leave a CommentTags: Coast, Cornish, Cornish Wuszels, Cornwall, Mousehole, Penlee lifeboat disaster, RNLI, RNLI donations, Seth Lakeman, Solomon Browne, Union Star
The Penlee lifeboat was called to assist the crew of the Union Star, a cargo ship on her maiden voyage as she was heading towards the rocks off the Cornish coast on 19th December 1981.
The Solomon Browne and its 8 crew from Mousehole were called at around 8.15pm. Trevelyan Richards the Coxswain of the lifeboat got the Solomon Browne alongside the Union Star from where it was thrown several times onto the deck of the cargo ship before sliding off. A Sea King helicopter above the incident was watching but unable to help due to the adverse weather conditions. As the pilot of the helicopter looked on he later commented at the inquiry that ‘they were truly the greatest 8 men I have ever seen’. Eventually Trevelyan Richards got the boat alongside the Union Star and got 4 of the 8 crew off the ship and onto the lifeboat. Not content with rescuing the 4, he went back in to save the other 4 lives. At this moment as the Falmouth lifeguards were listening to the radios between the Union Star and the Solomon Browne it all went silent and something terrible had happened. Both boats were so close to the shoreline rocks and they had succumbed to the power of the sea. All 16 people were lost, 8 crew of the Union Star and the brave selfless men of the Solomon Browne.
Those men who gave their lives that night were
William ‘Trevelyan’ Richards – Coxswain
James Madron – Second Coxswain and Mechanic
Nigel Brockman – Assistant Mechanic
John Blewett – Emergency Mechanic
Charlie Greenhaugh – crew member
Kevin Smith crew member
Barrie Torrie – crew member
Gary Wallis – crew member
The following day boys and men from Mousehole were stepping forward to replace the crew of the Solomon Browne, one young man who stepped forward was the son of one of the crew who had died the night before. He later became Coxswain of the Penlee Lifeboat.
These men are still remembered annually as the lights at Mousehole are dimmed between 8pm and 9pm in memory of their sacrifices.
Many a tribute has been paid to these men on the internet and much can be found on the net. However our favourite is a song by Seth Lakeman called Solomon Browne all about that stormy night.
…and aptly Seth also played this at the Minack theatre not far from where the lives were lost.
Russell Holland has also produced this together with the Cornish Wurzels I believe. The backing singers are the crew of the current Penlee lifeboat.
Tonight at 10pm on BBC FOUR is the Cruel Sea: The Penlee Lifeboat Disaster – first screened in 2006, is an account of what happened that night with real radio footage, eye witness reports and memories of the families who lost their loved ones.
To find out more about the Penlee Lifeboat visit their website here. Finally to make a donation to the RNLI please click here , its a very worthwhile charity.
The Shipping Forecast explained… by two fat badgers!
Published December 17, 2011 A bit of history Leave a CommentTags: Coast, Cornish, Cornwall, Newlyn, photography, Radio 4, Ronald Binge, Sailing By, Sea, Shipping Forecast explained, The shipping forecast, waves
When we cannot sleep at night we often switch on the radio beside the bed and listen to Radio 4 and to whatever is being broadcast. At some point in the night there must be some kind of children’s entertainment on World Service because sometimes I awake feeling like I’m on speed as the children’s entertainment is not conducive to a good nights sleep. But more often that not if its been a late night we will doze off listening to the shipping forecast which also is not that conducive to a good night sleep…
‘PLYMOUTH SOUTHWEST 5 TO 7, OCCASIONALLY GALE 8 OR SEVERE GALE 9 IN SOUTH, VEERING NORTHWEST 4 OR 5 LATER. RAIN OR SHOWERS. MODERATE OR GOOD’
As you are dozing it’s just words that don’t always make sense so I thought I would google it and find out what it all means.
Now where do the Two Fat Badgers come into it? Well, the two fat badgers run a website which in an independent look at places to visit around the UK and pubs to visit etc. They have also done some homework on explaining the shipping forecast.
Take a look at their website here to see what it’s all about.
Finally as I’m scratching my head deciphering the shipping forecast most of the time I will fall asleep to “Sailing By” composed by Ronald Binge in 1963, and performed by the Alan Perry/William Gardner Orchestra. It’s a beautiful track and can be listened to here.
It may be cold outside but I think its going to be a quiet one tonight – sleep tight!
The sea like a mill pond - Newlyn
Word of the week and cheese of the week!
Published December 8, 2011 Cornish Produce , Food and Drink , Places to visit , Word of the week Leave a CommentTags: Cornish, Cornish Produce, Cornwall, Food and Drink, Gevrik goats cheese, goats cheese, Lobbs Farm Shop Heligan, Trevarrion, word of the week
The word Gevrik means ‘little goat’ in Cornish and is the name given to a lovely full fat goats cheese made in Trevarrion on the North Cornwall Coast. Described by the ‘cheese critics’ to have a clean and fresh taste and a wonderful nutty flavour. We bought a couple on our way to Cornwall (in Devon – Shhhh!) and enjoyed it on some oatcakes at supper time.
a quick shot of the cheese before it got devoured
The little goats cheese is produced by Cornish Country Larder who also make Brie’s and Camembert’s which I will touch on in later posts.
In the meantime check out their website here or if you wanted to try some you may be fortunate to find it in your local supermarket as many of the top supermarkets stock it in their speciality cheese range.
If not you can but it online at Lobbs Farm Shop, Heligan.
Christmas Lights at Mousehole
Published December 2, 2011 Photography , Places to visit , Uncategorized Leave a CommentTags: Christmas lights, Coast, Cornish, Cornwall, Mousehole lights, The lights of Mousehole
Now its December and I cannot contain my excitement any longer I have to tell you about the Christmas lights spectacular of Cornwall. Down in Mousehole, near Penzance the harbour is lit up with some pretty radical Christmas lights, about 7,000 in fact and the small village attracts over 30,000 visitors over the festive season. Mousehole is called Mousehole for a reason and its best to park in the car park on the approach to the village rather than driving into the centre of the village to be met by wondering pedestrians looking at the lights and wondering how to turn their cameras on (We’ve all been there!). Whilst you are in Mousehole you may want to check out the Ship Inn for a pint and some food or just have a browse around the quaint streets, galleries and gift shops. Don’t forget to take some change to give to the nice men and women in their high-vis jackets shaking a bucket, if it wasn’t for them there wouldn’t be any lights to look at!
To find our more about the Mousehole Harbour lights click here. They will be turned on at 7.30 on the 17th December for the 48th year this year!
Lichen on Cornish Rocks, Marazion
Published December 1, 2011 Photography Leave a CommentTags: Cornish, Cornish Colours, Cornish Geology, Cornish Lichen, Cornish Rocks, Cornwall, Lichen, Marazion
I love the weathered and battered rocks around the Cornish coast, the colours and textures of the lichen are beautiful. Here is a small series of images I took on Marazion beach opposite St Michael’s mount . If you love lichen you must check out this website about British lichens. Enjoy!
a Cornish poem called…
Published November 13, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a CommentTags: Cornish, Cornish poems
This will make you smile!
I find it facinating the search terms people use that take them to my blog, some people will write say ‘storms portmellon’ and that will take them to ‘My Saffron Bun’ where they can see my post on A Stormy Portmellon. Then every once is a while I see a search term that I wonder how on earth it ever led that person to my blog or more to the point why they were searching for such a term.
So today someone, somewhere searched for a Cornish Poem called Lard. If you are that person and you found the poem, I would love to hear from you and I will post it here!
My Saffron Bun 