Cregneash

Cregneash or Cregneish (Manx: Creneash) is a small village and tourist destination in the extreme south-west of the Isle of Man, about 1 mi (2 km) from Port Erin.

Cregneash Manx: Creneash
Harry Kelly's cottage and Woodturner's workshop in Cregneash
Cregneash Location within the Isle of Man
Population	(2006 Census)
OS grid reference	SC189672
Parish	Rushen
Sheading	Rushen
Crown dependency	Isle of Man
Post town	ISLE OF MAN
Postcode district	IM9
Dialling code	01624
Police	Isle of Man
Fire	Isle of Man
Ambulance	Isle of Man
House of Keys	Rushen

Annual Manx festivals are held in Cregneash and it is home to a flock of the rare four-horned Loaghtan sheep. Much of the village forms a "Living Museum" dedicated to the preservation of the traditional Manx ways of life. Officially opened in 1938, the Cregneash Folk Village shows the typical way of life of a small Manx village in the 19th century. Many original Manx cottages have been preserved and exhibit Victorian farming and fishing equipment. Historically most of the cottages were thatched, and this is reflected on many of the cottages. There are also a number of private homes in the village, but their external appearance is controlled to maintain an older look.

A central museum holds a wealth of historical information, whilst many of the cottages in the village allow visitors to see rural activities performed by museum workers in traditional dress. Harry Kelly's cottage in the centre of the village typifies a Manx villager's home, where weaving or knitting often took place in the living area. In the workshop a blacksmith demonstrates some of the tools and techniques used to make horseshoes and other metal equipment of the time. Ned Beg's cottage holds an exhibition about the Manx language, as Cregneash was important in the survival of the language around the start of the 20th century. Ned Maddrell (1877–1974), sometimes called the last native speaker of Manx, was brought up in the village.[1]

The historic village backdrop has been used in film and television shows, including Waking Ned Devine, Rocket's Island, Stormbreaker, Keeping Mum, Mindhorn and Solace in Wicca.