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A Cornish Carol
A wise and witty short story that is full of Christmas cheer from the best-selling author and TV presenter, Fern Britton.
This will be one Christmas they’ll never forget…
Piran Ambrose is the epitome of brooding male. But Pendruggan’s Mr Rochester is in danger of becoming its Ebeneezer Scrooge when he is driven to distraction by the villager’s over-the-top Christmas celebrations. How could the cringeworthy amateur village production of Aladdin bring seasonal cheer to anyone, he wonders? And do the village children really have to arrive at his cottage door every single night in December with their terrible recorders and discordant singing?
But when Piran’s bad temper risks spoiling Christmas for everyone, something drastic needs to be done. So, over one Christmas Eve, three very special people pay Piran a visit, determined to show him what Christmas is really all about…
This will be one Christmas they’ll never forget…
Piran Ambrose is the epitome of brooding male. But Pendruggan’s Mr Rochester is in danger of becoming its Ebeneezer Scrooge when he is driven to distraction by the villager’s over-the-top Christmas celebrations. How could the cringeworthy amateur village production of Aladdin bring seasonal cheer to anyone, he wonders? And do the village children really have to arrive at his cottage door every single night in December with their terrible recorders and discordant singing?
But when Piran’s bad temper risks spoiling Christmas for everyone, something drastic needs to be done. So, over one Christmas Eve, three very special people pay Piran a visit, determined to show him what Christmas is really all about…
- GenresChristmasShort Stories
66 pages, Paperback
First published November 6, 2014
37 people are currently reading
185 people want to read
About the author
Fern Britton
34 books417 followersFern Britton, an English television presenter, was born on 17 July 1957 in Ealing, London. She was educated at Dr Challoner's High School in Little Chalfont and underwent training in stage management at the Central School of Speech and Drama. She is the daughter of the English actor, Tony Britton and Ruth Britton. Fern Britton spent the early days of her life at Buckinghamshire. Her older sister, Cherry Britton, is a script writer and her younger half brother, Jasper Britton, is an actor. She is married to the celebrity chef, Phil Vickery and lives with her family at Holmer Green in Buckinghamshire.
Fern Britton worked with a touring theatre company and in 1979, she started her career with Westward Television in Plymouth. She worked as a newsreader and continuity announcer on Westward Diary, the nightly local bulletin. Later, she switched to present BBC’s Southwest news programme, Spotlight. She became a known as the youngest national news presenter to present News After Noon on BBC1. Fern Britton then moved to work for TVS in Southampton, where she hosted the South edition of the news programme, Coast to Coast, together with Fred Dinenage. She has also presented other programmes, like Coast to Coast People, The Television Show and Magic Moments.
Since then, Fern Britton has hosted several programmes, which include Carlton Television's After Five, BBC's Breakfast Time, London News Network's London Tonight and BBC 1’s Holiday. She also featured in the first two series of The Brian Conley Show and in 1994, Fern Britton went onto present the famous television cookery game show, Ready Steady Cook. She hosted the show for a long span of six years until she was succeeded by chef, Ainsley Harriott. She joined hands with the British television presenter, Phillip Schofield to host the famous television magazine show This Morning. Since 1999, Fern Britton has been hosting the show and the couple was known for their hilarious presentation. The show was a big hit and won the 2003 & 2004 TV Quick Award for the ‘Best Daytime Viewing’. It also clinched the 2004 National Television Award for the ‘Most Popular Daytime Show’.
Fern Britton anchored the Pride of Britain Awards in 2002 and was one among the panellists on the satirical panel show, Have I Got News for You.
In 2006, the song, “The Fern Britton Experience”, which featured in the album, Hang The DJ was named after her by the UK DJ Shitmat. She hosted the reality television show, Soapstar Superstar, and the British Soap Awards 2006. At the Royal Albert Hall, on 31 May 2007, Fern Britton presented the Classical BRIT Awards and also co-presented the British Soap Awards that year.
Fern Britton anchored her own ITV1 Saturday night series, That's What I Call Television in 2007. In December 2007, she went on a secret trip to Basra to broadcast behind-the-scenes footage of the troops. She appeared as a guest presenter for the show, Have I Got News for You on 27 April 2007 and again on 17 October 2008. On 12 January 2008, she was the winner in the first episode of Thank God You're Here, a television comedy series hosted by Paul Merton. In April 2008, Fern Britton together with her colleague, Phillip Schofield was the presenter of the revived 'all star' version of the super hit ITV show, Mr and Mrs. The show was broadcast on Saturday nights as a six-part series.
Apart from television presentations, Fern Britton has also featured in advertisements for Ryvita Minis. She performed the title role in a Cinderella pantomime in 1988. In March 1998, her first book, Fern’s Family Favourites, was released and in October the following year, she launched her second book Winter Treats and Summer Delights. Fern, My Story was published in November 2008 by Michael Joseph and it ranked among the Top Ten Bestseller list by The Sunday Times.
Fern Britton worked with a touring theatre company and in 1979, she started her career with Westward Television in Plymouth. She worked as a newsreader and continuity announcer on Westward Diary, the nightly local bulletin. Later, she switched to present BBC’s Southwest news programme, Spotlight. She became a known as the youngest national news presenter to present News After Noon on BBC1. Fern Britton then moved to work for TVS in Southampton, where she hosted the South edition of the news programme, Coast to Coast, together with Fred Dinenage. She has also presented other programmes, like Coast to Coast People, The Television Show and Magic Moments.
Since then, Fern Britton has hosted several programmes, which include Carlton Television's After Five, BBC's Breakfast Time, London News Network's London Tonight and BBC 1’s Holiday. She also featured in the first two series of The Brian Conley Show and in 1994, Fern Britton went onto present the famous television cookery game show, Ready Steady Cook. She hosted the show for a long span of six years until she was succeeded by chef, Ainsley Harriott. She joined hands with the British television presenter, Phillip Schofield to host the famous television magazine show This Morning. Since 1999, Fern Britton has been hosting the show and the couple was known for their hilarious presentation. The show was a big hit and won the 2003 & 2004 TV Quick Award for the ‘Best Daytime Viewing’. It also clinched the 2004 National Television Award for the ‘Most Popular Daytime Show’.
Fern Britton anchored the Pride of Britain Awards in 2002 and was one among the panellists on the satirical panel show, Have I Got News for You.
In 2006, the song, “The Fern Britton Experience”, which featured in the album, Hang The DJ was named after her by the UK DJ Shitmat. She hosted the reality television show, Soapstar Superstar, and the British Soap Awards 2006. At the Royal Albert Hall, on 31 May 2007, Fern Britton presented the Classical BRIT Awards and also co-presented the British Soap Awards that year.
Fern Britton anchored her own ITV1 Saturday night series, That's What I Call Television in 2007. In December 2007, she went on a secret trip to Basra to broadcast behind-the-scenes footage of the troops. She appeared as a guest presenter for the show, Have I Got News for You on 27 April 2007 and again on 17 October 2008. On 12 January 2008, she was the winner in the first episode of Thank God You're Here, a television comedy series hosted by Paul Merton. In April 2008, Fern Britton together with her colleague, Phillip Schofield was the presenter of the revived 'all star' version of the super hit ITV show, Mr and Mrs. The show was broadcast on Saturday nights as a six-part series.
Apart from television presentations, Fern Britton has also featured in advertisements for Ryvita Minis. She performed the title role in a Cinderella pantomime in 1988. In March 1998, her first book, Fern’s Family Favourites, was released and in October the following year, she launched her second book Winter Treats and Summer Delights. Fern, My Story was published in November 2008 by Michael Joseph and it ranked among the Top Ten Bestseller list by The Sunday Times.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
December 22, 2025
Piran is grumpy, no idea why really as its not explained. He has a strange encounter in a grave yard and decides not to be grumpy. The end.
December 30, 2020
An easy light read.
September 21, 2015
A lovely little short story by Fern Britton called A Cornish Carol. Very A Christmas Carol like, only 60 pages but a sweet Christmassy story. Sorry but I have started reading some Christmas themed books already! Lots to get through before Christmas.
March 14, 2015
This was a short story but has all the charm of Fern's longer books.Based on a Christmas Carol,it incorporates earlier characters from her books and was a fun read set in Cornwall.Thoroughly recommend it.
November 24, 2014
Very cute short story with great characters and well worth reading
November 23, 2014
cute short story
January 28, 2015
Loved this book as it has characters from a previous book which was very enjoyable. The only thing I didn't like was that it was the size of a pamphlet and really not worth the money.
December 27, 2015
My first christmas read this yesr
January 24, 2015
Lovely little Christmas read; new book to follow in the Spring, smashing!
January 2, 2015
Such a great little story. Very touching.
March 1, 2026
A festive and light-hearted read. Reiterating the importance of keeping goodwill to all men in your heart all year round and not just for Christmas.
I enjoyed the characters, some were cute and quirky like you'd expect to see in a small town. But not all were essential to the plot.
Unfortunately, this had a few punctuation and grammatical errors, which really annoyed me. Thankfully it didn't take too much away from the story itself. I just found it sad that they were in a published book. I'm used to reading ARC's and had to double check what I was reading when I realised the errors.
A retelling of A Christmas Carol, with Piran working out why he is such a scrooge over Christmas, when he's generally a happy person.
I enjoyed the characters, some were cute and quirky like you'd expect to see in a small town. But not all were essential to the plot.
Unfortunately, this had a few punctuation and grammatical errors, which really annoyed me. Thankfully it didn't take too much away from the story itself. I just found it sad that they were in a published book. I'm used to reading ARC's and had to double check what I was reading when I realised the errors.
A retelling of A Christmas Carol, with Piran working out why he is such a scrooge over Christmas, when he's generally a happy person.
December 20, 2017
A lovely short story involving the characters of Pendruggan we have met in Britton's other novels.
It's Christmas time in Cornwall and the village is getting ready although something is up with Piran Ambrose and the festive mood is not happening for him.
Snapping at everyone and taking it out on Helen no one knows why he is like this until a,little festive magic brings home the blessings he has to be thankful for.
It's Christmas time in Cornwall and the village is getting ready although something is up with Piran Ambrose and the festive mood is not happening for him.
Snapping at everyone and taking it out on Helen no one knows why he is like this until a,little festive magic brings home the blessings he has to be thankful for.
December 13, 2020
A modern twist on Charles Dickens Christmas carol based on characters Fern Britton has previously written about. Having read her other stories this made it more relatable. An easy but enjoyable read that encompasses the spirit of Christmas. It lifted my spirits on a dull, wet day.
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November 14, 2021This book
I didn't ever think I would have enjoyed this series of books but can honestly say they are the most uplifting stories I have read in ages.I have thoroughly enjoyed every one of Farm's books
I didn't ever think I would have enjoyed this series of books but can honestly say they are the most uplifting stories I have read in ages.I have thoroughly enjoyed every one of Farm's books
January 2, 2018
I loved this book, a very quick read
February 10, 2018
Loosely based on A Christmas Carol, I enjoyed this, and it was very quick to read.
December 4, 2019
It was lovely to catch up with all the familiar names again and I really enjoyed the take on a Christmas Carol.
December 9, 2019
Perfectly encapsulates the small town atmosphere, lively and enjoyable.
December 10, 2023
Story didn't really capture me, found it boring and it dragged even though it was very short.
January 11, 2026
Fern Britton is a really good author this short story is excellent.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 30, 2020
Lovely to head back to the cosy village of pendruggan. A quick and feel good festive read.
August 27, 2018
Yet again I am reading a Christmas book out of season and I’m so glad that I did!! It was wonderful and made me feel very Christmassy!
Again, it was set in the Cornish village of Trevay in Pendruggan with the gathering of familiar characters.
Piran Ambrose is grumpy and moons and groans at everyone and their over zealous Christmas celebrations. Hereby ensues ‘A Christmas Carol’ and after a village powercut, Piran speaks to three people who try to show him the error of his ways and to make him see how special Christmas can be!
The ending was lovely and I can’t wait to read more of Fern Britton’s books.
Again, it was set in the Cornish village of Trevay in Pendruggan with the gathering of familiar characters.
Piran Ambrose is grumpy and moons and groans at everyone and their over zealous Christmas celebrations. Hereby ensues ‘A Christmas Carol’ and after a village powercut, Piran speaks to three people who try to show him the error of his ways and to make him see how special Christmas can be!
The ending was lovely and I can’t wait to read more of Fern Britton’s books.
March 30, 2017
Lovely book. Very enjoyable.
July 22, 2017
Lovely short story carrying on the story of Helen and Piran in Pendruggan.
August 25, 2022
Short story with a Christmas theme
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December 23, 2017This is loosely based on Dickens' A Christmas Carol. It's a very short book and a sweet little Christmas story.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews