Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is an  and  in the  five miles from the South Coast of Britain. It is situated south of the county of  and is separated from mainland Britain by the. Popular since as a holiday resort, the Isle of Wight is known for its natural beauty and for its world-famous  based in.

The Island possesses a rich history including its own brief status as a kingdom in the. It was home to the poet, and had her much loved summer residence and final home  built in. Its maritime history encompasses boat building and sail making through to the manufacture of s and the world's first. Its space history includes the testing and development of the and  space rockets, launched from , . It is home to the  and the recently revived, which, in 1970, was one of the largest  events ever held. The island is also one of the richest locations for s in.

In 686 AD, it became the last part of the to convert to, a century after the rest of  had done so.

The island is the smallest in  (when not including the predominantly urban counties of  and the ) at 380  (147 ), just beating the revived  at 382 km² (148 sq mi), although at low tide it is actually larger than Rutland. With a single and 132,731 permanent residents according to the 2001, it is also the most populated  in the. It was once part of.

History


The created the position of. and the fort of were founded. The Island did not come under full control of the Crown until it was sold by the dying last Norman Lord, Lady Isabella de Fortibus, to in 1293. The Lordship thereafter became a Royal appointment, with a brief interruption when was crowned King of the Isle of Wight,  assisting in person at the ceremony, placing the crown on his head. He died in 1445, aged 22. With no male heir, his regal title expired with him.

, who developed the and its permanent base at, fortified the Island at , East & West Cowes and , sometimes re-using stone from dissolved monasteries as building material. Sir Richard Worsley, Captain of the Island at this time, successfully commanded the resistance to the last of the French attacks in 1545; the French attempts to conquer the Island being decisively stopped after the English victory in the. Much later on, after the in 1588, the threat of Spanish attacks remained and the outer fortifications of Carisbrooke Castle were built between 1597 and 1602. During the  fled to the Isle of Wight, believing he would receive sympathy from the governor, Robert Hammond. Hammond was appalled, and incarcerated the king in Carisbrooke Castle.



made on the Isle of Wight her summer home for many years and, as a result, it became a major holiday resort for members of European royalty, whose many houses could later claim descent from her, through the widely flung marriages of her offspring. During her reign, in 1897, the world's first station was set up by, at the  battery, at the western tip of the Island.

In 1904, a mysterious illness began to kill colonies on the Island and had nearly wiped out all hives by 1907, when the  spread to the mainland and decimated  in the. Called the Isle of Wight Disease, the cause of the mystery ailment was not identified until 1921, when it was traced to the . The disease (now called ) frightened many other nations, because of the importance of bees in of many food plants. Laws against importation of honeybees were passed, but this merely delayed the eventual spread of the parasite to the rest of the world.

The could describe several events, but usually the term refers to one very large  that took place near, West Wight in 1970, following two smaller concerts in 1968 and 1969. The 1970 show was notable both for being one of the last public performances by and for the number of attendees reaching, by many estimates, 600,000 (despite only 50,000 tickets being sold), and overtaking the attendance at  in the previous year. The Festival was revived in 2002 and is now an annual event, with other, smaller musical events of many different genres across the Island becoming associated with it.

Physical geography and wildlife
Isle of Wight is approximately diamond in shape and covers an area of 380 sq km (147 sq mi). Slightly more than half of the Island, mainly in the west of the Island, is designated as the. The Island has 258 sq km (99.6 sq mi) of farmland, 52 sq km (20 sq mi) of developed areas, and 92 km (57 mi) of coastline. The landscape of the Island is remarkably diverse, leading to its oft-quoted description of "England in Miniature". The West Wight is predominantly rural, with dramatic coastlines dominated by the famous chalk ridge, running across the whole Island and ending in  stacks — perhaps the most photographed aspect of the Isle of Wight. The highest point on the Island is, at 241 m (791 ft), which is also a.

The rest of the Island landscape also has great diversity, with perhaps the most notable habitats being the soft cliffs and sea ledges, which are spectacular features as well as being very important for wildlife, and are internationally protected. The flows north into the, whilst the other main river, the  flows roughly north-east, emerging at  Harbour on the eastern end of the Island. Confusingly, there is another entirely separate river at the western end also called the flowing the short distance from  Bay to a relatively large estuary at. Where distinguishing the two becomes necessary, each may be referred to as the eastern or western Yar.

The south coast of the Island borders the. Without man's intervention the Island may well have been split into three with the sea breaking through 1) at the west end of the Island where a bank of pebbles separates  from the marshy backwaters of the Western Yar east of Freshwater, and 2) at the east end of the Island where a thin strip of land separates Sandown Bay from the marshy basin of the Eastern Yar, east of Sandown. Yarmouth itself was effectively an island with water on all sides and only connected to the rest of the Island by a regularly breached neck of land immediately east of the town.

Island wildlife is remarkable, and it is one of the few places in England where the is flourishing, with a stable population ( is another). Unlike most of England, no s are to be found on the Island, nor are there any wild but, instead, rare and protected species, such as the  and many rare s, can be found. The butterfly's distribution in the  is largely restricted to the edges of the crumbling cliffs of the Isle of Wight.

A competition in 2002 named the as the Isle of Wight's. .

The Island is known as one of the most important areas in Europe for finding fossils. The eroding cliffs also assist hidden remains to become more visible.

Climate
Being one of the most southerly points in the UK, the Isle of Wight has a warmer climate than other areas which results in high levels of tourism, particularly along the south of the island. It also has a longer growing season than other areas in the UK.

Geology
The Isle of Wight is made up from a wide variety of different rock types which date from Early times (around 127 million years ago) to the middle of the  (around 30 million years ago). All the rocks found on the Island are, made up of mineral grains from previously existing rocks. These are all consolidated to form the rocks that can be seen on the Island today, such as, and. Rocks on the Island are very rich in fossils and many of these can be seen exposed on the beaches as the cliffs erode.

Cretaceous rocks, normally red, show that the climate was previously hot and dry. This provided suitable living conditions for s. Dinosaur bones and footprints can be seen around the Island along beaches, especially at and.

Along the northern coast of the Island there is a rich source of fossilised shellfish,, turtles and mammal bones. The youngest of these dates back to around 30 million years ago.

The Island is mainly made up of clays, in most of the northern parts of the Island, limestone, upper and lower s,  and.

Politics
The Isle of Wight is a and  county. As it has no district councils (only the County Council), it is effectively a county, although not officially. It is unique in England in this way — all other unitary areas are single districts with no county council, while the Isle of Wight is the other way round. It also has a single, and is by far the most populous in the United Kingdom (more than 50% above the average of English constituencies).

As a constituency of the, it is traditionally a battleground between the and the. The current MP, is a Conservative, and his predecessor Dr  was a Liberal Democrat.

The election of 2005 was a landslide victory for the Conservative Party, displacing the long serving "Island First" group, a coalition of  and independents.

There has been a minor regionalist movement, in the form of the and, but this has generally performed badly in elections.

Demographics
From the census taken in 2001, the island's population was at 132,731. This shows a change of 5.4% since the last census in 1991 which is a higher increase than the average for the UK at 2.6%. The mean age of people from the island is 43.19. This is higher than the national average of 38.65.

From the 2001 census data, the population on the Isle of Wight by age group is:

The lack of a university on the island causes many younger people to leave for higher education. The Isle of Wight is also considered an attractive place for many people to retire, due to the perception that it is more peaceful than the rest of the UK. This results in a higher proportion of older people.

The most popular religion on the island is, with 73.72%, however this census question was optional and 7.89% did not wish to state a religion.

Main towns

 *  is the county town of the Isle of Wight and is located in the centre of the Island and is the main shopping area on the Island. Recent developments include a new bus station with retail complex and a new retail park on the outskirts.  Located next to the, Newport was once a busy port until the mid-19th century, but has now been mainly converted into art galleries, apartments and other meeting places.
 * , The Island's biggest town with a population of around 30,000, is located in the north east of the Island.  It is a  town with a half-mile long pier and four miles of beaches, attracting many tourists each year.
 *  is the location of Cowes week every year and where many people across the UK go to go sailing. It is also the home of famous sailor Dame.
 *  is another seaside resort, attracting many tourists each year. It is also home to the and  geological museum, and an 18 hole golf course.
 *  just south of Sandown, also attracts tourists by its sandy beaches. Its main attractions are Shanklin Chine and the old village.
 *  is on the south coast of the Island and is built on steep slopes leading down to the sea which attract many tourists. Recent developments include Ventnor Haven, a harbour on the coast of Ventnor.

The Isle of Wight has no cities. Newport, located in the centre of the island, is the second largest town and is also the county town. There are also smaller towns along the coasts particularly on the east side of the Island. Many of these such as Sandown and Ryde attract many tourists each year.

As well as the major towns, the island also has many smaller villages. Some of these smaller villages also attract many tourists (for example, is a popular tourist destination).

Language and dialect
The distinctive Isle of Wight accent is a somewhat stronger version of the traditional, featuring the dropping of some s and an emphasis on longer s. This is similar to the  heard in Southwestern England, but less removed in sound from the  of the Southeast. In common with many other English regional dialects and accents, a strong Island accent is not now commonly heard, and, as speakers tend to be older, this decline is likely to continue.

The Island also has its own local and regional words. Some words, including grockle (visitor) and nipper/nips (a younger male person), are still commonly used and are shared with neighbouring areas. A few are unique to the Island, for example overner (a mainlander who has settled on the Island) and caulkhead (someone born on the Island or, for sticklers, those born there from long-established Island stock). Other words are more obscure and used now mainly for comic emphasis, such as mallishag (meaning ) and nammit ("noon-meat", meaning food). Some other words are "gurt" as in large or great, also "gallybagger" as in scarecrow. .

Sport
is a world-famous centre for, playing host to several racing s. is the longest-running regular regatta in the world, with over 1,000 yachts and 8,500 competitors taking part in over 50 classes of yacht racing. In the first  race took place around the Island. Other major sailing events hosted in Cowes include the, the , the , and the.

The Isle of Wight Marathon is the United Kingdom's oldest continuously-held marathon, having been run every year since 1957. . The course starts in Ryde, passing through Newport, Shanklin and Sandown, before finishing back in Ryde. It is an undulating course with a total climb of 1,505 feet.

The Island is home to the Isle of Wight Islanders Speedway team, who compete in the sport's second division, the 'Premier League'. The club was founded in 1996, with a first-night attendance of 1740. The Island is also home to the, an ice hockey team based at Ryde Arena. They compete in the English Premier League, the 2nd Division in the country. There is also an ENL team, Vectis Warriors, also based at Ryde Arena.

The now-disbanded was founded in 1888 and became one of the eight founder members of the  in 1896. There are several other non-league clubs such as  There is an  with three divisions, and a  club, plus various other sporting teams. is particularly prevalent on the Island and boasts several of the nation's premier clubs, such as the Wight Knuckle Ryders.

The Isle of Wight competes in the bi-annual, which it hosted in 1993. The Isle of Wight will host these games again in 2011.

Music
The Isle of Wight is also the home of the band "". Recently they have been having more national success and often perform at smaller concerts on the island. The Isle of Wight is also home to the and the.

Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added by the Isle of Wight economy at current basic prices by the  with figures in millions of.

Industry and agriculture
The largest industry on the Isle of Wight is tourism, but the Island has a strong agricultural heritage, including sheep and dairy farming and the growing of arable crops. Traditional agricultural commodities are more difficult to market off the Island because of transport costs, but Island farmers have managed successfully to exploit some specialist markets. The high price of these products overcomes the transport costs. One of the most successful agricultural sectors at present is the growing of crops under cover, particularly salad crops, including tomatoes and cucumbers. The Isle of Wight has a longer growing season than much of the and this also favours such crops. has been successfully grown in for many years, and is even exported to. This has led to the establishment of an annual at Newchurch, which is one of the largest events of the Island's annual calendar. The favourable climate has led to the success of s, including one of the oldest in the British Isles, at near. is also grown for its oil. The largest sector of agriculture has been dairying, but due to low milk prices, and strict UK legislation for UK milk producers, the dairy industry has declined. There were nearly one-hundred and fifty dairy producers of various sizes in the mid-eighties, but this has now dwindled down to just twenty-four.

The making of sailcloth, boats and other connected maritime industry has long been associated with the Island, although this has somewhat diminished in recent years. is still home to various small marine-related companies such as.

Although they have reduced the extent of the plants and workforce, including the sale of the main site, operates what was once the  a subsidiary of, and known latterly, when manufacturing focus changed, as. Prior to its purchase by Westland, it was the independent company known as. It remains one of the most notable historic firms, having produced many of the, and the world's first.

The Island's major manufacturing activity today is in s, used by boat-builders and the manufacturer, which has a wind turbine blade factory and testing facilities in  and.

is the home of, manufacturers of the world-famous and  aircraft. This is shortly to become the site of the European assembly line for light aircraft. The Norman Aeroplane Company is a smaller aircraft manufacturing company operating in. There are have been 3 other aircraft manufacturers that built planes on the Island.

In 2005, began exploratory drilling for, with its Sandhills-2 borehole at  but ceased operations in October that year, after failing to find significant reserves.

Breweries
There are three breweries on the Island. Goddards Brewery in opened in 1993. David Yates, who was head brewer of Burts and Island Brewery, started brewing as Yates Brewery at the Inn at in 2000. Ventnor Brewery, under new management, is the latest incarnation of Burt's Brewery, which has been brewing on the Island since the 1840s in. .

Tourism and heritage
The heritage of the Island is a major asset, which has for many years kept its economy going. Holidays focused on natural heritage, including both wildlife and geology, are becoming a growing alternative to the traditional holiday. The latter has been in decline in the United Kingdom domestic market, due to the increased affordability of air travel to alternative destinations.

Tourism is still the largest industry on the Island. In 1999, the 130,000 Island residents were host to 2.7 million visitors. Of these, 1.5 million stayed overnight, and 1.2 million visits were day visits. Only 150,000 of these visitors were international visitors. Between 1993 and 2000, visits increased at a rate of 3% per year, on average.

At the turn of the nineteenth century the Island had ten including two at  and a "chain pier" at. The in Cowes succeeded the earlier  but was itself removed in 1960. The piers at Ryde,, , and Ventnor originally served a coastal steamer service that operated from Southsea on the mainland. The piers at Seaview, Shanklin, Ventnor and were all destroyed by storms during the last century. Today only the railway pier at Ryde and the piers at Sandown, (currently closed to the public) and Yarmouth survive. is arguably the oldest theme park in the UK, and one of the oldest in the world.

As well as more traditional tourist attractions, the Island is often host to walking holidays. or cycling holidays through the attractive scenery. Almost every town and village on the Island plays host to hotels, hostels and camping sites. Out of the peak summer season, the Island is still an important destination for coach tours from other parts of the and an annual walking festival has attracted considerable interest.

A major contribution to the local economy comes from and marine-related tourism.

Sea
By far the main form of access is by from the mainland, with regular vehicle  services and passenger services being available through the ferry companies:
 * — operates a car and passenger service between and East . High speed passenger-only services to Southampton operate from "West"  under the name of "Red Jet".
 * — operates a car and passenger service between and  (near ), and between  and . It also operates a passenger-only service between  (train station) and  (train station) under the name "Fast Cat" (known as the 'Vomit Comet' by the locals due to its colour), so named because the boats used are s.
 * — carries passengers between and  aboard a.

There are regular proposals for further routes, and during additional services have been known to operate — notably a fast  service between West Cowes and.

Rail
The Island is the home of the smallest in the United Kingdom's  network, the. This runs some 8½ miles from to, down the eastern side of the island via  and. These are electric trains, using former rolling stock.

The Island also has a steam-operated heritage railway, the. The steam railway connects with the Island Line at. This was part of the former Ryde to line.

Before the days of in the 1950s and 1960s, the Island boasted a comprehensive railway network based on a triangle of lines connecting Ryde, Newport and Sandown. Branch lines led from to  and from Newport north to Cowes and west to Yarmouth and. Two other lines ran to :
 * 1) an extension of the aforementioned Island Line from Shanklin and
 * 2) a branch of the Newport-Sandown line via Godshill and.

The two lines terminated at different levels above the town.

Today much of the old rail network has been converted to cycle ways, including the Newport-Cowes, Newport-Sandown and Yarmouth-Freshwater sections. Other sections can still be traced on the ground, including the two tunnels where the Ventnor lines were taken through the downs.

Roads
A sign used to greet visitors to the Island disembarking from the car ferry at, stating Island Roads are Different, Please Drive Carefully. It is a joke amongst local residents that the reason Island roads are different is due to a lack of maintenance by the Council. Nevertheless the lighter traffic, quieter roads and slower speeds are noticeable to the visitor and are one of the reasons the Island has remained attractive to tourists from the busier mainland. The Island has 489 miles of roadway and is one of the few counties in the UK not to have a motorway.

Buses
The main bus company for the Isle of Wight is. It provides a total of 24 different bus routes for the island with most of the island towns getting a 24 hour service. The most regular services run between the larger towns such as Ryde and Cowes. From April 2006, the company changed its livery on all buses (excluding open top buses) to two shades of green and also operated buses on a newly designed, simplified network. This new network did not allocate certain routes with different livery, as had been done previously. During the summer, Southern Vectis also operates four open top tour routes; The Medina Tour, The Sandown Bay Tour, The Downs Tour and The Needles Tour. These are popular for many tourists visiting the island during the summer months.

also operate buses on the island, mainly taking students to and from school; however they do also help Southern Vectis with some of its routes.

Walking and cycling
The Island has an extensive network of byways, bridleways, footpaths and cycle tracks, including 520 miles of public rights of way. Several long distance paths are highlighted on Ordinance Survey maps and local signs, including a coastal path round the whole Island. routes 22 and 23 have sections through the Isle of Wight, including off road sections of route 23 between Cowes and Newport and Newport and Sandown along disused railway lines. There is a signed "round-the-island" cycle route primarily on road, as well as a 12 mile on and off road leisure route called the Sunshine Trail. The Island holds an annual Walking Festival in May and Cycling Festival in July.

Air
There are two small airfields for general aviation: at Sandown and. These are busy with day-trippers in summer, travelling by light aircraft.

Fixed Link
Currently the only ways to get to the island is by boat or by air. However, a fixed link by tunnels or bridges has been discussed.

Communications
All of the Island telephone exchanges are broadband-enabled and in addition, some urban areas such as and Newport are covered by cable lines. Some areas, such as, have no broadband access in certain places.

Media
The Isle of Wight has one local broadsheet newspaper, The. It discusses local issues and is published each Friday, or on the last working day if a public holiday falls on a Friday.

The Island's television station was. It started broadcasting on March, 2006. Unfortunately, this enterprise was not financially sustainable and the station became insolvent, causing its closure on Thursday, 24th May, 2007. However it was recently announced that a new television channel would be broadcast from the island, scheduled to go on air in December. The venture could initially create up to 20 new jobs. The new channel will focus on traditional family entertainment, being very similar to the in the 1950's.

The Island has two native, commercial radio stations and has access to other nearby local stations based off the Island. Since 1998, has broadcast on 107 and 102 FM, as well as on the internet, and on the AM band since 1990. In 2007, Angel Radio began broadcasting on 91.7 FM from studios in.

Prisons
The Island geography, close to the densely populated south of England, led to it gaining three s:, and  which are located outside Newport on the main road to Cowes. Albany and Parkhurst were once among the few Category A prisons in the until they were downgraded in the 1990s. The downgrading of Parkhurst was precipitated by a major escape: three prisoners (two murderers and a blackmailer) made their way out of the prison on  for four days of freedom before being recaptured. Parkhurst especially enjoyed notoriety as one of toughest gaols in the British Isles and "hosted" many notable inmates, including the  and the.

Camp Hill is located to the west of, and adjacent to, Albany and Parkhurst, on the very edge of Parkhurst Forest, having been converted first to a and later to later a category C prison. It was originally on the site of an army camp (both Albany and Parkhurst were barracks), where there is a small estate of tree-lined roads with well-proportioned officers' quarters (with varying grandeur according to rank, but now privately owned), to the south and east.

Education
There are sixty-nine -maintained schools on the Isle of Wight, and two s. As a rural community, many of these schools are small, with average numbers of pupils lower than in many urban areas. There are currently five high schools. However, there are plans to close at least one of the high schools. There is also the, which is located on the outskirts of Newport.

The Island uses a system.

Major events
Many events take place each year across the island, all designed to appeal to different groups of people. Many of these take place in the summer, and so attract many tourists visiting the island. A few notable examples include:

Famous residents
Over the years, the island has had many well known visitors. Many come over for health reasons due to the cool sea breeze and clean air. For example, and  were visitors to the Island. , the renowned UK gardener, has been nominated to be in 2008/9.

Selected places of interest

 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]]
 * [[Image:Museum icon (red).png|Museum]]
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]] [[Image:CL icon.PNG]], where was imprisoned
 * [[Image:Museum icon (red).png|Museum]], home of photographer,
 * [[Image:Museum icon (red).png|Museum]]
 * [[Image:CP icon.png|Country Park]]
 * , and Model Village
 * [[Image:HR icon.png|Heritage Railway]]
 * Medina Theatre, home to the Islands entertainment including music and performances.
 * [[Image:NTE icon.png|National Trust]], which is near "The Old Battery" museum and Old Look-out Tower tea-room
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]], where and her husband,  had their country residence
 * [[Image:AP Icon.PNG]]
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]] [[Image:CL icon.PNG]], associated with
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]], where and her husband,  had their country residence
 * [[Image:AP Icon.PNG]]
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]] [[Image:CL icon.PNG]], associated with
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]] [[Image:CL icon.PNG]], associated with
 * [[Image:EH icon.png|English Heritage]] [[Image:CL icon.PNG]], associated with

Notable media references

 * The 1980s pop group is from the Isle of Wight.
 * The n scholar,, recorded the arrival of Christianity on the Isle of Wight in the year 686.
 * ' song "", written by, refers to a rented summer cottage on the Isle of Wight.
 * The Isle of Wight is called The Island in some editions of 's novels in his fictional.
 * The Isle of Wight is the setting of 's novel .
 * The Island also features in 's novel ' and 's sequel to it, '.
 * In the radio series , the Isle of Wight has been accidentally disintegrated by Professor Nebulous while he was trying to move it slightly to the left.
 * recorded the songs "", "", "Minstrel Boy", and "" for the album  live on the Isle of Wight.
 * The Isle of Wight is the setting in 's book The Trespasser, filmed for TV in 1981 on location.
 * In the 1966 novel , the entire Island is selected for the development of a new base by the supercomputer, Colossus.
 * The Isle of Wight is the setting of 's book Prey.
 * Parts of Frágiles (Fragile: A Ghost Story), a 2005 movie starring, were filmed on the island.
 * It is said that visited the Isle Of Wight on numerous occasions while he was writing.