A small Cornish village fundraising to reopen a chapel has been helped by an unlikely benefactor - the prime minister of the United Arab Emirates.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Emir of Dubai, has made a "generous" donation to the efforts to transform the Godolphin Cross Methodist Chapel, 12 miles west of Falmouth, into a community centre.

Cornish villagers approached the sheikh for help due to his link to the village through the Godolphin Stables in Newmarket, which he runs.

Image: The sheikh is the United Arab Emirates prime minister and Emir of Dubai

The thoroughbred breeding stables are named after the Godolphin Arabian, first bred in 1724, which takes the name of its best known owner Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin.

Godolphin Cross Community Association chairman Richard McKie described the donation as a "fairy tale".


He told CornwallLive: "These kinds of things don't normally happen. It's a fairy tale really. It's not often a sheikh steps in to help a Cornish village."

Mr McKie said the villagers' offer on the chapel had been verbally accepted.

"We can't thank Sheikh Mohammed enough and we'd love to see him in this neck of the woods any time," he added.

"He would be assured of a very warm welcome."

Residents hope to develop a community centre in the chapel, which has been closed since April.