A cave which featured in the TV series Poldark has collapsed following a cliff fall in Cornwall.
The collapse at the historic Holywell Cave in Holywell Bay, Newquay, Cornwall, is thought to have happened overnight on Saturday.
The cave, also known as St Cuthbert’s Cave, had been tucked under the southern cliffs of Kelsey Head.
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Coastguards and the RNLI confirmed the incident, while witnesses said the cave was cordoned off by lifeguards.
It featured in series 4, episodes 3 and 8 and series 5 episode 4 and 5 of the BBC drama
Steve Peck Club, the chairman of Holywell Bay Surf Life Saving Club, said: “We believe the cliff collapsed in the middle of the night. As soon as the tide was low enough, a team surveyed the scene to find thousands of tonnes of rock and debris scattered on the north end of the beach, completely smothering the ancient holy well.
“There have been reports in the lead up to the collapse that huge cracks and holes were forming above the cave causing an overhang on the Kelseys above.
“As it’s tidal, it cannot be cordoned off but we are warning all visitors to the area to keep away from the cliff path. The unusually dry summer and the recent rain could be a contributing factor.”
Kev Richens, from Swindon, Wiltshire, was visiting Holywell on Sunday as part of a week-long family holiday and saw the aftermath of the collapse.
He said he had visited Holywell every year for more than 10 years and had only been to the cave two days previously, as reported by Need To Know.
Chris Barnard, who lives near Callington, Cornwall, said he and his wife previously ran Poldark tours because it was one of the locations where the BBC drama series was filmed.
He said he was shocked when he first heard about the collapse and was sad because it was now “gone forever”.
Barnard said: “I was shocked when I first saw the photographs because it’s such an iconic location and such a popular location.
“The fact it’s gone is not nice… it’s gone forever.
“The collapse must have happened overnight because, if people were inside, it could have been a catastrophe.”
According to the National Trust website, Holywell was one of the filming locations in the BBC’s Poldark series.
Barnard said that, since 2015, when they first launched Poldark Tours Cornwall, they showed thousands of people from around the world the cave until 2024.
The professional landscape photographer said he had frequently been inside the cave at different times of the day.
He said it held great significance to him as he had scattered his dog’s ashes off the coast at Holywell Beach.
Barnard said the cave had “amazing geology” and that when the light hit the rocks, the colours were “beautiful”.
The bay itself also featured in the opening sequence of Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond film Die Another Day.
Holywell Cave, also known as St Cuthbert’s Cave, is set in the south west corner of Kelsey Head and can be accessed at low tide from the north east end of the beach at Holywell Bay, near Newquay.
A natural spring, descending through a multi-coloured grotto from the back of the cave, has drawn thousands to the bottom of the cliff over the years and is thought to be the origin of Holywell Bay’s name.
At its entrance, small, slippery steps carved into the side of the rock hundreds of years ago were barely distinguishable, worn down by centuries of feet climbing up into the cave.
Pilgrims, mothers with sick children and people with disabilities who would leave their crutches behind at the foot of the cave all came to drink from the holy well, which was said to have incredible healing properties.
READ MORE: Terrifying moment cliff collapses on swimmers and boats at popular tourist spot
(Jam Press/Newquay coastguard search & rescue team)
