Inspired by the famous ‘El Diablo’ who devilishly jeers on the cyclists of the Tour De France, a Cornish ‘El Diablo’ – otherwise known as Beelzebub (Darcey Ball) – surprised the Tour of Britain riders in the ‘wild west’ of Cornwall on Sunday alongside her angelic counterpart, Archangel Michael (Sennen Richards-Fardell).

The impressively costumed characters are part of The Ordinalia, an iconic trilogy of plays thought to be the oldest surviving written plays, which are performed in the oldest outdoor working theatre space, the Plen an Gwari in St Just, west Cornwall and started a two-week run this weekend.

Saturday saw the launch of The St Just Ordinalia – the full-scale productions of the country’s 13th Century plays.

Pre-dating Shakespeare’s work, the Ordinalia plays are unique to Cornwall and are being performed for the third time in around 500 years and the first time in 20 years.

Until September 18, audiences will be able to see all three Ordinalia plays in one week, which will be repeated during the second week, surrounded by angels, devils, the crucifixion and Noah’s Ark, offering a powerful, divine and otherworldly experience altogether. The three plays collectively cover the whole scope of the bible stories from the beginning of the world to Doomsday.

As they were written in Medieval Cornish, they actually form the basis for our understanding of today’s contemporary Cornish language.

As the Reformation took hold and the place where they were likely written, Glasney College in Penryn, was destroyed, someone made sure the manuscripts were safely hidden and the plays’ powerful messages have been handed down to us over the centuries, for communities to continue to experience and enjoy these incredible stories.