Pirates at Porthcurno!

Pirates at Porthcurno!

Just ahead of Christmas, Cornish Pirates squad members and personnel once again greatly appreciated a full Christmas dinner at the Logan Rock Inn, courtesy of the always supportive hosts Anita and Peter George.

Ready for Christmas dinner at the Logan Rock Inn, plus Jack Richards and Alan Paver holding a framed photograph spotted by Alan of Jack playing cricket for England – Photos: Brian Tempest

Also, this year, in the morning the group thoroughly enjoyed two real treats that a visit to nearby Porthcurno offers. A swim on the glorious beach was at this time of the year perhaps not an option, however firstly visiting the Telegraph Museum and then the Minack Theatre proved so very interesting.

The tiny Cornish village of Porthcurno, once the heart of international telecommunications, incredibly boasted the largest telegraph station in the world, and capturing that history from past to present is the accessible Telegraph Museum. The Pirates were warmly welcomed by Gareth Parry, Chair of the Board, and his colleagues, and it is a truly vibrant and captivating heritage attraction. Also, of no surprise, it recently won the Gold Award for Small Attraction of the Year in the Cornwall Tourism Awards.

Working out Morse Code – also listening and learning from Gareth Parry

Besides the actual museum, which is open every day during the summer and part-time over winter, including during Christmas, there is also a shop and café. For more information please visit https://telegraphmuseum.org/

The second treat was a visit to the Minack Theatre, where everyone was warmly welcomed by a familiar face in Manager Phil Jackson, who is a match day volunteer for the Cornish Pirates.
The history of the theatre is a fascinating one, having been a venue carved in the cliff back in the early 1930s by Rowena Cade, who lived in Minack House. She decided that the cliff below her garden would be the perfect setting for a theatre and, over the winter of 1931 and into 1932, she and her gardener Billy Rawlings moved endless granite boulders and earth, creating the lower terraces of the theatre, much as they are today.

The theatre has seen big changes over the years but if a member of the audience from the very first performance on the 16t August 1932 were to visit the theatre today, they would certainly recognise the place.

For one member among the Pirates group, the club’s Finance Director Rebecca Thomas, the visit was a return to a theatre where last May she performed with the Redruth Amateur Operatic Society in their production of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’, which was to receive the Minack’s chosen ‘Show of the Year’ award.

Phil Jackson addresses the Pirates – and Rebecca on her return to the Minack

The Minack Theatre is open every day of the year but for Christmas Day and Boxing Day. The link for more further details is https://www.minack.com/

Now, back to the nearby award-winning Logan Rock Inn, which is a wonderfully atmospheric 16th century pub, serving a variety of real ales and excellent home cooked food. It is named after the famous Logan Rock that stands on the cliff just a short walk away from the picturesque village of Treen. Again, to check out further information please visit http://www.theloganrockinn.co.uk/