Trelawny’s Cornwall

It would be hard to think of a more thoroughly Cornish name than Trelawny: it's even the unofficial name for the Cornish anthem "Song of the Western Men". But when a mysterious stranger challenged Radio 3's Petroc Trelawny on the authenticity of his ancestry, it inspired him to return to the lands of his boyhood to see if he can trace "a thin bloodline that would prove the link between my immediate ancestors and the ancient Trelawnys of old", and discover exactly what belonging means.


A deeply felt exploration of Cornwall's past, present and future, Petroc seeks the even stranger truths behind local legends, holds a finger up to the shifting winds of change, and conjures marvellously vivid figures and scenes from the inexhaustible depths of his memory, telling the story of loving family full of mysteries and a landscape still redolent of "Cornish otherness".

Petroc Trelawny presents the Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 3. He is a regular contributor to 'From Our Own Correspondent' (BBC Radio 4/World Service) and has written extensively for publications including the Observer, Sunday Telegraph, London Evening Standard, The Spectator and Irish Times.