The Man Engine has given an evocative and stirring performance in the centre of Liskeard.

The biggest mechanical puppet created in Great Britain rose to a height of more than 10 metres in front of a huge crowd.

The ceremony had been delayed by technical problems but the wait of around 50 minutes was worth it as the giant belched smoke and steam as it transformed from its crawling mode to fully upright.

The performance remembered the sacrifices made by Cornish miners and also celebrated the major industrial contribution made by Cornish mining pioneers.

This evening the Man Engine will be transforming in Minions and tomorrow it reaches Lostwithiel.

We’ll have full coverage of the Man Engine events in print in this week’s Cornish Times, on sale on Friday.