Redruth to Plymouth

Family group, possibly from Congo, early 20th Century, The Box, Plymouth. Photo Tony Crosby There is a story in this group!

January 2025

The day of my Plymouth jaunt, I woke to news of the 'coldest night' this winter with temperatures of minus fifteen in the Highlands. My sister sent pictures of her Derbyshire splat coated in layers of hardened ice and snow. Our son was lamenting ice inside the windows of his flat in London. In Redruth it was the classic seven degrees, raining with gloomy grey skies. Gloomy it may have been, but it was the perfect day to jump on a train which was warm and bright. There was real excitement in the air at the prospect of days out: teenagers to Truro, families to Plymouth and for me to meet up with the 'Women Speak Volumes' writers group a year after we had first got together in The Box through a memoir writing project of the same name.

I had arrived a bit early so that I could have a quick visit to The Box. I would urge anyone to go there under any pretense; it is fabulous. En route I encountered Jackie, poet and member of the group, who had had the same idea. Having such a short time, we divided and went our separate ways, arranging to meet a bit later for a quick lunch . I was immediately drawn into the explorers and adventurers gallery, 100 Journeys. The people and objects are fascinating but even more so is the curation and how each individual, their motives and journey is being reassessed in this post colonial era.

I was drawn to a display case dedicated to the intrepid Gertrude Benham, 1877-1938, who is described as a traveller and alpinist. She voyaged extensively across the globe and climbed some of the highest mountains during the early years of the twentieth century. Her wanderlust only curbed, briefly, by the first world war. She brought back innumerable objects which she gifted to the Plymouth Museum.

Many years ago I lived in Cairo and became very interested in the abundant Victorian female travellers of the 1870s whose accounts and publications were devoured back in Britain. Women such as Mary Kingsley and her Travels in West Africa, Amelia Edwards and her A Thousand Miles up the Nile and my favourite Lucie Duff Gordon and her Letters from Egypt. I fancy that Gertrude must have read these women, along with writings by her namesake Gertrude Bell, maybe even met them which may have spurred her on to a life of wandering and collecting. Makes me wonder if this blog is a small homage to those150 year old travelogues?

Gertrude Benham photo from The Box, Article in Cairo Today in 1983, Planet Ocean with Sue Hill's swimming hats photo by Jackie Taylor

While I was off 'travelling', Jackie had encountered our friend Sue Hill's gloriously inventive swimming hats designed for the all-season swimmers of Gorran Haven. They had been commissioned for Kneehigh's final community project called '40 Random Acts of Art' which was devised and directed by Annamaria Murphy. You can see them in action in this terrific film by Neal Megaw https://thisiskneehigh.co.uk/items/random-acts-of-art/

So we arrived at the Central Library to meet the other writers brimful of enthusiasm and ideas. From the outside the library looks a fairly ordinary place but inside it was really busy with people of all ages exploring in their way through print, online or chat. Some were just happy to be in a warm dry place. Libraries are such important places in our communities. As a group we considered our writing goal for 2025, shared plans and experiences and discussed some opportunities on the horizon. We came away feeling much more upbeat as fellow scribblers. Before catching the train, a few of us meandered off to The Waterstones Café. To my delight I was able to pick up a copy of Kent Haruf's Our Souls at Night at a bargain price. I really like his simple, seemingly detached style through which he really expresses deep feeling and empathy.

A great day out! And do visit to The Box https://www.theboxplymouth.com/

On the subject of Kneehigh, we went to a screening of Brett Harvey's film The Church of the Lost Cause which is a compilation of footage of the shows over forty years. It was brilliant and exuded such energy and passion. It will be publicly available in the near future.

The next blog will be Tansy Hepton's accounts of travelling by train in Japan, sadly not via Redruth but hey rules are there to be broken... Too good to miss!