The Lost Gardens of Heligan, Cornwall

The Lost Gardens of Heligan - Thunderbox room and little bothy

The Thunderbox Room provided the inspiration for John Nelson and Tim Smit to restore the Lost Gardens of Heligan.

There are two toilet compartments on the ground floor. Inside one of the compartments many of the staff who worked in the gardens in 1914 signed their names in pencil; you can still read some of the signatures today.

Some matching names on local war memorials provide a simple, stark explanation for the demise of Heligan and the restoration was originally conceived as a tribute to these working people.

On the first floor, the Little Bothy provided basic overnight accommodation for a garden boy whose jobs would include attending to the boiler and deterring any would-be fruit thieves.