There were echoes of Monty Python at a recent meeting of Helston Town Council, as councillors debated the best way to deal with a troublesome shrub next to the Guildhall.

At least one council member called out "ni", in reference to the comedy troupe's 'Knights who say Ni', who demanded a shrubbery before allowing King Arthur safe passage.

Silliness aside, the council spent quite a while discussing the best way to deal with what some referred to as a tree, which councillor Jonathan Radford-Gaby said was "far, far too big," and "monopolised" the cobbled area between the Guildhall and Helston Museum in which it was sited, masking the new town map board which was placed there.

He proposed removing the plant and re-cobbling the entire area, and Councillor Martine Knight seconded the proposal, saying she would be "more than happy... to have the shrub completely eradicated," adding that her only concern would be how much it would cost to have the patch of garden cobbled over.

Councillor Radford-Gaby said in his estimation it should not cost too much, and he did not see why the council would need to pay Cornwall Council contractors ""twice the cost for street works" to what is "essentially private land."

However it was revealed that the land was 'adopted highway.' and as such required highways involvement for any work done, although the council could remove the shrub.

The debate was started by concerns raised by partners in the map-board project, who felt that the siting of the board on the Guildhall "looked odd."

However, the council decided that it was their building, and they did not wish for any more holes to be drilled into it, with the current siting of the board suiting its setting in the town.

Confirming the council's vote to remove rather than trim the plant mayor Mike Thomas said "the shrub is no more."

So from the 'Knights who say Ni' to Martine Knight, the responsibility finally fell to the councillor, who removed the majority of the offending foliage on Friday morning.