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Porthleven is a town, civil parish
Civil parish

In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a civil parish is usually the lowest unit of local government, below district and county councils....
 and fishing port in the Kerrier
Kerrier

Kerrier is a Non-metropolitan district in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is the most southerly district in the United Kingdom, other than the Isles of Scilly....
 district of Cornwall
Cornwall

Cornwall , constitutional Duchy and palatine, is a metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England of England, United Kingdom, located at the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain....
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, near Helston
Helston

Helston is a small town and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, at the northern end of the The Lizard. It is the most southerly town in the UK, being 3 km south of Penzance....
. It is the most southerly port on the island of Great Britain
Great Britain

Great Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the List of islands by area, and the largest in Europe. With a population of 58.9 million people it is List of islands by population....
 and was originally developed as a harbour of refuge, when this part of the Cornish coastline was recognised as a black spot for wrecks
Shipwreck

A shipwreck is the remains of a ship that has wrecked, either in it having sunk or been Beaching . A shipwreck can refer to a wrecked ship or to the event that caused the wreck, such as the striking of something that causes the ship to sink, the stranding of the ship on rocks, land or shoal, or the destruction of the ship at sea by vio...
 in days of sail. Nearby Loe Bar was particularly infamous.

Due to the prevailing westerly winds
Westerlies

The Westerlies or the Prevailing Westerlies are the Prevailing winds in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees latitude, blowing from the high pressure area in the horse latitudes towards the Geographical poles....
 it was very easy for a ship under sail to become entrapped within the bay and be cast up on the rocks which made up the small fishing coves of Mullion
Mullion, Cornwall

Mullion is a village, civil parish and small fishing harbour in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom, situated on the west coast of the The Lizard....
, Kynance
Kynance Cove

Kynance Cove is an inlet on the The Lizard peninsula in south-west Cornwall, England, UK. It is known for its rugged cliffs, white sand and turquoise water....
 and the Lizard
The Lizard

The Lizard is a peninsula of Cornwall, and contains the Extreme points of the United Kingdom of mainland Cornwall and of the island Great Britain, Lizard Point, Cornwall....
.

Historically and for local-government purposes, Porthleven was included within the town boundaries of nearby Helston
Helston

Helston is a small town and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, at the northern end of the The Lizard. It is the most southerly town in the UK, being 3 km south of Penzance....
.






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Porthleven is a town, civil parish
Civil parish

In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a civil parish is usually the lowest unit of local government, below district and county councils....
 and fishing port in the Kerrier
Kerrier

Kerrier is a Non-metropolitan district in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is the most southerly district in the United Kingdom, other than the Isles of Scilly....
 district of Cornwall
Cornwall

Cornwall , constitutional Duchy and palatine, is a metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England of England, United Kingdom, located at the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain....
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
, near Helston
Helston

Helston is a small town and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, at the northern end of the The Lizard. It is the most southerly town in the UK, being 3 km south of Penzance....
. It is the most southerly port on the island of Great Britain
Great Britain

Great Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the List of islands by area, and the largest in Europe. With a population of 58.9 million people it is List of islands by population....
 and was originally developed as a harbour of refuge, when this part of the Cornish coastline was recognised as a black spot for wrecks
Shipwreck

A shipwreck is the remains of a ship that has wrecked, either in it having sunk or been Beaching . A shipwreck can refer to a wrecked ship or to the event that caused the wreck, such as the striking of something that causes the ship to sink, the stranding of the ship on rocks, land or shoal, or the destruction of the ship at sea by vio...
 in days of sail. Nearby Loe Bar was particularly infamous.

Due to the prevailing westerly winds
Westerlies

The Westerlies or the Prevailing Westerlies are the Prevailing winds in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees latitude, blowing from the high pressure area in the horse latitudes towards the Geographical poles....
 it was very easy for a ship under sail to become entrapped within the bay and be cast up on the rocks which made up the small fishing coves of Mullion
Mullion, Cornwall

Mullion is a village, civil parish and small fishing harbour in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom, situated on the west coast of the The Lizard....
, Kynance
Kynance Cove

Kynance Cove is an inlet on the The Lizard peninsula in south-west Cornwall, England, UK. It is known for its rugged cliffs, white sand and turquoise water....
 and the Lizard
The Lizard

The Lizard is a peninsula of Cornwall, and contains the Extreme points of the United Kingdom of mainland Cornwall and of the island Great Britain, Lizard Point, Cornwall....
.

Historically and for local-government purposes, Porthleven was included within the town boundaries of nearby Helston
Helston

Helston is a small town and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, at the northern end of the The Lizard. It is the most southerly town in the UK, being 3 km south of Penzance....
. After years of growth, it now has its own town council
Town council

A town council is a democratically elected form of government for small municipality or civil parishes. A council may serve as both the representative and executive branch....
. Its population in 2001 recorded by the UK census
United Kingdom Census 2001

A nationwide census, commonly known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th Census in the United Kingdom....
 was 3,190.

Including tourists and surfers would swell that number considerably. Porthleven has exploited its location and exposure to powerful swells
Swell (ocean)

A swell, in the context of an ocean, sea or lake, is a formation of long-wavelength wind wave. Swells are far more stable in their directions and frequency than normal wind waves, having often travelled long distances since their formation by tropical storms or other wind systems....
 to become one of the best-known and highly-regarded surfing
Surfing

Surfing refers to a person or boat riding down a wave and thereby gathering speed from the downward movement. Most commonly, the term is used for a surface water sports in which the person surfing is carried along the face of a breaking ocean surface wave standing on a surfboard....
 spots in Britain. Waves
WAVES

The WAVES were a World War II-era division of the United States Navy that consisted entirely of women. The name of this group is an acronym for "Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service" ; the word "emergency" implied that the acceptance of women was due to the unusual circumstances of the war and that at the end of the war the women...
 regularly exceeding 2 metres break on the shallow reef
Reef

In nautical terminology, a reef is a Rock , bar , or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water .Many reefs result from abiotic processes?deposition of sand, wave erosion planning down rock outcrops, and other natural processes?but the best-known reefs are the coral reefs of tropical waters developed through biotic processes do...
 that was shaped by blasting the harbour.

Porthleven was the home town of the Dambusters
Operation Chastise

Operation Chastise was the official name for the attacks on German dams on 17 May 1943 in the Second World War using a specially developed "bouncing bomb"....
' Commanding Officer, Guy Gibson
Guy Gibson

Wing Commander Guy Penrose Gibson Victoria Cross, Distinguished Service Order Medal bar, Distinguished Flying Cross Medal bar, Royal Air Force , was the first Commanding officer of the Royal Air Force's No....
, and there is a road named in his memory. Former motor racing driver Chris Craft - who competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans
24 Hours of Le Mans

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is a sports car racing endurance racing held annually since near the town of Le Mans, Sarthe, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance, it is organised by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest and runs on a Circuit de la Sarthe containing closed public roads that are meant not only to test a car and dr...
 race for over a decade, including a third-placed finish in 1976
1976 24 Hours of Le Mans

The 1976 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 44th Grand Prix of Endurance, and took place on June 12 and June 13, 1976....
, as well as two races in Formula One
Formula One

Formula One, abbreviated to F1, and currently officially referred as the FIA Formula One World Championship is the highest class of auto racing sanctioned by the F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile ....
 - was born in Porthleven.

Arguably, Porthleven's most recognisable building is the Bickford-Smith Institute which is next to the pier and harbour entrance. With a tower of about 70 foot in height, it has the appearance of a church but currently is used as a snooker club and houses the town council offices. It featured (along with various other scenes from the town) as the incident room in an episode of the TV detective series Wycliffe
Wycliffe (TV series)

Wycliffe was a United Kingdom TV series, based on W. J. Burley's novels about Detective Superintendent Charles Wycliffe. It was produced by HTV and broadcast on the ITV Network between 1993 and 1998....
.

Twinning

  • Gwiseni
    Guissény

    Guiss?ny is a Communes of France in Finist?re Departments of France in Bretagne in northwestern France....
     (Brittany
    Brittany

    Brittany is a former independent Celtic nations monarchy and duchy, now incorporated into France. It is also, more generally, the name of the cultural area whose limits correspond to the historic province and independent duchy....
    )


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