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Chris
Curtis, born and brought up in Polperro.
For
years he worked out at sea and now spends time on dry land as the
area's harbourmaster.
"It
was lovely growing up in Polperro for me because we had a cinema
back then and we would go a couple of times a week," remembers Chris.
"We had three or four films a week. I used to love Johnny Weismuller
in Tarzan and Jungle Jim."
Growing
up in the area was anything but boring for the young Chris.
"We
used to go to all the fetes, at one time there was one a week in
the area to visit, it was wonderful. We were never bored. Rock and
Roll was coming out so we all had our greasy hair and motorbikes!"
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| A
peaceful day in Polperro |
Law
and order was especially important when Chris was growing up in
the village.
"We
had a police presence all the time back then," he says. "In those
days if you did anything wrong you would get a clip across your
ear and then your parents would be told and you would be in trouble
with your parents."
Chris,
like his friends, enjoyed getting up to mischief.
"I
guess we used to knock on people's doors and then run away," he
laughs. "We would get big bits of turf and climb up on to the roof
and block people's chimneys and run for it. We were quite well behaved
really!"
When
Chris finished his education he felt the pull of the sea and has
devoted his career to the waters around Polperro as a fisherman
and more recently as the harbourmaster.
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| A painting
of Polperro harbour by Chris Curtis |
"I
was a fisherman, so was my father and his father before him," says
Chris. "My mother was evacuated from London during the Second World
War and met my father and stayed here."
After
a career out at sea Chris became harbourmaster of Polperro.
"I
am not paid, but the whole village mucks in and does their bit for
the harbour," says Chris. "I still go out to sea as a fisheman regularly.
I have got two boats."
Like
all fishermen Chris has his stories to tell about life out at sea.
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| The
Cornish sea is known for being unpredictable |
"I
was aboard a trawler once and I got catapulted over board," he remembers.
"I
turned in mid air and managed to grab hold of the boat. Anyway it
was rolling and I was up to my chest in freezing cold water. The
old skipper looked over and said 'If you want to mess around you
do it in your own time, not mine'! Another time I was down in the
Looe on a boat which used to have an old stove. The stove chimney
died on us. One of the crew got a new chimney. Another crew member
got ready to light the fire. Thing was it wasnt made of steel it
was made of cheaper material that couldn't cope with the heat. The
whole chimney went up in smoke and the local lifeboat got called
out."
On
the rare occasions that Chris finds himself with some spare time
on his hands he enjoys transferring his love of Polperro to canvas.
Over
the years Chris has painted pictures of the harbour. These hang
in his home and the local harbour office.
Meet
the local vicar of Polperro
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