St Breward Farmhouse & Bodmin Moor Cottages
Appeared in Series/Episodes:
Series 1–5 – Exterior shots of Nampara, Ross and Demelza’s family home
Series 1–2 – Miners’ cottages including Jim Carter and Jenny’s home
Series 2 – Dr Dwight Enys’s original cottage on Bodmin Moor
Episode Synopsis
Across the series of Poldark, Ross and Demelza’s cottage at Nampara, the miners’ cottages and Dr Dwight Enys’s modest home are central to the story. These buildings show three different worlds in 18th-century Cornwall: the struggling gentry at Nampara, the working mining families in their granite cottages, and the compassionate country doctor living close to his patients on the moor. On screen, all three are rooted in one wild landscape — Bodmin Moor.
Location & Travel Time from Chyvounder
General area (all locations):
St Breward & Bodmin Moor, Cornwall (PL30 area) – private farmhouse and surrounding cottages near the village of St Breward
Miners’ cottages: around Minions village, Bodmin Moor
Dwight’s cottage: also on Bodmin Moor, in the wider St Breward/Minions area
These are real working and private locations, so please visit respectfully, stick to public roads/paths and do not trespass onto private land.
Approximate travel time from Chyvounder:
Around 1 hour 15–20 minutes by car to St Breward / Minions area
For many Poldark fans, the real emotional heart of the series isn’t a grand house or a windswept cliff — it’s Nampara. Ross and Demelza’s stone farmhouse, the rough-hewn miners’ cottages and Dr Dwight’s simple home together tell the story of everyday life in 18th-century Cornwall.
What you might not realise when watching the series is that all three are rooted in the same wild landscape: Bodmin Moor, particularly around St Breward and nearby Minions.
Nampara – The Poldark Family Farmhouse
The exterior of Nampara, the Poldark family home, is filmed at a stone farmhouse near St Breward on Bodmin Moor. It’s a private property (often cited as an old farmhouse a couple of miles east of the village), so you can’t walk right up to the house, but the surrounding lanes and open moor give you a strong sense of the setting you see on screen.
In the series, Nampara is more than just a home. It’s where Ross rebuilds his life after war, where he and Demelza create a family, and where many of the most intimate and heartbreaking scenes take place. From the outside, the cottage is deliberately simple — granite, slate, and nothing fancy — reflecting a family caught between gentry and hardship.
When you drive into the St Breward area, look out for:
Low stone walls and granite cottages scattered across the moor
Open views towards tors in the distance
Narrow, winding roads giving that “edge of the world” feeling
Even without seeing the specific farmhouse, the atmosphere is immediately recognisable.
The Miners’ Cottages on Bodmin Moor
In contrast to Nampara, the miners’ cottages show the realities of working-class life. Several of the cottages seen in the series — including the one Ross gives to Jim Carter and his wife Jenny — are filmed on Bodmin Moor, particularly around the village of Minions.
These granite cottages, huddled together against the weather, tell their own story. Small windows, thick walls and low doorways speak of families who endured tough winters and relied on mining wages to survive.
When you visit the Minions area, you’ll notice:
Rows of traditional stone cottages
Old mine workings scattered across the landscape
Wide views over the moor, often with grazing ponies
It’s easy to imagine Ross riding in with news, or Demelza visiting friends between the cottages.
Dwight’s Cottage – The Moorland Doctor’s Home
Dr Dwight Enys, one of the series’ most loved characters, also has his cottage rooted on Bodmin Moor. The original exterior for Dwight’s cottage is in the same wider moorland area as the miners’ cottages and Nampara — remote, practical and quietly beautiful.
His modest home reflects his character: not grand, but full of compassion and purpose. From here, Dwight rides out to treat miners, families and the Poldarks themselves, often crossing the moor in all kinds of weather.
On screen, these scenes underline:
How isolated rural communities could be
How vital a good doctor was to village life
The physical effort involved in every journey
Standing on Bodmin Moor, with the wind in your face and the land stretching in every direction, you understand just how challenging those journeys would have been.
Visiting Respectfully
Because the St Breward farmhouse and many of the cottages are private homes, it’s important to visit respectfully:
Do:
Use public roads, paths and bridleways
Enjoy the views and sense of place
Explore nearby villages, churches and moorland walks
Don’t:
Enter private driveways or farmyards
Take close-up photos of private homes without permission
Think of it as experiencing the wider Nampara landscape rather than hunting for a single doorstep.
Combining with a Bodmin Moor Day Out
A Poldark-themed day on Bodmin Moor pairs perfectly with:
A walk up Rough Tor or Brown Willy for big views
A visit to Jamaica Inn for an extra dose of Cornish legend
A gentle explore of St Breward village and its church
From Chyvounder, it’s roughly 1 hour 15–20 minutes by car, making it a comfortable day trip from your West Cornwall base.
Why Base Yourself at Chyvounder
By staying at Chyvounder with Hideaway Stays, you get the best of both worlds:
Easy day trips to Bodmin Moor for Nampara, miners’ cottages and Dwight’s cottage
Short drives to West Cornwall’s coastal locations like Botallack, Levant, Porthcurno and St Michael’s Mount
A private, secluded garden to come home to after a day on the moor
A peaceful, cosy base that feels every bit as atmospheric as the series itself
After walking the wild moorland and passing the granite cottages that helped define Poldark’s world, returning to your own comfortable hideaway makes the experience even more special.
