The hundred foot long and 260 tonnes sailing vessel named the Romanie was built in 1918 in Holland. In 1930 the boat got caught in a storm and crashed into the rocks at Polridmouth Cove, a few miles west of Fowey in Cornwall. The captain and crew all managed to escape but the vessel ran aground and was left to decay. Not much is left of it now.

The area is now synonymous with the author Daphne du Maurier, who lived in the Grade II estate Menabilly, near Fowey, which was the setting for Mandalay in Rebecca, written in 1938. The dramatic end of the novel feature the shipwrecked Romanie and the death of Rebecca. Many of Du Maurier’s other stories are set in the local area

Not much is left of the shipwreck now, a shrunken skeleton of what it once was, but it’s still worth a visit in the beautiful area. A popular coastal walk is from Fowey to Polkerris beach, which takes in hidden coves with lovely sandy beaches and turquoise water (if the weather’s nice, natch), Gribben Head with its iconic red and white striped Daytower and a castle (St. Catherine’s),

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Frank Baker and The Birds