Cottages, courthouse, inn — since before 1860
Our Story
A pub built from Edgcumbe estate cottages, known for a century as the Butchers Arms, and shaped by the Tamar Valley — run today by people who believe hospitality still matters.
Meet your hosts
A warm welcome from Jay & Zena
We are thrilled to have been asked by Dan & Viki to run the Who'd, and it is a real privilege to take up the role of innkeepers of this well known and much-loved Cornish country pub.
It has been truly warming to receive such a kind, supportive welcome from the community here. This is a pub with a big heart, and it is our pleasure to host you — whether you are a local, a visitor, or simply passing through the Tamar Valley.
Come in, pull up a chair by the fire, and say hello. We look forward to meeting you.
Older than we thought
The Whod has long been said to have held a licence since 1860 — but the 1851 census tells a better story. Nine years earlier, an innkeeper named John Cousins was already living here at Siffield Cottage with his family and a barmaid. The building began life as three cottages belonging to the Edgcumbe estate, and by local account even served as a courthouse.
By 1861 it had a name — the Butchers Arms — and for over fifty years it was kept by John Cousens and then his widow Mary Ann. The Edgcumbes weren't distant aristocrats here, either: the Earl of Mount Edgcumbe was Lord of the Manor of St Dominick, and the estate's rents were once collected at the parish's other old inn by the church.
In 1962 the Potter family took over, and a delivery meant for another Butchers Arms at St Ive arriving here by mistake gave the pub its famous name. Who'd have thought it, indeed.
Six centuries in the making
A brief history of the Whod
1353
The Edgcumbes come to Cotehele
William Edgcumbe marries Hilaria de Cotehele, heiress to the estate. The family becomes one of the most powerful in Cornwall — and the land our pub stands on becomes Edgcumbe country.
1840s
Three cottages on the estate
The building begins life as a terrace of three cottages — formerly part of the Edgcumbe estate near Cotehele — and, by local account, serves for a time as a courthouse.
1851
An innkeeper at Siffield Cottage
The census records John Cousins, innkeeper, living here with his family — and a barmaid. The Whod is already welcoming travellers nine years before its oft-quoted 1860 licensing date.
1861
The Butchers Arms
Now named outright in the census, with John Cousins listed as innkeeper and carpenter. The Butchers Arms serves the village for the best part of a century.
1851–1906
The Cousens years
John, then his widow Mary Ann, keep the inn for over fifty years — an unbroken Victorian family story at the heart of St Dominick.
1962
The Potter family
Eddie Potter buys the pub and transforms it. When a delivery meant for another Butchers Arms at St Ive arrives here by mistake, someone laughs: "Who'd have thought it?" — and a new name is born.
2005
A new chapter
The freehold changes hands, securing the pub's future as a tied house and preserving its place at the heart of St Dominick.
Today
Dan & Viki · Jay & Zena
Owned by Dan & Viki and managed by Jay & Zena, the Whod is proudly paired with our sister pub The Edgcumbe Arms at Cremyll. Fires lit, ales poured, and a proper welcome waiting.
The Edgcumbe connection
This corner of East Cornwall is woven through with Edgcumbe history. The family's story begins here in 1353 at Cotehele — the medieval house above the Tamar, now cared for by the National Trust — generations before they built their grand seat at Mount Edgcumbe across the water.
Our own cottages stood on Edgcumbe land; the Earl was Lord of the Manor of St Dominick; Lady Ernestine Edgcumbe gave a stained-glass window to the village church. This pub is part of that landscape, not just beside it.
So it felt only right that, when the Whod reopened, it should join its sister pub beside the Cremyll ferry, in the shadow of Mount Edgcumbe itself: The Edgcumbe Arms. Two pubs, one family story — from the ancient manor at Cotehele to the water's edge at Cremyll.
Sister pubs
One family of pubs, one welcome
Cock Inns is a small collection of proper Westcountry venues, each with its own character and identity, all focused on our patrons. The Whod is run as a true sister pub to The Edgcumbe Arms at Cremyll and The Three Horseshoes at Cowley, Exeter. Many of our guests visit all three: lunch at Cremyll overlooking Plymouth Sound, a Sunday roast at Cowley, dinner here above the Tamar.
Who'd Have Thought It Inn
St Dominick, in the Tamar Valley — open fires, real ales, Sunday roasts, letting pods and a beer garden with valley views.
You're here — explore the Whod
The Edgcumbe Arms
Cremyll, on the Rame Peninsula — our sister house beside the historic ferry, at the gates of Mount Edgcumbe.
Visit edgcumbearms.co.uk →
The Three Horseshoes
Cowley, just outside Exeter — a traditional Devon country gastro pub with a sun-trap garden and private hire.
Visit threehorseshoesexeter.co.uk →Our promise
Our ethos
Owned by Dan & Viki and managed by Jay & Zena, we run this pub for people, not algorithms. That means a real person behind the bar, food cooked by hands that care, and a team that remembers your name. It's about slowing down, putting your phone away, and enjoying the company of the people around you.
Whether you're here for a pint after work, a Sunday roast with the family, a quiet night in one of our pods, or a wake to remember someone you love, you'll be looked after properly.