Port Isaac - 'The roughest place in Cornwall!'
“When I was a boy at Port Isaac, no visitors came to the place for a holiday. If a stranger did come into the village all the women would put their heads out of the windows and ask, oos’ee! Port Isaac in those days was the roughest place in Cornwall.”These are the words of Herbert Brown and relate to his childhood growing up in Port Isaac during the 1880’s
Herbert goes on to say “The sport we all took an interest in was cock fighting, of a Sunday morning. There were no restrictions, sometimes the owners used to set to at one another after their birds had finished, and I’ve seen the Town Platt there covered in blood and hair!”
We were intrigued by this, how does a village go from being the roughest place in Cornwall to one of the most popular and idyllic tourist spots in the county?
In this video we chart the rise of tourism in Port Isaac looking at how the village has changed over the years, we walk the streets and alleyways comparing photos from the early 1900’s with the scene today, discover the key role the railway played in the birth of tourism here and use a guide from the 1950’s to look at the accommodation available for visitors.
In recent times Port Isaac has been popularised on TV being portrayed as Port Wenn the fictional Cornish village of Doc Martin, being fans of the ‘Doc’ we couldn’t resist the opportunity to go in search of some of the buildings used during the filming of the series.
Our video is called ‘Port Isaac, the roughest place in Cornwall!” We hope you enjoy watching Sarah & Andrew.
Etsy Shop: for sea glass projects and other artwork created by Sarah
The standard description bit…
We are Sarah and Andrew and we film our walks around Cornwall and publish on YouTube, usually weekly. Sometimes we stay in accommodation in Cornwall and upload our vlog. Sarah is fascinated by sea glass and likes to collect it so there may be the occasional sea glass video too. The channel is a hobby and we both have normal day jobs!
Frequently asked questions:
What camera do we use?
Since December 2018 we have used: Canon Powershot G7x MkII
How do I find the books you use?
Most are still in print although some we pick up in charity shops and may be available on Amazon secondhand. Please refer to the video for the book titles. Every video shows the book three times. Sorry but we can’t put a link in every description.
Best time of year to visit Cornwall?
We love May, June for flora and fauna, July and September for spectacular scenery.
What is your dog’s name?
Sorry but we do not release the name of our dog, perhaps you can make up your own name for him.
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Contact us by email: cornishwalkingtrails@gmail.com
Etsy Shop: for sea glass projects and other artwork created by Sarah
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