Minions, Cornwall

Minions (Cornish: Menyon) is a village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the eastern flank of Bodmin Moor northwest of Caradon Hill approximately four miles (6 km) north of Liskeard.[1] Minions is first recorded in 1613 and its meaning is unknown.[2]

Minions
Minions
Minions is located in Cornwall
Minions
Minions
Location within Cornwall
OS grid referenceSX2671
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLISKEARD
Postcode districtPL14
Dialling code01579
PoliceDevon and Cornwall
FireCornwall
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament

A stone circle known as the Hurlers is located on the west side of the village. Several other tumuli are also in the area, including Rillaton round barrow, where a Bronze Age gold beaker was discovered. The Cheesewring, a distinctive rock formation, is a mile northwest.

The village has embraced the coincidence that its name is now shared with the characters from the Despicable Me franchise.

Geography

Minions is in the former Caradon administrative district and in the parish of Linkinhorne. At 300 metres (980 ft) it is said to be the highest village in Cornwall.

The village is dominated by Caradon Hill, standing at 371 metres (1,217 ft) high, on which there is a TV transmission mast on the summit. As a result, there is a road leading up to the summit from Minions.[1] On the western flank of the hill, a quarry recently started up again, cutting granite boulders.

As well as this working quarry, there are many other disused quarries and mine buildings in the area due to the village's mining heritage, including the Phoenix United Mine that closed in 1914.[3] Unlike in the west of Cornwall, there are no plans to reopen the tin and copper mines in the area.

Climate

The climate of Minions is Oceanic but, like the rest of Bodmin Moor, due to its higher altitude, it is often cooler, windier and wetter. However, there is a good balance of fair days too, which can get warm in the summer. In winter frosts are common and even though it snows most years, it is never prolonged or severe.

Community facilities

The village has two main car parks, located on the western and eastern edges of the village. A museum dedicated to the mining history of the local area is located to the north of the village in a disused engine house.

Minions Shop and Tea Room

There are two tearooms and a general store which also holds a post office.

There was a pub, The Cheesewring, that suffered a fire in 2021 which caused substantial damage.[4]

road sign (tempo limit 30): Welcome to minions; the word "minions" is written in the font from the film, and surrounded by three "minions", one of whom is shown holding a cardboard sign that reads "Please drive carefully"
The bespoke 2015 sign
road sign (tempo limit 30): Welcome to MINIONS, Please drive carefully; on each side of the lettering is a very faded sticker of a Despicable Me "minion"
The original sign with stickers, seen in 2022

In May 2015, a road sign was erected outside the village in tribute to the then-forthcoming Minions movie. This sign was removed later the same year for safety reasons, due to families stopping on the narrow road to take photographs. Local residents fought for the "tourism-boosting" sign to stay, stating that it had "put Minions on the map."[5] Calls for the colourful sign to be reinstated received strong support, with an anonymous member of the public placing stickers of the popular characters on the original sign.[6]

Filming for Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children took place in 2015.[7]

  • Engine house of a disused mine
    Engine house of a disused mine
  • Disused granite quarry on the moor
    Disused granite quarry on the moor

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Minions, Cornwall.
  1. Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 201 Plymouth & Launceston ISBN 978-0-319-23146-3
  2. Weatherhill, Craig (2009) A Concise Dictionary of Cornish Place-names. Westport, Mayo: Evertype; p. 49
  3. "Crow's Nest" (PDF). Natural England. 1999. Retrieved 9 January 2012.
  4. "Cheesewring Hotel in Cornwall damaged in fire". Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  5. "Cornwall village Minions sign removed". BBC News. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  6. "Minions sees popular cartoon characters return to its sign in the form of stickers". Cornish Guardian. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. "Gone For A Burton". Cornwall Independent. 2 October 2016. p. 25.
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