author

William Bentinck Forfar

1810–1895

A Cornish solicitor who turned local history, dialect, and folklore into lively fiction and verse, he wrote with a strong sense of place. His books open a window onto nineteenth-century Cornwall, from smugglers' tales to village customs and the legends of Land’s End.

1 Audiobook

The Wizard of West Penwith: A Tale of the Land's-End

The Wizard of West Penwith: A Tale of the Land's-End

by William Bentinck Forfar

About the author

Born in 1810 and dying in 1895, he is remembered as a Cornish author and solicitor whose writing stayed close to the landscapes and traditions of western Cornwall.

His known books include Pentowan (1859), Pengersick Castle (1862), Kynance Cove; or, The Cornish Smugglers (1865), The Wizard of West Penwith (1871), Rozzy Trenoodle and his Leathern Bag (1871), Cornish Poems and Selections from "Pentowan" (1885), and The Helston Furry Day (1885). Across fiction, verse, and local antiquarian writing, he returned again and again to Cornish character, dialect, custom, and folklore.

He is especially appealing to listeners who enjoy regional writing with a strong local flavor. Even when telling dramatic stories, his work keeps one foot in remembered places and community traditions, which gives it a warm documentary value as well as narrative charm.