Author Talk - Cornwall Uncharted

Join us at Kresen Kernow (during Pride month) for an ‘Author Talk’ with Dr. Paul Taylor-McCartney, who discusses his new non-fiction book, Cornwall Uncharted: Mapping Cornwall’s Queer History of Concealment, Culture and Creativity (The History Press) and the research journey behind it. In conversation with fellow author and researcher,  Peter McAllister, Paul explores how Cornwall’s towns, coves, chapels, studios and lanes shaped the ways queer lives could be lived, hidden and expressed across four centuries.

He draws on archives, literature and lived landscapes to show Cornwall not simply as a backdrop, but as an active part of these histories: a place that offered cover, community, creative space and, at times, constraint. The talk moves between well-known figures and quieter stories, tracing how reputation, discretion and local networks influenced what could be said, what could be recorded, and what was left unsaid. He will also talk through the book’s map, illustrations and visual language, showing how images can hold meaning when the archive falls silent. He will also outline the structure of the book and the key sections that shape the journey across Cornwall, explaining how each chapter follows a different landscape and a different kind of story.

Alongside the themes of concealment, culture and creativity, Paul also reflects on the pleasures of place-based reading: how to notice thresholds, routes and rooms, and how landscapes can carry histories that formal records only hint at.

This talk is part of Kresen Kernow’s events programme celebrating history, heritage and creative voices. Pull up a seat to hear about Cornwall’s past in new and unexpected ways, and stay afterwards for refreshments, photos and the chance to purchase signed editions of Cornwall Uncharted – with special giveaways with every signed copy purchased!