Country pub of the week: The Ship Inn, Mousehole

Before the roaring Atlantic is Mousehole, the Cornish village where stargazy pie was born. Those who might not know the name will surely know its vision: a buttery pastry crust out of which baked pilchards rise. The dish is served on December 23 to celebrate the legend of Tom Bawcock, a fisherman who is said to have braved a storm to feed a village starving in the midst of a cruel 1500s winter.

But any time in December is a special time in Mousehole: its harbour is filled with festive lights; colours illuminate the cobblestones and The Ship Inn is where the parties bloom, each night a festival of song. The pub is old in timber and stone, crooked beneath the weight of its years. You’ll be met by a medieval village full of hake and halibut, mackerel and ling, and pints of good ale. And those lights, bright against the darkness of a broiling winter sea.

South Cliff, Mousehole, Penzance, TR19 6QX, shipinnmousehole.co.uk