Off the South Coast of England is a quadrilateral island called Wight. In many regards it can be a bit of a joke. Periodic cheery comments are made about selling it off or merely about it (like, say, Eastbourne) being "God's Waiting Room".

This reputation is not enhanced for anyone who has noted Queen Elizabeth passing some sort of record lately and who has decided to look up when exactly Queen Victoria died, only to find that this particular event took place on the Isle of Wight.

The island is nonetheless an attractive sort of place; pleasantly diminuitive and easy to explore, with rolling countryside, attractive hills and largely sweet towns. The total permanent population is around 130,000, although this can rise somewhat for summer pop festivals.

This particular view looks out over the town of Shanklin from a hill to the south. Shanklin is the south end of the remains of the island's rail network. The north end connects into ferries and the hovercraft to Portsmouth. Visitors can also arrive by ferry from Lymington.