Across much of Europe, more festivities and traditions occur on 24 December than on Christmas Day itself, but in the Cornish coastal village of Mousehole, the biggest mid-winter get-together happens on 23 December, when the fishing port celebrates Tom Bawcock’s Eve.
Where does Stargazy Pie come from?
Tom Bawcock's Eve is held in honour of a local hero who, according to legend, sailed out into monstrous storm-whipped winter waves to bring home a catch that saved the village from disaster, after a long period of tempestuous conditions had kept the fishing fleet harbour-bound for weeks, and the population was teetering on the edge of famine.
Tom’s fish were baked in one massive dish, with the heads left on, peeking though the pastry as if staring at the sky, and this culinary creation – Stargazy Pie – remains the celebration’s central feature and signature meal. Several are made at Mousehole’s Ship Inn, and then shared by villagers and visitors.
A traditional song is sung, lanterns are lit and paraded around the harbour (against a backdrop of Mousehole’s illuminations), children’s plays are performed (with an added cat character), Cornish ales are quaffed, and high-spirited appreciation is expressed for those who risk life and limb to harvest the fruits of the sea that have historically sustained such coastal communities.
Did Tom Bawcock exist, and is the story true?
According to local folklore, Tom Bawcock was a 16th-century fisherman who – just before Christmas during one especially bleak and terrible winter, when storms had prevented boats from sailing and the spectre of starvation hovered over the hamlet – set off into the storm and braved the waves alone in his little boat. His fellow fishermen and neighbours never expected to see him again, but against all odds, he not only returned alive, but with a catch large enough to feed the entire population of Mousehole. Hurrah!
Not everyone buys this story, though, including the writer and respected oracle of all things Cornish, Robert Morton Nance, who thought it likely the Tom Bawcock tale was an apocryphal yarn, potentially passed down since pre-Christian times. In medieval England, Tom was a very common name and Bawcock was an expression used to describe a decent or brave man, possibly derived from the French Beau Coq (‘good cock’…as in rooster).
There is an alternative, less popular version of the story, in which Tom Bawcock goes out fishing on this date, which is already being celebrated as a feast day, in defiance of tradition, and is rewarded with a bad catch of motley fish.
Generally, though, fishing folk are quite rightly regarded as heroes in Cornwall’s coastal villages, for risking all and enduring so much to keep communities alive. There are also stories of an older ceremony traditionally held at the end of December, where Cornish fishermen would prepare a feast incorporating several kinds of fish that they hoped to catch in the new year, and this was likely absorbed into legend that underpins Tom Bawcock’s Eve.
Regardless of the truth, the event is extremely popular, and baking and partaking in Stargazy Pie has become a cherished Cornish tradition, especially in Mousehole itself, where the celebration is now combined with the Mousehole Illuminations.
- Britain's top country Christmas traditions and their origins
- Horse skulls and onion-induced dreams: the quirky British Christmas traditions you should try this year
What is Stargazy Pie?
It’s said that when our hero Tom Bawcock returned to the harbour and emptied his nets on that December day, his haul included seven different kinds of fish, all of which were cooked up in one enormous dish, with the heads of the main ingredient poking through the pastry crust (probably to prove they were actually in there).
Known as Stargazy Pie (or sometimes Starry Gazey Pie) this now-famous fish dish is traditionally prepared in homes and Mousehole’s Ship Inn each Tom Bawcock’s Eve, using locally caught pilchards, cod, coley, ling, haddock, huss and gurnard, plus eggs and potato, all baked under a pastry crust topped with fishtails and heads, arranged so they appear to be gazing up at the heavens. Yum.
When did people start celebrating Tom Bawcock’s Eve?
The current concept of celebrating Tom Bawcock’s Eve with a massive Stargazy Pie and a big village shindig can be traced to Tom Mitchell, landlord of Mousehole’s Ship Inn during the 1950s, who, in stroke of absolute genius, breathed life back into the legend and revived the traditions (most of which revolve around the pub).
Reliable records of similar festivities prior to this point are somewhat scant, but Cornish culture and language expert Robert Morton Nance wrote about Tom Bawcock’s Eve back in 1927, and he was describing celebrations that happened in the 19th century.
How do people celebrate Tom Bawcock’s Eve today?
Starting from the Ship Inn – centrifugal point of the celebrations – the all-important Stargazy Pie (actually, several such pies) are proudly brought forth before being scoffed by villagers and any visitors lucky enough to be in town at the time.
Locals make and light lanterns, which are paraded around the streets and seafront, and since 1963, Tom Bawcock’s Eve has been combined with the Mousehole Illuminations, when the whole harbour is lit up with an impressive display of glowing creations (some in the shape of Stargazy Pie) that reflect in the cold water of the Celtic Sea.
Despite casting doubt on the origin story and questioning the very existence of Tom Bawcock, our man Robert Morton Nance did write a folksong about the celebrations, which is repeatedly and raucously sung (to the tune of the traditional Cornish Wedding March) every 23 December.
How did the cat get involved?
Published in 1991, The Mousehole Cat, written by Antonia Barber and beautifully illustrated by Nicola Bayley, is an award-winning children's book based on the Tom Bawcock legend, starring a cat called Mowzer (which is how Mousehole is properly pronounced) who accompanies her fisherman owner on his perilous winter adventure to bring food to the village folk.
The story’s enduring popularity has seen it become enmeshed in the overall theme of the celebration. The tale was latterly adapted into a stageshow by Cornish writer Alan M Kent, and performances of The Mousehole Cat take place in the village each December.
Can you sing the traditional Tom Bawcock's Eve song?
Hold my beer…
[Ahem… clears throat]
A merry plaas you may believe
woz Mowsel pon Tom Bawcock's Eve.
To be theer then oo wudn wesh
To sup o sibm soorts o fesh!
Wen morgee brath ad cleard tha path
Comed lances for a fry,
An then us had a bet o scad
an starry gazee py.
Nex cumd fermaads, braa thustee jaads
As maad ar oozles dry,
An ling an haak, enough to maak
a raunen shark to sy!
A aech wed clunk as ealth wer drunk
En bumpers bremmen y,
An wen up caam Tom Bawcock's naam
We praesed un to tha sky.
Written by Robert Morton Nance, Old Cornwall, 1927