Historic links between Penlee lifeboat station and a lifeboat station in France have been strengthened.

The mayor of Concarneau, Marc Bigot, his wife Christine, and deputy mayor Annick Martin visited Penzance and Newlyn in a trip arranged by the Penzance Concarneau Twinning Association and with the support of Penzance Council.

They were invited to the old Penlee lifeboat station, which closed after the loss of all eight crew members of the Penlee lifeboat Solomon Browne in 1981.

The Twinning Association, established in the aftermath of the Penlee lifeboat disaster, celebrates the shared Breton and Cornish cultures.

It is also keen to rekindle historic connections between the twin towns’ firefighters and lifeboat crews.

(Image: Penzance Town Council) Coxswain of Penlee lifeboat, Patch Harvey, regularly visits Concarneau lifeboat station at Trévignon.

Mr Harvey said: "A twinning group came over, probably about eight years ago, and invited me to go to Concarneau and meet the crew at Trévignon.

"That's how it started and we have become very good friends.

"It's quite important, because we all share the same attitude to saving lives at sea."

The French visitors were given a tour of the old Penlee lifeboat station by local historian Mike Sagar-Fenton, and Mr Harvey showed them around the present Penlee lifeboat station.

(Image: Penzance Town Council) The mayor of Concarneau expressed gratitude to the lifeboat crew, saying: "We were very moved by our visit to the Penlee lifeboat station this morning.

"The RNLI and the SNSM (Société Nationale de Sauvetage en Mer) were both founded at around the same time, and there are a lot of similarities in how they are organised."

He also noted the difference in resources and maritime spirit between the two countries.

Penzance town mayor and president of the Twinning Association, Stephen Reynolds, said: "It was a great honour to be invited to Concarneau in August to join the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the town, and a great pleasure to reciprocate by inviting Marc, Annick and Christine to visit Penzance and Newlyn.

"It was particularly special to visit the old Penlee lifeboat station, and to pay a poignant tribute to the eight gallant lifeboatmen lost with the Solomon Browne in December 1981."

He expressed gratitude to those who facilitated the visit and looked forward to further strengthening the close ties between the two communities.

He added: "Our visit to Newlyn was a timely reminder of how large the sea still figures in the lives of both our communities, and I’m very much looking forward to building on this visit to further strengthen the close ties links between us."