THE SLATES

Whatever the job large or small, there are people that go beyond the call of duty, so to the people that supported and assisted me in this project I commend you and immortalize your names in stone for all to witness.

LES MARTIN. Les Martin was my uncle, I think I was about 12 or 13 when I first met les martin my brother brought him home to Trewithen cottage Les was an exceptional story teller  it was such a treat to here Les Martin talk and  tell all his yarns about the war and all his trips to jersey  I never wanted to go to bed, he could take an average story and with his voice (A wonderful Cornish accent) and his gestures could turn that story into something exceptional I didn’t know then but I would spend a lot of working time with Les and get to know him very well. Many things I copied off Les Martin and I suppose when people hear me talk there’s a trace of les Martin in me. Les was a military man, he had scores of medals for bravery, he was in the coastguards, I could fill a tape with stories of his military exploits, but my favourite story of all isn’t about the military and this is how it goes. Uncle Les was a happily married man and lived in st. Merryn, he didn’t like men talking to much about sex he wouldn’t contribute anything towards it, in fact he was whiter than white, and if any of us younger ones were talking about sex or our conquests in the crib hut, he would say if one isn’t enough then 10 wont be enough, that was the way it was Les was a one woman man. At that time Les had grown to the age of 50, a beautiful looking woman moved into our village she had been to a private school and she spoke with a posh accent. It was alleged that she said she was going to seduce every man in the village that is worth anything and to be quite honest I think she did, I can exclude myself,………just, but any how she asked mr Martin if he would come and do a bit of gardening for her, he said yes ma’am I will be there on Saturday. In a little village like St. Merryn everyone talks, and when we seen him there we all new he was the next one in the stocks. One Saturday she said to him Mr Martin next week would you have a go at my chimney and give it a sweeping, yes ma’am he said I will bring my rods and brush. The next Saturday came around he knocked on the door and she answered it, “come inside” she said “I’ll take my rubber boots off”; “no” she said they look clean enough to me. I’m going to slip into something more comfortable to wear in the house, and then I’ll join you, by the time she came back Les had one rod and the brush up the chimney and he was about to screw the 2^nd rod up when she appeared by his side wearing a green silken see though robe and underneath that was a scanty bra and knickers, Les pushed the 2^nd rod up and as he did she bent forward and the robe unfastened and everything burst out like a bale of straw when the string breaks. He said it did something for me Edward. The lady said this is hard work Mr martin would you like to come in my bed and have a little knap and I’ll join you, yes ma’am he said I think that’s a good idea Les was rampant by this time, remember Les was in his prime strong and fit he was a stonewaller he could swing a 20 lb sledge not many men could do that, she certainly would have met her match with Les. So they got to the bed room and he started to undress he took off his rubber boots unknown to les she also undressed she took off her knickers and threw them in the rubber boots, so anyhow they jumped in bed and they had from about 11 am till 4 pm I think he gave her a good going over. Well things seemed to be going well Les was the regular gardener on a Saturday plus he had to share this woman with others during the week, it made top talk in our village and to be honest no one knew Les was involved with this woman as he was a trusted man he loved his wife and was happy with her, it was a big secret, he was like the butchers dog that had plenty of food he wasn’t going to steal, and Les wasn’t going to steal love not that we thought anyhow, this went on for almost 7 months, and as you know the little village of St. Merryn  is situated on the north Cornwall coast and we have got our own coastguard team and back at this time we had such a thing as a breaches buoy where they would fire a rocket over the stricken vessel and then they would pull the crew ashore, if the lifeboat couldn’t get there, one Saturday the head coastguard thought that he would test out the team he would fire the maroons and see how many turned up, well this Saturday Les was about his gardening chores, indoors  he was having a lot of fun, then he heard this almighty boom as les was a military man and a dedicated coastguard he knew it was the maroons, the work he was doing he stopped immediately, there wasn’t time to dress up very much  he left the house doing up his braces and his fly’s, who should be passing the gate was his wife she knew immediately what he had been up to, later that night when challenge he didn’t deny a thing  well he couldn’t, the story broke in the village my mother got wind of it, she was friendly with Les’s wife, when I was told about it I didn’t believe it I said it was a joke les wasn’t into all this sex behaviour out of wedlock, no they said its true. It was about 3 years later that he told me and even later that he told his mates and thank god he told them as now I can pass this story onto you. Before I end I must say Les you are a genuine character, the stone wall built next to the Angel Runway was built by Les Martin. 

CHRIS PRYNN - My son and an eccentric, I was told by a military man that if he hadn’t of been an entrepreneur and a boss that he would have made a great sergeant major in the British army. He will never accept defeat.

CRUSADER - This was my Pyrenean mountain dog , he was pure white and weighed about 14 stone, wherever I took him people loved him and wanted there photo with him. He used to like to shake hands with people using his mouth and one day our local vicar came to the house crusader put his mouth around the vicars wrist, he was absolutely petrified, my mother who was about 79 at the time had to lever crusaders jaws apart to set the vicar free, after that whenever he called on our house we had to make sure the dog was in the garden. He never hurt any one he would just grab them by the arm.

ANNE BOTTMAN - She was a beautiful slim woman and a good wife, she always wanted to be an actress and one day she was talking to a friend of hers who had been to Cornwall and had visited the stones and met me , but a couple of days later Ann had an urge and the pull off the stones was to much for her, so one afternoon she said to Bobby I want you to drive me to Cornwall, and about 6 30 pm they arrived and said Ed we have driven all the way from London could you spare me 10 minutes of your time, I was supposed to be going out for a meal with friends but anyone travelling that far the stones must come first and I feel it is my duty to talk to them and I ended up talking for 1 to 2 hour . And I remember Ann giving me a £10 note she said I hope you’re not offended she said it’s to help with the stones, no I said I wouldn’t be offended and I took her money. She always kept in contact with me and about 4 years later she came back to see me, she was a very sick woman by this time, she had been to Egypt with her husband on holiday and went to one of the tombs of a great philosopher, she said I should not have done this but I picked up a piece off stone and brought it to you so you would be wise and have great words of wisdom. I don’t know if I can match anyone like that but I still have the stone here now. A couple of years later I had a letter from Bobby saying that Ann had passed over. Ann might have passed over but Ann Bottman still watches over me and the stones, and I think all the names I have got up here the ones that have passed over will watch over me and the stones from this day and forever more.

JACK INGREY -But I’m going to tell you a bit about Jack Ingreys dad. Jack Ingreys dad had a little lorry and used to deliver coal around the village, there wasn’t many buses during the war but mother and I used to get down church town StMerryn, and get his lorry which was probably was a Morris commercial and we would both pile in and ride to Padstow, to catch the train to Wadebridge and go and see granny at Port Isaac. he was a lovely man, they lived in the house which is now prynns fish shop and restaurant, Jack was an author, a great wise man and I remember him telling me when I was about 50, he said your only a boy you’ll never stop learning he says and really and truthfully, I’m 69 now and you’ll never stop learning, we don’t stop learning till the day we die. Jack Ingrey died at the age of 92.

BEN LUXON - Was a tenor singer and he was singing at the little theatre in Padstow, he didn’t know me at the time he sang with one of my friends for a charity event and I was so pleased that he did it for this person that I felt he had earned a place on my wall of fame, I remember seeing him I sat right up front and his shoes glittered like a full moon, and later in the evening I said to him, Mr Luxon I’m building a wall of fame would you like your name there, yes very much so he said, and that’s how Ben Luxon tenor got his name  the wall.

NICK GLANVILLE - He was a builder inspector engineer, but his hobby was dowsing , and sometime around 1982 he started coming  to the stones, and he talked to me about the energy, because I often wandered about the old people and why the went to all this trouble with big stones and I wanted to know more about it, and he told me they have all got energy and lay lines this was the first I had heard about it, although I had worked with Nick Glanville in my early days, but this was a new experience for me . some time around the Falklands crisis, I dug 2 pits in the garden, Nick and his wife came to see me, Nick spent a lot of time in the stone circle dowsing, then he came back and dowsed around the pits, because he wanted to know if we had brought the energy from the Falkland islands, but that night when he went home he entered in his diary ,something like this, been to Ed Prynns stone circle today ,the power I was looking for finally came , Nick said the stones for me was the same age in evolution as what they were for the old people, and that was why he was interested in my site . The next day Nick had a heart attack and died, I thought that Nick Glanville was worthy to have his name on my wall.

CAPTAIN PENGELLY - Was a merchant seaman he was sailing his ship from Italy to Scotland with 250 tons of white marble for  church work , when he got west of Trevose head this terrible storm came, the Captain could not sail it out of Treyarnon bay  it was heading for the rocks ,and a dungeon of death , but the captain miraculously sailed her between castle rock and wine cove and got her in a little cove ,sadly the captain was washed overboard at that stage , but as the boat leaned against the side of the cliff 1 of the   other men 6 men onboard climbed up the slippery slope and got help from a near by farmer and they came back with ropes , and saved the rest of the crew . well I had to wait 100 years later to go to the cove and retrieve the piece of marble which I now have in the garden, my friends and I always say that Captain Pengelly was the 1^st man to be involved with the stones, he didn’t know it at the time but that was the 1^st stone to come to me. Merlin the magician once said when something great happens in the world kings , queens and leaders would come to a judgment stone ,and I found a piece of marble that I call my judgment stone .

DON ARNEL - All his ancestors were Cornish, and Welsh, but he lived up country for most of his life and came home to Cornwall to live for a short time, and became a very good friend of mine, and there was a favourite story that Don used to tell but sadly I wont be able to tell it like Don. In Burma during the last war when the British were fighting the Japanese soldiers, Don was a regimental sergeant major. Don and his brigade (around 1000 men) were at this country home, there were a few tennis courts there and the colonel in chief of the army at that time was there said its no good surrendering to the Japanese, they will kill every one of us, they wont take any prisoners we have got to fight till the last man is dead and that’s what they done as the japs came over the perimeter fence we shot them down and there idea was as the bodies piled up they would get over the fence, but after 2 hours they gave up, the bodies were nearly to the top but they couldn’t get over so they retreated and Don said they all left on push bikes, and we defeated them against all odds as they had great numbers and then the British army chased them all the way to Mandalay. Don was a great military man and I loved his stories and I would love him to tell me that story one more time.

ROGER BAKER - He supplied most of the slates on the wall here at the Seven Sisters, he was so helpful to me by sorting out the off cuts to keep the price down, now he has sold the quarry and as become a farmer, up near Launceston , there is one thing I remember about ROGER BAKER he had a stone at Trevillick quarry, he had a stone and he said it tells his life, the stone had lots of creases and veins in it, it was like a palm and he could read this stone he said this is just like my life, this vein here he would say where it wobbles and breaks away, this is my bad luck .

ARTHER & CHERYL STRAFFON - If I had to pick someone that was mystically minded on the stones it would be Cheryl. I hold her in a very high position if I wanted to know any thing I would ring her and she would tell me the answer.  She comes often to see the stones.

25 - This slate is just a number, this was a person that was special in my life, but she never asked me if her name would be included so I assumed she didn’t want any thing to do with it.

DAVID YOUNG - Was a TV presenter and he wrote about me in his book and one good turn deserves another

DAVID GEORGE - Was also a TV and radio presenter and was very easy to work with he came to see me on a number of occasions.

BURT PRYNN - My Uncle Burt. He never sailed the 7 seas, he never got married, in all his life he worked for 3 farmers. He was a lovely man; he lived at home with mother father my brother and me, and he came to stay for 3 weeks and ended up staying for 30 years. Uncle Burt left me most of his money about £33,000 that was a lot for a working man, he was mean and he saved all his money, if he had not been this way I would not be talking to you from this house. THANK YOU UNCLE BURT.

CHRIS MATTOS - When the eclipse was on he came here and played his drum to make a show

FRANCES EVANS - The 1^st time I met Frances I wasn’t very old, maybe 32 or 33, Rodney Simpson took me to St Austell for spiritual healing and Frances was a healer and in charge of the group. We are great friends she invited me back many times to do a talk for her group.

PAT SERRAPHIN - Was a wonderful woman, a Christian.  Her son worked in the Falkland Islands and she arranged that her son Leonard would deliver a letter to Sir Rex Hunts office. Once she moved house and although she cleaned it constantly from top to bottom it always smelt of whiskey and wee, a neighbour said the man that lived here before you was an alcoholic and went toilet every where. Pat had several bibles to give to the Sunday school children but she shared the bibles up for every room and opened them at random from that day forth there was never a smell in that house .

RODNEY SIMPSON - Rodney and his family did so much work on the stones project that there are not enough thanks for him.  He loaned me machines, compressors lorries everything, I worked with Rodney when he was young he was full of life, he became an entrepreneur in later life and now he employs many people.

TONY SCOTLAND - Another great entrepreneur he came from Bolton, he took many photos of this place. He was a perfectionist, once I was told that he wall papered his room and when he had finished he didn’t like what he had done so he ripped it all down and went back to the shop and bought more wallpaper

LINDA & PATRICK - Were school teachers from Plymouth and they helped me along with many others to clean up around the stones the night before a TV crew came to do a documentary.

DES & NAN - Des will always be my friend wherever he was in the world he would always phone me, Nan the best cook in the entire world kept a lovely house just like a 5 star hotel. We will always be buddies in this life and the next

IVAN RABEY - Broadcaster, historian and a Cornish man, whenever I needed help or information he would be there

BILL BEST HARRIS - Bill was a journalist that could always find a good story, I remember talking to him for the 1^st time on Harlyn beach he told me about a programme that he and Guy Slater was going to do, I told him all about the stones, Bill could see the story, he said its magic ED you will never look back, he was right

NICK HAMBLY - That was granfer Nick Hambly.  He was a short man died and when he was 92 he used to come and stay with us in St Merryn for 6 weeks in the summer.  He was a miner, a farmer, and he drove a break which was a carriage drawn by 2 horses (an old fashion taxi).  I loved to listen to all his stories of horses and carriages, he was a military man and drove the hospital wagon in the 1914 – 18 war he was so sad to see all the young men dying as he brought them back from the front line. He bought an army horse once and rode it back to Port Isaac

21 - This is someone who is very special to me a very spiritual person.

LENARD SERRAPHIN - Son of Pat, Leonard delivered my letter to Sir Rex Hunt in the Falkland Islands.

GLYNIS KENT - Glynis was my partner for 9 years she was an engraver, she engraved 95% of the slate on the wall, also she could embroider, a wonderful cook, a great researcher, she also read me many a book till I fell asleep by her side, in fact the knowledge I have I owe to Glynis Kent. It was such a pity we parted, I do see her from time to time, but I can’t talk to her because I break down and cry. They say nobody is indispensable I still think this is true, I have been looking for someone for 4 years to replace Glynis and I haven’t yet. I have missed Glynis so much but the show goes on, but not quite the same.

JOHN DENNIS - The Dennis family are my neighbours; they have been so kind to me lending tractors and machinery. John Dennis hasn’t got a crystal ball but sometimes I wonder if he has because if anything goes wrong here he seems to be knocking on my door to offer his help.

COLIN SIMPSON - Colin Simpson is a character brother of derrick and Rodney. Colin was an excellent story teller where ever he was, in town, a café, even in the street if Rodney was telling a story people would stop and listen. He has worked on farms and on Lorries but now Colin is a fisherman in Padstow. Colin has a wonderful horse from Ireland called Bruce, that’s another story for another day.

HILLY & MARTIN BECK-BURRAGE - Hilly and I did lots of fishing together, and martin took lots of photographs for me as I couldn’t afford a professional photographer  

SIOBHAN COOPER - On this project we needed people like Siobhan cooper she helped me out on countless occasions. She reminded me of her dad, who I never met, but I know a lot about him, he was an entrepreneur, he lived in Bolton but went to Rhodesia, Zimbabwe where he had a bakery and a fish and chip shop, then later met and married Siobhan’s mother and together had a huge pig farm, but Jack had a heart attack and passed away.

DAVID BENNET - Took a lot of photos for me.

GEORGE MACAY -  George was a navy man, he was on a destroyer off Malta, the Germans had bombed the boat to death or so they thought, they killed most of the crew, George and a few other men steered the ship with bars to control the rudder they got the boat in to port and escaped.

SIR REX HUNT - I am indebted to Sir Rex Hunt for getting me the Falkland stones people have travelled from all over to see them.

ROSE PARISH - I promoted Rose Parish to arch druidess as that post was vacant and since that time she has never let me down, she was there for TV work she helped me on my book mystic love and with her help we will publish the 4^th book in which rose will shine but you will have to wait for that.

DOCTOR PAUL - On one of my healing trips to St. Austell with Rodney I had made a mistake and there wasn’t any healing that night for my eyes. Instead there was a lady called May Flowers, a clairvoyant, she would talk like a man in a French accent, well I thought this was a bit far fetched so I went to sleep, after a while Rodney’s elbow was in my ribs, WAKE UP, Doctor Paul wants to talk to you I looked up on the stage and with my eye sight it was like a silhouette, Doctor Paul spoke to me in this French accent and the conversation quickly led into how I wanted healing, yes I said I do, then come and see me tomorrow, well I thought more money but I wanted healing, but may flowers and Doctor Paul became good friends I told them about my land and how I had been turned down for planning permission should I put in again, yes she said and Doctor Paul and  I will be at the chamber and we will have an influence over the people and do you know I got the planning permission

JOHN NICKLAS - He was a builder that helped me.

CAROLINE WHITE - She was a publisher who believed in my book, tapes and stories so she published ‘No Problems’ and ‘Hobnail Boots’

JACK RAWE - I’m a big Jack Rawe fan he helped me on many of the stones he had a tremendous imagination if he had been an author he would have written wonderful books. My favourite story of Jack is about pig ringing, when I was young all the men would tell stories of the wild bull, the kicking cow, the biting horse or the sow that was difficult to ring, this was a sow in the porthcuthan area Jack said I’ll ring her, how many men do you want to help, none he said I can do it all myself, well Jack walked in the pen and the sow started barking that means she was angry and would bite you Jack had a 2lb lump hammer with him and hit the pig on the bridge of the snout the pig was knocked out cold everybody thought that he had killed her, Jack filled her nose with rings after a while the pig started twitching and regained consciousness, there you are he said easy when you know how.

LAURENCE REED - Was a great reporter with Radio Cornwall that came to see me and gave me lots of publicity

NINA DAVY - She was a great interviewer she new what it was all about she would look at me and seemed to siphon the right words out of me she new what was needed for a great interview.

JOHNATHAN COWLING - Is a wonderful entertainer I love it when he tells all his stories with his Cornish accent, and when he sings all the Elvis songs he’s also a great comedian and I’ve got a feeling that he will go far and when I pass away I hope that Jonathan will come and sing some Elvis songs and read the address at my funeral, all of you out there, look out for his name.

JETHRO - I like Jethro, once more it was Cornish culture that’s why I liked it, a lot of people would say oh its giving the impression were all a bit thick, but we can take money out of anyone’s hands just look in the history books you’ll see what Cornish people have achieved, so that’s why Jethro’s name is there because of what he did for Cornwall. When he knew his name was up there he rang me up and thanked me, you’re welcome Jethro.   

JOAN BROOKER. I knew her for a long time and when I told her that I was writing a book and I needed someone to work a typewriter she said I know someone who used to work for the BBC, and she set up a meeting and I met someone called Jo Park

TOM BRAY - When I lived at Trevithick estate my next door neighbour was Tom that I used to go to school with, Tom helped me build the chamber.

SIMON PIKE - Was a reporter and worked on the courier had to learn quickly about the Cornish culture and how things worked around here, the other newspapers wondered how he got a lot of his information I was giving him the leads

CHARLIE & IVAN POWELL -They brought the Oliver 90 down that’s a big tractor and helped me put the 1^st stone in. they have been around for a long time , uncle Burt idolised the family so do I, don’t think I had the bill for that job for 4 years.

PAULINE BACON. Was a beautiful woman with a lovely Westcountry accent had a good job and helped me on the chamber.

JANE HELLIER - Was so enthusiastic about the stones sadly last year she passed away.

84 - That was dad. Dad said what ever you do don’t put my name on the wall, but I decided I would so he’s number 84 weather he likes it or not.

MARGRET SMITH - Was a special person that I knew for many years I wanted her to come and live with me when Glynis had gone but she said she was in love with someone else, but it didn’t work out, so she came and lived with me for a week all she did was bitched and moaned so much so she did enough to take that name off the wall.

80 - That was mother because she didn’t want to go up there.

JOHN AND RAY OWEN - They came to St. Merryn and had a little fish and chip shop, now they have one in Padstow and Newquay also I have always liked the Owens they are nice people.

PAUL IRONS - Wrote me a letter once, took me 20 years to pay him back.

PIXIE JEAN - Pixie jean is a pagan witch. Pixie and I got married In a pagan druid wedding, I remember saying to Pixie tell me more about your religion she said its all about sex, I said I cant see anything wrong with that we wouldn’t be here otherwise. As we strolled up to the stone circle naked, she started to sing me hymns and I was dancing, she sang dance wherever you may be I am the lord of the dance says he. I thought this was strange her and me out here naked I said what is god going to say about it not very much we aren’t doing any harm. Tell me more about your religion she said its all to do with mother earth, I had a lovely smile on my face as I danced around the centre stone I fell in love as the moon got higher and higher, I will tell you more of our 12 months of bliss in the 4^th book.

NICHOLAS PRYNN - Marriages do break up and Nicholas went to live in Scotland with his mum but recently he has been here quite a lot and is coming back to the fold.

ROBERT JOBSON - Newspaper reporter, I always liked talking to the guy.

MARRIANNE MACINTOSH - I named a stone after Marianne she was a bluebell dancer a lovely person we had 9 great years together, she talked with a posh accent, father said she was no good for me he said she cant sew or cook they sort of people aren’t worth much but she could do all of those and more, Marianne’s mother didn’t like me, she called me the coal man.

GILL HICKS - Is a conversationalist, she is a great friend and she brings life to any party.

DESMOND TREMAIN - A great village character a steam engine enthusiast he helped me with all the stones never missed one.

MR& MRS RAVENSCROFT - He was the post master at st. Merryn and they always promoted my books.

BILL ANDREW - My neighbour he’s a incredible guy kind to all his campers doesn’t rule with a rod of iron I suppose he’s a bit like me, Bills dad was just as good and my father thought that bills dad was a magic man when they thrashed the corn bills father always insisted that my dad built the straw Rick and he always gave him a little tip at the end of it.

JANE OWEN - Was a journalist and an author of a book that included me.

RICHARD HODGES - Helped me with the stones now lives in Bristol.

TERRY LAMBERT - He was a news editor done a lot for me

STEPHEN STRONG - A great radio man always did great reports all about Cornwall and Cornish people.

PHIL RAWLINGS - Helped to bring the stones here with his low loader every body that worked for them liked them.

MRS STRONGMAN - Was a wonderful woman, after her husband died I used to go and help her with the garden and she provided me with most of the photos for hobnail boots. She offered to pay me and I always said no so she always knitted me a jumper for Christmas.

RODNEY TRUDGEON - He was a main player in the stones being here he can drive any machine and still works in the clay works.

LEONARD MASTERS - Although Leonard is dead and gone he was a legend in the village of Penrose, he was an eccentric, he didn’t wait for the council to do the drains in the village he new where they all were. He used to ride his bike into St.Merryn every day to do his shopping come rain or shine he loved the stones and he helped  me on the angel runway when he passed away the whole village turned out.

JOHN PRYNN - My brother helped me on the house, with the judgment stone gave me so much advice he was a great brother.

PAUL KENT - Glynis’s son, a great guy and hopefully be the compare at my funeral.

DORIS FULFORD - Was wife of Horace the 1^st lady to be married at the stones.

MARYLIN SPICER - She was a great herbalist and mystic, she had a husband called John Little Eagle.  He came here one day in all his Indian clothes and headdress, John is no longer with us.

NIGEL NEILSON - I can’t for the life of me think who he is but he must have been connected with the stones so I will give him 2 years to report to me before I take the stone down.

REX CURTIS - Every project needs a leading character and Rex Curtis was one of those guys helped me with his lorries, rex’s dad was a legend with his strength once on Wadebridge level crossing a 200 weight bag of corn fell of the trailer and Rex’s dad jumped off ran back picked up the bag and threw it back on the trailer without it stopping.

KEVIN POWELL - Was a great character I could write a book about Kevin he was a brilliant engineer he could repair anything, he loved a drink we have gone into a pub before and there could have been 50 people in that bar and he would treat every one to a drink. But my favourite story about Kevin is one day a lorry turned up with a plough on it there was no crane to get it off so they asked Kevin what to do, ok Kevin said get a length of rope and tie one end to the plough and the other end to that telegraph post, then he told the driver to put the lorry in 1^st gear and drive flat out the plough came off and dropped on the floor. Kevin and Harry Hicky were coming home on the train on day usually as the train went over the iron bridge it would slow down but this time it didn’t, the breaks had gone, Harry said don’t tell the other passengers, they walked back to the last carriage slowly as Harry had a wooden leg, by this time they were nearly in Padstow, I said what was it like when you went through the station he said we were motoring, it went right down hit the buffers and went into the metro pole hedge, no one was injured.

BARRY HAMPTON - Done a lot of work on this house.

MIKE CAIRN - Crane driver a real professional guy.

HORACE FULFORD - Husband of Doris who helped build the bungalow with his friends; we talked a lot of Burma a master builder. I ran out of money and Horace said we will finish the work and you pay us when you can.

MARGRET THATCHER M.P - she came and visited the stones. I wasn’t here but she wrote me a wonderful letter. Many people in the town said what a lovely woman you and her would have got on well together.

BILL & MRS BLOOMFIELD - Bill Bloomfield helped me a lot with the Falkland stones and they were here the day the arrived.

IAN PHILLIPS - He worked for radio Devon a smashing guy always had time for me.

KENNY DALGLEISH - A great footballer and manager with Liverpool. My father was a great Liverpool fan and idolised Kenny Dalgleish no one was allowed to talk while the football was on, so for there wedding anniversary Glynis and I thought it would be amazing if we wrote to Kenny and told him what a fan he was, and maybe he would send dad a letter, well he did more than that all the players at the time signed a letter wishing mum and dad a happy anniversary. P.s if any one out there knows Kenny Dalgleish thank him sincerely for what he did for my mum and dad and for this deed he has his name on my wall of fame.

JO PARK - Worked for the BBC. I owe so much to Jo she worked on my books without her the books would not have been finished, she would take a tape and in about 3 hours it would be transcribed and typed, she would work all night to see the project done she wasn’t a Dreckly type of worker (Dreckly means later, next day, next week a bit like the Spanish Manana) she was my kind of woman. She was very firm and strict but a fantastic lady. Jo you made my dreams come true.

DERICK SIMPSON - One of the Simpson family helped me out with machines and Lorries.

JUNE LANDER - Was a journalist but is no longer with us. June published a book on eccentric people in Cornwall, I always joked and said you never put me in the book she said Ed I didn’t know you then but as we got to know each other more she said that I would have been in her top 5 eccentrics. I remember June when we did the 1^st wedding she said you must dress up like John Wesley, I said its no good I cant, she said can you dress in a white robe, I said yes I could and I think that was how the druids were born at the next wedding I dressed in white robes June was here and she wrote a piece for the Western Morning News.

NICK PURPLE - Came and drummed for the eclipse.

BRIAN NUTTALL - Quarry manager and a key player in building the chamber and the stones, they used to call me Eddie hard rock and Brian was Barney rubble

ROY WATSON - Was a London guy who came to help me finish the house? Roy didn’t believe in the healing stone so I told him to go and try it which he did and within a few hours it was better. If I wasn’t around Roy would show people around the garden.

BRUNO CLEMENCE - Worked for the courier and if I new of a story I would tell him.

THE REV. MICHAEL BOLTBY - He was a great preacher. I had a long time away from the church, this didn’t mean I wasn’t a Christian but I asked the vicar to do a bit of praying on a local matter, about some council person putting a gate across Harlyn bay, well the prayers must have worked as they took the gate down, but the agreement was if he prayed and the gate came down then I would come to church, and that was what happened. When he used to tell his sermon it would stick in your head that was a great preacher, he helped with the charity concerts.

RICHARD PITTMAN JR - Richard helped me with my tractor; he now works on the Padstow lifeboat.  We had a boat called the Mohawk and I was worried with my eyesight so Richard skippered the boat for a couple of seasons, I still see him around sometimes.

BOB HARRIS - Was a taxi driver and the reason why Bob is here is because he used to bring lots of people to the stones, and once he heard me do a guided tour and he learnt the tour of by heart and do you know what he was better than me a great story teller, once he rang me up and said Ed I have a very important person to bring out, a Japanese guy, this guy was a school teacher back in Japan and he had seen my stones on film and he said is that Stonehenge no they said its nowhere near Stonehenge but he said that’s where I want to go and come here he did Bill picked him up at Bodmin parkway and brought him here, I asked Bob how do I greet him Bob said you bow and bow I did he was a great guy and stayed for 3 hours thanks Bob.

FRANK GIBSON - Lived in the Scilly Isles I met him when I worked on their rocking stone, a very knowledgeable guy he has been here a great photographer.

HARRY PAYNE - He was the manager of Macsalvors whenever the crane was coming he always came to supervise and make sure we could lift it.

PENNY DUNCAN - Her ancestors were actually druids, she has a certificate to prove it, and she was a high priestess and helped me with TV work and the stones.

CREEPER -They were a group that wrote a song about the stones. Thanks Rick and George.

DENNIS CHAMPION - Was a manager of a quarry in the St. Breward area, Dennis told me that he wanted £40 for the rocking stone I got in the garden, but little did we know what a special piece of rock it was at the time and that many people would come to see that stone and photograph it and also TV companies would come from all around the world to film it.

HAROLD MAKEPIECE - Harold is an eccentric, he lives in Vermont USA and he owns 3 acres of land.  He put an advert in the paper to see if there are any artists out there that want to display there art work they can do so on my land, lots of artist answered yes now Harold has amassed a huge art collection, and for the artists there work is on show free of charge. He came to see me and stayed for a few days, he rang home and said I’ve decided not to go on the European trip this is the number of the place I’m staying if you need to contact me, we got on really well. We went to stay with Harold in Vermont where he is a sort of justice of the peace or a magistrate and he is allowed to marry people and he asked me if I would like to be a witness at this wedding it reminded me of a wild west wedding, I learnt a lot from him, and use bits of what he did in the weddings we have here.

ROB ROY - To my knowledge Rob Roy erected the largest stone without the use of any cranes or mechanical equipment, just using poles and leavers.

JOHN LYNE -John was a photographer came many times, when we dug out the holy well John was standing close by as the water gushed it went all over him and his camera someone took a photo of him and that was the photo that was In the paper.

ROY MENHENITT - Still alive seen him 3 days ago he was a royal marine commando and worked for St. Eval recycling, a very quiet gentleman; he helped me on many occasions. I remember once he helped me on a film called the Magic Castle and he had to be lowered over a 200 ft cliff with rough seas.

RICHARD PARKIN - I worked for Richards’s dad, a great guy his daughter still works with Karen at Prynn’s restaurant, Richard keeps peacocks and sometimes they stop the traffic when they land in the road.

CLIFFORD NEWCOMBE - I worked with Clifford on many a construction job around Cornwall. Did a little bit of sexton work and helped me dig the pit for the front leg of the angel’s runway,

CORNISH JOHN -Called so as he believes in everything Cornish. He has helped the Prynn family so much and would always give you help.

HAMISH MILLER - A great dowser, he has written books about ley lines when he gave a talk people would be spell bound. Thank for your help.

PAUL BROADHURST - I’m a big fan of his.  A mystic and an entrepreneur he once wrote a book called secret shrines, everybody paid him up front so he could complete the book I was the only one to pay him in instalments.

COLIN HAYNES - Was a carpenter and put the roof on the bungalow.

DON WILKINS -Don Wilkins came and bored the holy well for me, I became great friends with him and sadly Don is no longer with us.

GUY SLATER - Was a journalist and presenter and could see a story a mile away.  We are still great friends.

ESTER TRENOUTH - Another neighbour, she was a nurse and won the OBE for her work in the community.

DENNIS ELLERY - Came many times to the stones, he was an expert on aeroplanes; he taught me a lot of the history of St. Merryn and St. Eval during the war.

WAYNE SIMPSON - Son of Rodney he did jobs for me around the stones with his lorry.

STUART CHARLES - Was the lifeguard on Treyarnon beach 25 years ago he rescued a piece of marble of the sea, he made a boat out of 2 surf boards and a stretcher and got the marble ashore it stayed under a caravan for 25 years, Stuart gave me that stone and its down in the chamber, Stuart named the stone the dreckly stone.

BOB JOHNS - Worked on the house artexing.

The REV DIANE POWELL - Helped us on our way to become Christians so we could take communion and be brought into the Christian faith.

DOREEN AND BOB WICKS - Were the only couple to have a white wedding at the stones, Bob said Doreen looked beautiful.

LINDA - She work at the garage in St. Merryn always had a smile on her face.

DERICK LINDSEY - In the coastguards, helped me with the judgement stone

ROY EAST - Was a journalist, I don’t think Roy had a lot of faith in what I was doing that’s why his names there.

DELLA POWEL -. Another journalist a local person.

DARREN BRAY - Young boy from St. Merryn helped me a lot with the stones.

MIKE AND ANN SHEPHERD - Mike is no longer with us; his brother owns a restaurant in London called Langams.

GYPSY ACORA- What can I say about gypsy Acora? I wish I had his talent,  have been associated with him for a long time.

ANDREW LAWSON - He put me in his book

PETER BENNET - Farmer and entrepreneur and campsite owner an incredible guy, but I want to tell a bit about his wife, in the early days before they had the campsite if she ever went off to get fish and chips no matter how many people were there she would come back with fish and chips for every one

GERRY CLARK - He was a journalist and radio man that worked for radio Cornwall and news papers a great man to talk to always wrote good stories.

DERICK BALL - 20^th century man off God, it wasn’t always like that, in the 60s and 70s Derrick was a hippy a full on hippy with all the clothes and long hair. He got into trouble with the law over something like maintenance but had been to prison, I remember asking him what it was like when they locked you up, it was the worst thing that ever happened to me in my life. When he left prison he decided that he wanted to help mankind and he did, he would often walk 12 miles to Newquay to talk to the elderly and sick people that needed him Derrick must be 80 now and I still see him occasionally.

RICHARD BENNETT - Farmer, inventor, aviator to name a few things Richard could be on the wall for any of these things but I’m going to tell you a story that Richard told us all in the crib hut one lunch time, and it goes like this. There was a local builder that lived in St. Merryn, he used to go every where with his dog, it was a Jack Russell terrier, one day down on the golf links at Constantine bay the terrier seen a rabbit the terrier ran after the rabbit who bolted for a hole, well you know what terriers are like, it shot after it and followed it into the warren. The owner wasn’t worried because the terrier had done this before, well this time he didn’t come out and that night the dog didn’t come home, the owner went back every night did a bit of digging a lot of calling, he felt his dog was in there trapped, more than a week passed by with no luck, so he went to see the owner of the golf links and told him the story, he asked for permission for his friend Richard Bennett to come down with his wheeled digger and scrape the brambles of the warren and do a bit of digging, the owner said yes that was fine, so Richard scraped all the brambles off and cleaned the area, but it was a huge area both men sort of said well where do we start. At this point as the 2 men were thinking about were to dig Richards dog Simba who was a beautiful big Alsatian dog,  jumped out the digger and walked around the site after a couple of minutes  Simba sniffed and started to paw the ground, Richard said to the builder before we go any further get your shovel and try there were Simba is sniffing, he dug down about a foot and there he found his terrier  trapped he had dug himself in and couldn’t get out everything was covered in sand his eyes ears nose, the owner picked him up dusted him off and took the dog home gave him a good feed and he was right as rain, to my knowledge the do is still alive.

GEORGE - George was about 33 fit and healthy when I first met him that was about 1982 and I was in full swing with the stones, he was a Jehovah witness and he use to carry his bible everywhere in an old army dinner bag, he used to visit mother a lot I think maybe to convert her, but she said now listen dear I’m a Methodist and I wont be converted and Jack isn’t that religious, but please come and see us. Well he used to visit regularly come and see me see the stones so I decided to put his name up, then all of a sudden he never came any more, I made some inquiries to his friends and they said he’s in prison why I asked and they replied he will be the best one to tell you that. About a year later George came to visit, I said when I heard his voice is that you George, yes was the reply, I said I’ve heard a lot of stories about you tell me there not true, sadly Ed he said they were all true, I said well come inside and tell me all about it. It was one august night and I was in the shipwrights in Padstow having a shandy and opposite on the table was this gorgeous woman all dressed in white, I got talking to her I told her I was a man of god and that I like to help the poor, she said well I do the same type of work I’m a Robin Hood sort of character I take from the rich and give to the poor, over the next few days George and this woman started having a deep relationship with each other. One night the woman said George I’ve got a special job to do and I would like you to help me, well George was love struck, (we have a different name for that down here in Cornwall)  and he couldn’t say no. well they did this job on a property around here, between the 2 lights, they waited for the owner to leave and then they ran to the window and she put treacle on it and then cut the glass, she  climbed through the window and started handing out all the best family silver and all the trinkets, George was loading up the loot into a bag,  he thought this was a great idea robbing the rich to feed the poor, she told him that they were doing just as good of work as Jesus done, as he was love struck he went along with it. Well over the next few weeks they did quite a few jobs around the area and the police were out looking for them big time. Well in the end they were caught and the judge said that George had let down all his people as he was a religious man and gave him 2 years in prison, ……. Well I haven’t been to prison but I know how George felt, even politicians and royalty have been love struck. Well George came back and people forgave him, but he wasn’t very old when he passed away  

PAUL MURT -  Paul is a great guy and a very good friend of mine, he is a wonderful story teller and would have us captivated when he told us stories in the crib hut, and with his help we are going to see this project through to completion.  He is just finishing off the engraving of the slates, and writing all the stories of the persons involved. But the story that I’m going to tell you is about Paul’s Dad.  Paul’s Dad was the Mechanic on the Padstow Life boat and he was awarded the M.B.E for all his years of service and bravery. Paul’s Dad was also a fisherman and he used to take out people for trips and on one such trip he had 6 men onboard, they had been out at sea a while fishing, with the boat rocking up and down one of the men got very sea sick, the others were making fun at him all of a sudden the man being sick lunged over the boat and everything came up and out including his false teeth, all the men thought this was hilarious, well one of the others decided to play a joke on him, he reeled in his rod and without any one looking tied his own false teeth onto the line and dropped it in the water, after a short while he brought in his catch and as he lifted it out off the water he said look what I have got, everyone looked in amazement, the man who had been sick took them off the line rinsed them off and tried to put them in his mouth finding they didn’t fit took them out and said these aren’t mine and threw them back into the sea, I think this was pay back.

KIM LANGLEY - Kim is an eccentric she has got 5 cows and all her money is taken up with these cows they will never go to market they are there to there dying day, once upon a time she owned loads of goats and hens they were everywhere. God blessed Kim with a talent she is a great artist. I was always hoping that we could work together on a project I have got a tree trunk in the garden its about 14 ft long and 18 ins in diameter, she was going to sculptor it and we were going to call it Big Dick we were going to use 2 round hay bails as testicles, that was her idea. Kim did a lot of engraving here if you look at the slates you will see Crazy Horse, SIR Ernest Shackleton that is her art work on the stones, believe you me she is good, it is a shame she lives so far away.

KATHY SHARPE - She is an eccentric, she is always immaculately dressed, and her house is so spotlessly clean, she is also one of the kindest ladies I know if we were in a town or city she would always hold my hand steadying me she was my eyes and ears. One of my favourite stories about Kathy was when we went to the Eden Project, I had a cheese sandwich for my lunch we sat at a table and as I bit into it, it sort of exploded all over the table and floor and over Kathy, well if I was trying to impress her I wrecked that it took her 10 minutes to clean it up I joked next time I’ll bring a bib.