A rare catch off Clovelly Shores
Two Bonito Tuna were caught in a swing net off the coast of Clovelly by Clovelly Harbour Master and fisherman, Stephen Perham, on the 11th and 12th July.
Both fish were 500 mm long and 1 kg in weight.
Baby donkey, Peter
Sinead, mother of Kiwi, her first mare foal born in August 2008, gave birth again on Friday, 22nd May, 2010. He has been named Peter after his father, Pierre.
Sue and Bart Kelly run the Clovelly stables and are both delighted
with the arrival of a second foal as part of their new breeding programme.
Christmas Lights, Sunday 6 December
Another lucky window in the weather. Hundreds of visitors joined the procession headed by a local brass band as it made its way down the cobbles to the harbour where carols were sung.
This year a Ship of Lights was launched by a local schoolchild, winner of a seafaring competition. There was hot punch, a beach hog roast, mince pies and treats for the children and Father Christmas made a surprise appearance.
Organiser, Vivien Foster, said "it was a fabulous event with a lovely buzz and we have raised in excess of £1750.00 for the R.N.L.I."
At 5 p.m. the switch was thrown to light up the village and harbour with the sparkle of Christmas. And to round it all off, there was a spectacular finale of fireworks.
Clovelly Herring Festival, Sunday 15th November
Part of the A.O.N.B.'s 50th anniversary celebrations
Hundreds of visitors flocked to our annual festival, held in support of sustainable fishing, to sample the herring specialities on offer and be regaled by traditional shanty singing, the very essence of seafaring life. Fishermen's Friends of Port Isaac, Shake a Leg of Bideford and Hanging Johnny of Plymouth were in great form belting out the salty songs while Stiltskin Theatre's 'Singing Fishwives' provided further entertainment with their masked walkabout performances.
Mike Smylie, www.kipperman.co.uk , came along with his Kipperland exhibition of the history of herring fishing and smokehouse, producing delicious kippers and bloaters for sale.
Simon Cooper, www.courtofthesilverking.co.uk (a ten year research into ancient fishing methods), brought along a traditional currach and demonstrated flax weaving to make ropes, rigging and covers for coracles and currachs.
Celebrity chef, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, excited much interest when he arrived at Clovelly on the day to be filmed by Keo Films for the final episode of Channel 4's River Cottage series: "Winter's on its Way". Hugh went out fishing with Stephen Perham, Harbour Master, early in the morning and caught a netful of herring, then he and Rachel Perham (Stephen's sister) cooked up some herring on the quay. Later he went around the stalls to taste the herring dishes on offer.
There were plenty of Clovelly and local stalls and our remaining two herring fishermen, Stephen and Tommy Perham, had luckily caught lots of fresh Clovelly herring for their stall.
To watch a video clip of the 2009 festival, please click on the link below.
http://www.visuallink.co.uk/client_media/media/184/Clovelly_Herring_Festival_2009_Video/
Clovelly wins Best Kept Village in Devon Competition
conducted by the Campaign to Protect Rural England in association with Mole Valley Farmers
We are delighted and very proud to have won the Small Village section of this competition with a total of 97/100 points.
The judges were lavish in their praise:
"The way in to Clovelly is through a very impressive Visitor Centre .... It is populated by people who apply to become tenants and choose to stay there, despite the fact that it is visited by 200,000 people a year! This alone is a token of how happy the residents are and has resulted in the creation of a very strong community spirit ... Clovelly is a very rare example of how a village community can work together to provide contentment and satisfaction for all! .... The flower-covered cottages looked absolutely charming and despite their antiquity, are in excellent order ... All the commercial premises were neat and the public lavatories were exemplary ... There was no litter to be seen anywhere... This was a well organised and tidy attraction for North Devon."
Clovelly Primary School, the Village Hall and All Saints Church were also praised:
Clovelly Primary School: "Situation in Higher Clovelly, the charming Victorian building has probably one of the most beautiful views of Bideford Bay. The playground was immaculate [and so were the children when they came out of with their teachers to visit next-door's puppies!]
http://www.clovelly.devon.sch.uk/
The Village Hall was described as not only benefitting "from the wonderful view but also looks very well-equipped and well-kept with tubs of flowers and notices outside advertising a wide variety of forthcoming events. Adjoining is a full-sized football pitch as well as an excellent children's play area within a strong fence, all well-mown".
"All Saints Church [Norman porch and tower] is very interesting historically because of the many memorial tablets of past owners of Clovelly; its well-filled graveyard has overflowed into the grounds of adjoining Clovelly Court. Both graveyards are well-mown and obviously regularly visited, judging by the presence of many flowers and plants on the graves".
The report concluded:
"Everything about Clovelly is well-kept and it is in a class of its own for facilities, appearance and a lovely atmosphere".
Lobster and Crab Feast, Sunday 6th September
In aid of the National Lobster Hatchery, Padstow
Part of the A.O.N.B.'s 50th anniversary celebrations
The good weather on the day brought a large number of visitors to the Feast, which this year was held in support of the National Lobster Hatchery and part of the A.0.N.B's 50th anniversary celebrations.
The local art, craft and food stalls were very satisfied with their sales and the Quay Kitchen and restaurant were kept extremely busy serving bisque, paella and platters of lobster, crab and seafood, .
Fifers Ruse, Babelfish and Changing Quays provided some lively folk music and visitors were further entertained by Fairplay's Fairly Fresh Fish comedy act and lobster hypnotist, Felicity Sylvester.
Children loved the magic and puppet shows and the AONB reported that about 80 children took part in their craft activity which provided a great opportunity for them to chat to the parents and onlookers about their work.
There was also wine and beer tasting along with a special promotion of Wolf Blass wines.
A generous contribution will be made to the National Lobster Hatchery who brought along some live exhibits, which were released into Clovelly Bay at the end of the festival.
Pilot Gig Regatta, Saturday 22nd August
'Clovelly do it for Patrick'
There was a special victory for Clovelly Gig Club veterans at our regatta this year. They were the winners of this category taking the unique trophy made in memory of the late Patrick Farley, a valued supporter of the local regatta and whose daughter, Fiona, is the clubs ladies captain and also the coxwain for the veterans crew.
The trophy is a gig, hand-crafted by local craftsman, Alan Capern, from a piece of hardwood from the redundant Bude lock gate..
Fiona and her mother Maureen, who donated the trophy, are pictured presenting it to the Clovlley veterans crew; Andy Curtis, Eric Scott, Pat Stubbs, The Hon. John Rous, John Little and Carl Downing.
Also at the regatta the mens B crew came in a very respectable 4th. The A Crew rowed to a 10th Position, the ladies crew with the experience of Fiona Farley, Liz Byrt and Mary Wills rowed with three novices in the A and B categories finishing respectably.
Lifeboat Weekend, Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd August
in support of the R.N.L.I.
What a marvellous day it was! The sun, which had hidden itself all week, came out to celebrate with us. The stalls were busy and visitors were charmed by the gentle music of Mario and Rem. There was plenty to eat, including a barbecue, delicious doughnuts, tea and cakes in the boathouse and a special promotion of beer at the Red Lion which came with an instant donation thanks to The Clovelly Estate Company.
The sponsored swim, postponed until the Sunday owing to poor weather, was thrilling, and a packed crowd cheered the hardy team of swimmers on as they battled through the waves from Bucks Mills.
A total of £5000 was raised on the day, the sponsored swim alone contributing £3000. Well done everyone! We look forward to seeing you all next year.
Woolsery Agricultural Show, Monday 27th July 2009
in support of the South West Hospice
Once again the show was held at Clovelly Court by kind invitation of The Hon. John and Mrs Rous to whom we are greatly indebted for providing what is probably the most picturesque show site in North Devon. In spite of a very wet start a marvellous day was had by all who attended. After vehicles were pulled on by a fleet of tractors, supplied by a bunch of skilled farmers, the weather changed to a wonderful sunny day with conditions improving all the time,
Entries in all sections were up on last year, especially in the Handicraft Section, where the marquee was filled to overflowing with local entries. In the 'Sheep Section' there were new classes this year for the Hampshire Down Sheep; this native breed has had something of a resurgence in the last few years and the new classes were kindly sponsored by the Black Farmer who hails from North Devon and is very keen on promoting locally produced food as is Woolsery Show. Our theme was 'Pasture to Plate' in an endeavour to demonstrate how food is produced. The cattle were represented with specially well-filled British Blue Classes and many of the local Red Ruby Devons were on show as usual. It is worth mentioning that many farmers had decided that conditions might not be good and had opted to drive tractors to transport their livestock to Clovelly, the May family having driven a tractor from Copplestone were rewarded with the reserve champion rosette in the Devon Classes.
The Junior Shepherd Classes were better supported than ever before as were the Young Cattle Handlers. This is extremely good news as these young people are the stockmen of the future.
This year, for the first time, we held classes for heavy horses and were rewarded with a very good entry which bodes well for the future.
The general feeling amongst those who attended the show was that it was a great day out, in spite of an inauspicious start, and the atmosphere was second to none, with the hope that a good sum of money has been raised for the Hospice South West, which was the chosen charity of this year’s president Dr, John Betts
Clovelly Maritime Festival, Sunday 26th July, 2009
in support of the North Devon Hospice
It was the first time in four years that the venue had to be switched from the harbour to the Visitor Centre because of relentless rain on the day. But the visitors who came along had a feast of entertainment, including shanty singers, Punch & Judy, street theatre, musical bones workshop, juggling, magic, mask and balloon sculpture workshops and much else.
Although the event did not have quite the same atmosphere as at Clovelly harbour, visitors said they enjoyed the entertainment along with the shelter and good acoustics afforded by the Visitor Centre.
Clovelly one of 'The big three you just have to see'
"Cream of Devon", The Mail on Sunday, 25 May 2008
Travel writer, Simon Heptinstall, named Clovelly as one of the three major sights in Devon that everyone should see after Exeter Cathedral and Plymouth's waterfront. He wrote:
"The third must-see sight is the fishing village of Clovelly on Devon's forbidding north coast. Like a slice of transplanted Mediterranean, the flower-decked whitewashed cottages tumble down a steep cobbled footpath to a tiny harbour.
The village has been preserved, not by the National Trust, but because it has been owned by the family who live in the local manor house for 250 years .......... it's a glimpse of what Devon life was like a long time before the tourists arrived".
Adverts and Films at Clovelly
2010
February
BBC4, 'Dear Diary', presented by Richard E. Grant, featuring Rosemary Ackland's diary.
2009
November
TV Chef, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall was filmed by Keo Films at our Clovelly Herring Festival for Channel 4's River Cottage series. It featured in the last programme of the series broadcast at the beginning of December 2009.
September
Crackit Productions came along to our Lobster and Crab Feast in September to film Clovelly for a programme about the British tourist trade. 'Alexander Armstrong's Very British Holiday' was broadcast on BBC One on Sunday 8th November.
May
Children's television series, Wales: Ant ac Al ar y Ffordd
April
Escape to the Country, BBC2
2008
November
Countryfile, BBC1: Clovelly Herring Festival.
2007
March
Climate Change - Make a Difference. Half Hour documentary by Meridian, ITV1
June
John West Tuna/ WeightWatchers. Advert by Independent
Countryfile TV series, BBC 1
Life's a Beach TV series (One Plymouth) by Automatic Media
August
Sense & Sensibility, filmed by the BBC
September
BMW Z4 Coupé travel & Motor article for Bristol Press by Mark Whitchurch
Cash in the Attic, antiques programme for BBC by Leopard Films
CLOVELLY CAMEOS
PHIL GOSS, HEAD GAME KEEPER
Phil was brought up in North Devon and has been a Game Keeper since 1985. He has worked on estates in Scotland, Cumbria, Stafford and South Devon and says that it was good to return to his roots to work on the Clovelly Estate.
His job at Clovelly consists in looking after the game on the estate, predator control, habitat management and organising about 40 shoot days a year.
Phil says it is different to working on other estates as it is unusual to have a pheasant shoot so close to the sea. The fact that it is also a tourist attraction means that such large scale public access can make his work more difficult but it is a challenge, which he enjoys.
Clovelly is a commercial shoot with people flying in from all over the world so it is very important to Phil that each shoot day goes well.
MUKTI MITCHELL
Carpenter, boat builder, pioneer of a low carbon lifestyle and author of an on-line personal carbon dioxide calculator (www.resurgence.co.uk).
He moved into Rat’s Castle at Clovelly five years ago, setting up Mitchell Yachts Ltd in 2005 to manufacture the Explorer Microyacht. The hand built, zero-emission prototype, Chance, has a unique keel and was nominated Innovative Boat of the Year at the British Marine Awards in 2006.
Mukti believes we should all make some lifestyle changes to reduce our CO2 emissions and help combat climate change. In 2007, he embarked upon a six month tour around Britain, calling at 40 ports, to promote a low carbon lifestyle.
What he loves most about Clovelly is the absence of traffic, the sight of children playing freely in a safe environment, the friendly and close-knit community, the views, and the buildings of traditional materials, adding that walking along the cobbles, makes him feel like a king.
HEATHER ALFORD, HEAD GARDENER
Heather grew up on her parent’s farm and has nurtured plants for as long as she can remember. A gardening career just seemed the natural choice.
Now as Head Gardener of Clovelly Court Gardens for many years, she applies as many organic and sustainable principles as possible.
Heather prefers a natural look for the flower borders, but ordered lines are de rigeur in the vegetable plots for ease of harvesting. She particularly draws on her assistant Ernie’s encyclopaedic knowledge of fruit and vegetable care as well as that of her husband, who has a distinguished academic background in horticulture.
The environmental issue of most concern to Heather is waste, so she recycles as much as possible. The most troublesome pest? Heather could not think of one particular pesky pest, except for the Clovelly pheasants and grey squirrels.
Sheltered by its high Victorian walls, Clovelly Gardens in North Devon are usually a month ahead of the season. The glasshouses, where apricots, melons, nectarines and grapes thrive, require no heating, even in winter. Outside, there are apples, pears, quinces, medlars and soft fruits in abundance and in 2006, Heather planted a pair of Chinese Gooseberries.
No visitor to Clovelly should omit a walk through Clovelly Gardens. It is a thriving Victorian kitchen garden bordered by the scents and sights of herbaceous beds ablaze with glorious colour the summer long. All kinds of herbs, vegetables and fruit can be bought throughout the season; from freshly dug new potatoes to perfumed sweetpeas in their array of pastel colours to luscious sugar-rich hothouse grapes, or just a plant or two to put in your own garden to keep the memory of your visit to Clovelly alive.
There is a small admission charge and R.H.S. members can enjoy free admittance to the gardens during October to March.
STEVE PERHAM, HARBOUR MASTER
Harbour Master at Clovelly, Steve is also the Clovelly Lifeboat senior helmsman and one of just two remaining fishermen of the ‘silver darlings’ or herrings, Clovelly’s once staple industry.
A Harbour Master is ultimately responsible to the Secretary of State for Transport and Steve’s primary concern is safety. He ensures that visiting vessels to Clovelly are made welcome and safely berthed. Steve is also responsible for the maintenance and the restoration of the harbour wall to its former appearance.
His father was Harbour Master before him and Steve finds it deeply satisfying to continue building upon his father’s work. Improvements have included electric hook-ups for visiting vessels, the replacement of the harbour wall wooden posts and the reinstatement of the old cotton net drying gibbets.
If anyone should have a hoard of these now obsolete nets, please email s.perham@amserve.com.
Steve is passionate about Clovelly’s maritime history, particularly the Picarooner. The vessel is unique to Clovelly but there remains just two. ‘Picarooner’ was once a Spanish insult, meaning ‘a rogue or rascal stealing a march’, because the vessel, with its shallow draft, rounded bilges and high transom, could get out to sea faster and return on the tide earlier and thus steal a march on the bigger boats in the pursuit of sweet Clovelly herrings.
Steve’s favourite herring dish? ‘Definitely, soused herrings’.
MELINDA DUNN, ARTIST
Devon born and raised, Milly has been painting since she first learned to handle a paintbrush.
Milly paints naïf scenes of life at Clovelly in oils on canvas, and also applies her enviable talents to our sea-washed pebbles. These are first cleansed, then primed and painted with acrylics and finally varnished.
Attractive ornaments both indoors and out, they are often used as paperweights and door-stops and can be seen on display as well as in use at the Clovelly hotels. They can be bought at the Red Lion Hotel and make a unique souvenir.
Milly, who arrived by chance at Clovelly 45 years ago, would not want to live anywhere else. She loves living right beside the harbour, from which she draws much of her inspiration, as well as being part of a tight-knit community.
