THE author of the recently published Bude — The Postcard Collection has praised the 'continually evolving' town as well as started work on her next title — and would welcome help with her research.

Dawn G Robinson, who runs the Bude and Beyond community website, was asked to author the postcard book by Amberley Publishing after her book 'Bude Through Time' was published in 2013.

The town has undergone quite a transformation since its humble beginnings as Stratton's unremarkable neighbour.

As one local candidly put it, 'Stratton was a market town when Bude was just a furzy down'.

Initially known for its beach sand properties, which worked wonders on soil and proved favourable with many Cornish farmers, Bude expanded rapidly following the construction of the sea canal in the early 19th century. The Victorians sought it out as the ideal holiday resort.

Bude — The Postcard Collection was published last month.

Dawn said: "The person with whom I collaborated to get hold of the old postcards, Ray Boyd, has an amazing collection and great knowledge of the history of the area as he was born here.

"I was able to put that together and go down to the Bude heritage archive and effectively write what are really extended captions for this book. So far it has been quite well received."

Dawn, who lives at Hartland, moved down from the North West five years ago. She worked there as a higher education tutor, prior to that she worked in publishing, and undertook freelance feature writing when having her children. Two of her children currently attend Budehaven Community School, and she is a governor at the school.

For the full report, and a round-up of the area news and sport, see this week's edition of the Post.