Grace Blakeley’s Love Letter to Cornwall

For almost as long as there have been fiction books to read, there have been love stories set in Cornwall.

Whether it’s Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca, Rosamund Pilcher’s Shellseekers, or just about any Ruth Saberton book among the litany of love stories, it’s our stunning peninsula that has provided the backdrop for the characters within to find true love.

For 30-year-old author, journalist and broadcaster Grace Blakeley, life over the past year has not been so much about finding love in Cornwall as falling in love with the area itself.

At a time when the claustrophobia and constant demands of London life got her down, it was Cornwall that brought her back, with Newquay providing the home she never wants to leave.

She caught my eye through her frequent sharing of her love of Cornwall on her social media channels, and at our meeting at Fore Street Café near Towan Beach, I felt like I knew what the story might be just on that.

What I didn’t expect was how much it had transformed his life at a time when the area I’ve always been lucky enough to call home, as a proud Cornish, needed it most.

The decision to move to Cornwall came after nine months of traveling in Central America, when the constant cycle of work and conflict in media appearances while living in London had become too much.

“There wasn’t much of a thought process before moving to Cornwall,” Grace said. “I had spent years in London appearing in the media, writing, being heavily involved with social media and constantly fighting.

“I got to the point where I couldn’t take it anymore, so I felt I had to get out for the sake of my mental and physical health. I spent nine months traveling in Central America, where I was able to decompress.”

Upon returning to London, after experiencing the joy that a less stressful life can bring, Grace realized that she was unable to return to her previous lifestyle. Something had to change.

It was not immediately clear what that change would be at the time, although Cornwall was not far from her mind, thanks both to happy childhood memories of holidays at Holywell Bay and encouragement from her brother’s girlfriend, who had spent time in Cornwall.

“All I knew after I got back to London was that I didn’t want to go back to the life I had left for nine months,” she continued. “At one point I thought, hell, maybe I’ll spend the rest of my life traveling and writing while I’m traveling the world. I was paralyzed after I came back and was living with my mother, not knowing what to do next. All I knew was that I didn’t want to go back to London.

“While I was away I had become really into surfing so I knew I wanted my next home to be somewhere on the coast and I was looking all over the world for that place where my brother’s girlfriend who had spent a lot of time here. , suggested I take a look at Cornwall.”

At this point, Grace decided to spend some time in Cornwall while she figures out her next move, and very quickly her future home left her calling card, convincing her that it was where she wanted to be. .

All she was an author, journalist and broadcaster looking for a life where she could be at one with herself was in Newquay. Not only is the coworking space she works from a stone’s throw from one of the city’s many beaches, but the people she shared that space with were people with similar values ​​and backgrounds to her own.

Being the job of filmmakers and NGOs (non-governmental organizations), it was very much about finding company with like-minded people.

In this workspace, Grace wrote her most recent book, Vulture Capitalism, a critique of the concentration of power in the economy and the influence it has on the country’s economic system.

A temporary return to London would be in play with the demands of launching a new book, but first, it was time for Grace to settle into her new home.

The trip to Cornwall was when the reality of her decision set in. “I remember feeling so, so nervous coming down,” she said. “I didn’t know how it could happen, although I knew anything could happen. It might go well, it might not. I just didn’t know; I knew my life as I knew it was a mess.

“Although, as soon as I got here, I went down to the beach, saw the waves, got in the water and fell in love immediately. I immediately felt at home.”

Visits to London for work only served to remind Grace of the difference her decision to move to Cornwall had made to her life, the city representing claustrophobia, conflict and engaging in a sometimes toxic media atmosphere, in contrast to a place where she could have space, peace and be one with herself.

But what about the future? Since moving here, Grace said she has found a social circle of friends as she settles into the Cornish life she made for herself and is now working to get involved in community groups that help her the less fortunate.

“I am very keen to use my free time to do what I can to help others. I know how lucky I am to be here, and I know that life can be difficult for others, whether it’s affording rent or managing so many vacation rentals,” she said. “I’m going to see the food bank to see what I can do to help them and I want to volunteer in the local area. I’m keen to get involved with Project WAVE, which gives kids surfing lessons and gets them into the water.”

Around work, volunteering, the sea and catching up with friends, it’s exploring Cornwall’s tapestry of attractions and rich history where Grace finds her happiness, with her partner she’s known since moving to Cornwall. One plan involves driving the coastal road around the peninsula to take in all the sights offered by Cornwall’s equivalent of ‘life on the edge’ – in this case, the edge where the land meets the sea.

With that, it was off to the adjacent beach for the obligatory photos, where, unlike the holiday season, the people on the beach were outnumbered by the seagulls.

I had arrived in Newquay expecting to speak to someone whose work I was familiar with about a life in Cornwall, perhaps one where we would talk about the difference between London and Newquay, and I left with a conversation that symbolized our shared sense of unrequited love . for the truly special place we call home.

On the split, Grace went to help a friend move from Newquay. As far from a life of constant pressure and bickering with Piers Morgan as it was possible to be.