Penallt (also spelled Penalt)[1] is a village in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated high on a hill 4 kilometres (2+1⁄2 mi) south of Monmouth.
[2] Nearby, Penallt Old Church Wood is a 10-acre (40,000 m2) nature reserve managed by the Gwent Wildlife Trust.
This deciduous woodland provides a habitat for several bird species, including pied flycatchers, nuthatches, tree pipits, treecreepers and sparrowhawks.
The church dedication is unknown, though there is a local tradition that it was St James, the patron saint of pilgrims.
George Bernard Shaw stayed with the Webb family and described Penallt as a "special place" Other residents of the village include Jeremy Cook, the BBC's rural affairs correspondent,[citation needed] and the television presenter Kate Humble.