Since the 15th century, perhaps even longer, Broad Oak has been part of the Silverton landscape. Residents of the Devon village, one of the oldest in the south-west of England, have met beneath the tree’s mighty boughs clambered into the canopy, taken a few moments of peace in its shade. Theatre companies have borrowed it for a backdrop; people in need of comfort have hugged it; the primary school uses its image as its badge.
Now young and old are mourning its loss after the great tree fell – on a calm, sunny day rather than a stormy one – and the village is working out what to do with the remains of the oak, now crumpled across the recreation ground.
