To mark 90 years since the death of Jerome K Jerome, author of Three Men in a Boat, we've unearthed 21 of the most fascinating islands and eyots on the Thames.
1. Isle of Sheppey
This estuary island - whose named means "Isle of Sheep" in ancient Saxon - has the distinction of being one of the few parts of Britain to have been occupied by an overseas power since the Norman invasion. A Dutch fleet captured it in 1667, before clearing off after a few days with supplies, ammunition and guns.
It played an important role in the early history of British aviation, being home to Lord Brabazon's Royal Aero Club and the Shellbeach Aerodrome, and possesses Britain's only established scorpion population, brought to the island on board a ship in the 19th century.
Inhabitants of the island (there's around 40,000) call themselves "Swampies".
2. Chiswick Eyot
Recognisable to regular viewers of the Boat Race, Chiswick Eyot is accessible by foot at low tide, almost fully submerged at high tide (tree branches excepted), and – like many islands in the Thames – was used in the 19th century for the growing of osiers, used by basket and furniture makers.
The island was in the headlines in 2010 after a pensioner claimed he had been living a Robinson Crusoe lifestyle on the island for six months, while sleeping in a net to avoid the incoming tide.
3. Oliver’s Island
Known as Strand Ayt until the English Civil War, this island’s current name was inspired by the myth that Oliver Cromwell took refuge there. A secret tunnel supposedly linked the island to the Bull’s Head pub in Chiswick, though no evidence of it has ever been found.
A tollbooth was set up on the island in 1777, and a smithy was built there in the 1865, surviving until the 1990s. The island's only inhabitants now are birds, such as herons, Canada geese and cormorants.
4. Brentford Ait
Now uninhabited, with no buildings, Brentford Ait was once home to the notorious Three Swans pub. Fred S. Thacker’s “The Thames Highway – Locks and Weirs”, published in 1920, explains: “In March 1811 one Robert Hunter of Kew Green described the island to the city as ‘a great Nuisance to this parish and the Neighbourhood on both sides of the River.’ It contained a ‘House of Entertainment, which has long been a Harbour for Men and women of the worst description, where riotous and indecent Scenes were often exhibited during the Summer Months on Sundays’.”
It is now covered with willows, planted to obscure the Brentford gasworks from the view of Kew Gardens. A gap in the middle of the island, apparent at low tide, is known as Hog Hole.
5. Glover’s Island
Once called Petersham Ait, this island made news way back in 1898 when its owner – Joseph Glover – considered selling it to Pears soap so the firm could erect an enormous advertising hoarding.
6. Eel Pie Island
This Twickenham mudbank’s louche heyday was in the 1960s, when the Eel Pie Island Hotel became a surprisingly popular music venue, hosting the likes of Rod Stewart, David Bowie, Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones. The island developed into something of a hippie commune, and is now home to around 120 inhabitants, a couple of boatyards and a handful of artists' studios, which can be visited on occasional open days.
In 2005, the comedian and writer Danny Wallace attempted to “invade” it, declaring himself “leader” of Eel Pie Island, until the Metropolitan Police negotiated a peaceful handover of power back to the Queen.
7. Tagg’s Island
Located above Molesey Lock, Tagg’s Island - previously known as Walnut Tree Ait - was once home to the Thames Hotel, a venue frequented by well-to-do Londoners including the future Edward VII. The hotel was rebuilt by Fred Karno – a man credited with two great deeds: discovering Charlie Chaplin and inventing the custard-pie-in-the-face gag – but was eventually demolished in 1971.
The island is now occupied by houseboat residents, including Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour.
8. D’Oyly Carte Island
Known as Folly Island until 1890, when the hotelier and opera impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte, founder of the Savoy, bought it and had a house built there. He intended to use it as a secluded annex of the luxury hotel, but was refused an alcohol license. Nevertheless, W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan were regular visitors. A footbridge was added in 1964, and there is a small marina.
9. Pharaoh’s Island
In 1798, Horatio Nelson, still smarting from losing an arm the year before, foiled Napoleon's planned invasion of Egypt during the Battle of the Nile. His reward – among other things – was this 280-metre island near Shepperton Lock, which he used as a fishing retreat. It is now occupied by a couple of dozen houses, with Egyptian names such as The Sphinx and Memphis.
10. Holm Island
A few hundred metres downstream from Runnymede Bridge, and connected to the north bank of the Thames with a footbridge, Holm Island was once used as a romantic hideaway by Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson (they is the largest house on the island, known as 'The Nest').
11. Magna Carta Island
One of several sites that lays claim to being where King John signed the Magna Carta in 1215, this 3.72-acre chunk of Berkshire was put up for sale in 2014 (the asking price? £3.95million). The Telegraph’s Christopher Middleton described it as the perfect chance to “become a custodian of history”.
Inside the island’s main house there is a Charter Room and an octagonal piece of stone where the parchment itself was supposedly spread out. The island served as a meeting place for Henry III and the future Louis VIII of France two years later, while far more recently - in 1974 - Queen Elizabeth II paid a visit and planted a tree in the garden.
12. Friday Island
Located in Old Windsor, Friday Island is so called because its shape supposedly resembles the footprint of Man Friday from Daniel Defoe’s novel Robinson Crusoe. It was – for 30 years, until his death in 1991 – the home of forensics expert Dr Julius Grant, renowned for proving that the Hitler Diaries were forged.
13. Ham Island
Referenced in Jerome K Jerome’s Three Men in a Boat (passing through the lock here was when they first spot Windsor Castle), Ham Island contains 37 luxurious homes, many of which were badly hit by flooding in 2014. It is also home to the Blueacre Horse Rescue Centre.
14. Queen’s Eyot
Owned by Eton College since 1923, and located just upstream of the Oakley Court (the location of Dr Frank N Furter’s residence in The Rocky Horror Picture Show), Queen’s Eyot contains a handsome clubhouse and can be hired out for functions and weddings.
15. Monkey Island
Charles Spencer, 3rd Duke of Marlborough, acquired this island near the gastronomic enclave of Bray in 1738 for use as a fishing retreat. He hired architect Robert Morris to build a lodge and a temple, and commissioned Andieu de Clermont, a French artist, to fill the former with unusual depictions of monkeys involved in humanlike activities, such as shooting, rowing and smoking (a forerunner to the PG Tips ads?).
The lodge became a hotel in the 19th century, and over the years has welcomed Edward VII, Edward Elgar, Nellie Melba and H.G. Wells, among others. It is currently closed for major renovation and will reopen in late 2017.
16. Boulter’s Island
Close to Maidenhead, Berkshire, Boulter’s Island was the home of Richard Dimbleby, the late BBC broadcaster and father of David and Jonathan.
17. Temple Island
Found just north of Henley-on-Thames, Temple Island lies at the start of the course for the town’s annual regatta. Its main feature is James Wyatt’s folly, built in 1771 and with an interior based on recently discovered designs from Pompeii. It is now owned by the stewards of the Henley Royal Regatta, who have carried out restoration work to the temple, made it available for hire, and retained part of the island as a nature reserve.
18. Sonning Eye
An (almost) heart-shaped island, Sonning Eye is utterly idyllic, possessing an 18th-century watermill and 12 other Grade II-listed buildings. It has been a favoured location of many artists, including George Price Boyce, the Pre-Raphaelite painter, but more recently attracted the attention of US film star George Clooney and his new wife, the human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin. They bought the island's Mill House for a cool £10m in 2014.
19. View Island
Located near Caversham Lock, close to Reading, View Island was once a boatyard but has been a public park since 1998 and is notable for the carved wooden sculptures found scattered on it. It can be reached from the Thames Path at Hills Meadow, to the east of Reading Bridge.
20. Fry’s Island
This island – accessible only by boat – is best known as the location of a duel in 1163 between Robert de Montfort and Henry of Essex, the standard bearer to Henry II. According to W.M. Childs's The Story of the Town of Reading (1905), the quarrel arose when – during a battle with the Welsh – Henry of Essex allegedly dropped the standard and cried out falsely that the King has been slain – a coward’s act, declared de Montford. Essex and Montfort were ferried to the island, where Robert of Montfort "thundered on him manfully with hard and frequent strokes." Henry fell, was presumed dead, and was taken away by the monks of Reading for burial. But the monks found that he was still very much alive, and under their care he recovered from his wounds, and became a monk himself.
The island is now home to a private residence, a boatyard and a bowling club.
21. Lock Wood Island
A thickly-wooded island near Abingdon Lock, this was once – according to D.S. MacColl’s The Thames from Source to Sea (1890) - a popular spot for picnickers. Visitors included Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell, the inspiration for Carroll’s Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
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