LAUNCESTON embraced a week of arts, literature and creativity with the recent Charles Causley Festival, which kickstarted on June 2 and continued through to June 9.

The festival, in its tenth year for 2019, saw a number of workshops, events and exhibitions take place in and around Launceston for the week, encouraging people of all ages to take up a new creative hobby, give writing a go and revel in the diverse range of arts and events while honouring the life and work of Launceston poet, Charles Causley.

Charles, who died in 2003 and stayed true to his Cornish roots throughout his successful career, has been an inspiration to many writers and creatives over the last century.

Born in 1917 at Riverside, Launceston, Charles went on from humble beginnings to become one of the country’s most profound poets and writers of the 20th century, counting the likes of Ted Hughes and Siegfried Sassoon as his close friends in the writing world.

The Charles Causley Festival, which has been under the Charles Causley Trust’s banner for two years now, welcomed a number of writers, artists and creatives to Launceston for the week in June, celebrating the artistic world and bringing people into the town to see what Launceston has to offer.

From performances by Jim Causley — a distant relative of Charles’ — and festival headliner Seth Lakeman, to poetry workshops, art exhibitions, creative writing talks and historic town walks, the festival really had something to offer to everyone.

A notable event was the launch of Falmouth University lecturer and Causley Trust writer-in-residence for 2018, David Devanny’s poetry app, which took place at Charles’ former home, Cyprus Well on Friday, June 7.

David, a poet and multimedia artist, who is also a trustee of the Charles Causley Trust following his writer’s residency at Cyprus Well in 2018, welcomed people to the house on Ridegrove Hill for a preview of the app, which follows a trail around Launceston to highlight significant and iconic poems by Charles around the area.

On Saturday, June 8, pop-up theatre group Story Republic took to the cobbled and paved streets of the town to ‘bring literature to life’, celebrating Cornwall’s legacy through short stories, poems and folk song.

Similarly, people around Launceston may have seen Sally Crabtree, otherwise known as ‘the Poetry Postie’, who really helped audiences connect with their inner poet through songs, edible poems and more interactive performances.

Singer-songwriter Seth Lakeman took to the Launceston Town Hall stage in the evening, performing a range of his folk and roots music.

Sunday, June 9 saw the ‘writers day’ section of the festival, with the Eagle House Hotel offering a creative collage-making for writers workshop with writer Jenny Alexander in the morning, followed by the life writing in poetry and prose afternoon workshop with journalist and writer Cathy Galvin.

The unusual Cornish pudding ‘Figgie Hobbin’ — created in one of Charles’ lovable poems — was served up at the ‘Figgie Hobbin Soiree’ at Cyprus Well with Anna Maria Murphy, Rick Williams and Simon Parker on the Sunday afternoon, followed by another performance in the evening by Jim Carey and The Sabateurs, with ‘Riots and Lobsters’.

Following the Post’s original chat with Causley Trust director, Kate Campbell, it is clear one of the trust’s main aims of this year’s festival was achieved — to bring everyone together and celebrate Launceston as a town, and encouraging everyone to try their hand at writing and creativity.