It was on this date in 1945 that the Channel Island of Sark was liberated from German occupation after several earlier attempts by British Commandos which failed. 10 things you might not know about the island of Sark:
Cars are banned. Only tractors, Bicycles and Horse-drawn vehicles are allowed. There’s no airport, either.
The name probably derives from the Proto-Semitic śrq, meaning to redden or the rise of the Sun. It’s one of the most easterly Channel Islands which lends credence to this theory.
It’s part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, but has its own parliament and its own laws based on Norman law. The population is around 500, only about 15 of which speak Sercquiais, Sark’s own language.
It consists of two main parts, Greater Sark and Little Sark, which are connected by a narrow isthmus called La Coupée, which is 300 feet (91 m) long and has a drop of 330 feet (100 m) on each side. Before protective railings were installed in 1900, children would have to crawl across on their hands and knees to avoid being blown off by sudden gusts of wind. Although nobody has met a sticky end there since a man carrying sheaves of corn was caught in an unexpected gale about 200 years ago, stories of hauntings abound including headless horsemen, levitating coffins and a black hound called the ‘Tchico’. There’s also a privately owned island called Brecqhou, just off the west coast of Greater Sark.
The highest point is 374 feet (114 m) above sea level, and is named Le Moulin, after the Windmill which is there, dating back to 1571.
Crime is rare, but there is a prison, said to be the smallest in the world. It was built from stone in the 19th century and has no windows. It can hold two prisoners. There are two unpaid policemen – the Constable and the Vingtenier (his assistant), which seems to be enough. Even in 1990 when a French physicist called Andre Gardes tried to invade Sark. Dressed in army fatigues and wielding an automatic weapon, he rowed to the island and posted signs announcing that he was the rightful heir to the Seigneurship. He was, the story goes, stopped by a punch in the face from one of the unpaid policemen.
In 2011, Sark was designated as a Dark Sky Community and the first Dark Sky Island in the world. Enya’s 2015 album, Dark Sky Island was inspired by this.
She’s not the only artist to be inspired by the place. Writer Mervyn Peake lived here while he was writing Gormenghast. His novel Mr Pye is also set on Sark, about an eccentric evangelist who settles on the island. When Channel 4 decided to make a TV series of Mr Pye, they were almost scuppered when the film crew were told there was no way they could drive their car on the island for tracking shots. In the end, they disconnected the engine of the car and have it towed by a tractor.
In 1859, when Queen Victoria sailed to Jersey, the inhabitants of Sark fully expected her to make a stop at Sark so they prepared a lavish banquet and decorated the harbour with flowers, flags and a red carpet. However, Queen Victoria and her crew hadn’t been informed about this so they simply sailed past. It turned out they couldn’t even enjoy the banquet themselves as when they returned to it, the dining room had been trashed by peacocks. Perhaps it was just as well Victoria didn’t stop then, as she would probably not have been amused by that.
There’s a lot of folklore. For example, it’s said that the island was once occupied by a Lilliputian race called the ‘pouquelayes’, mischievous pixies with detachable heads. None have been spotted since the early 20th century however. There’s also a legend that at midnight on St John’s Eve, the Cows kneel and are briefly able to speak.
The six richest people in Britain decide to hold a contest to settle the question of which of them is most successful. It will be a gladiator style contest with each entrant fielding a team of ten super-powered combatants. Entrepreneur Llew Powell sets out to put together his team, which includes his former lover, an employee of his company with a fascinating hobby, two refugees from another dimension (a lonely giant and a drunken sailor), two sisters bound together by a promise, a diminutive doctor, a former Tibetan monk initiate and two androids with a history. As the team train together, alliances form, friendships and more develop, while others find the past is not easy to leave behind.
Meanwhile, a ruthless race of aliens has its eyes on the Earth. Already abducting and enslaving humans, they work towards the final invasion which would destroy life on Earth as we know it. Powell’s group, Combat Team Alpha, stumble upon one of the wormholes the aliens use to travel to Earth and witness for themselves the horrors in store if the aliens aren’t stopped. Barely escaping with their lives, they realise there are more important things to worry about than a fighting competition.
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