CORNWALL Heritage Trust has named two Heritage Champions at its annual awards ceremony at Scorrier House.

The awards celebrate the achievements of individuals who have made a significant contribution to Cornwall’s heritage in a voluntary capacity.

Colin French received the Sir Richard Trant Memorial Award for Heritage Champion, introduced in 2009 in memory of past trust chairman General Sir Richard Trant.

Colin has been an active volunteer and office holder with the Trevithick Society for 40 years, and a staunch supporter of its Puffing Devil replica engine since its inception in 1999.

He has been a member of the operating crew since 2001, has given talks about the life and work of Trevithick, is a frequent contributor to the society’s journals and has acted as its newsletter editor for the last 25 years.

In 2016, Colin took on the role of custodian of the Puffing Devil. His duties include overseeing the maintenance of the engine, managing and recruiting its voluntary crew, organising its public appearances, and acting as liaison with Camborne Town Council regarding the engine’s eventual installation in the new Basset Centre.

“Colin believes passionately that the replica of the Puffing Devil is a showcase for Camborne, and indeed Cornwall, which is why he has been so heavily involved in the project since day one,” said judges.

“Its publicity of Trevithick’s pioneering steam engineering achievements has given his name and Cornwall’s role in the Industrial Revolution their proper place in the history books.”

Mary Ann Bloomfield was given the Outstanding Contribution Award 2024 for her work in St Just. She was instrumental in launching annual community arts festival Lafrowda in 1997 and coordinated its education programme, processions and performers for 11 years.

From 2000 to 2004, she was part of the team reinstating community productions of the Cornish Ordinalia Cycle in the historic Plen an Gwari – one of few surviving medieval ‘playing places’ in the UK.

From 2004, she proactively fundraised to construct a backstage facility for the theatre: The Knut (pronounced ‘nut’) officially opened its doors in May 2014 and has become a central hub for St Just’s culture and arts scene under Mary Ann’s management.

In September 2021, Mary Ann produced the Cornish Ordinalia plays, a landmark homecoming for Cornish culture which saw all three medieval Cornish language plays in the Ordinalia cycle performed in St Just to audiences of nearly 6,000.

She is now spearheading the production’s transformation into an ongoing community tradition, with its next return to St Just planned for 2026.

Those who nominated her said: “Mary Ann embodies the best of us. She has shown an extraordinary lifelong commitment to her local community and gives her heart and soul to everything she does. We firmly believe there should be a statue of her in St Just one day.”

The event was hosted by Cornwall Heritage Trust’s President, Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall, Colonel Sir Edward Bolitho KCVO OBE; the Trust’s chairman, Lieutenant Colonel Richard Trant; and BBC Radio Cornwall’s Daphne Skinnard. The event was sponsored by Coodes Solicitors.