\
A FAMILY has decided to settle down on a tiny island that you can only access twice a day.
Holy island, also known as Lindisfarne, receives up to 800,000 visitors a year despite only being home to 200 residents.
9
9
9
9
The Mundys moved to the island in late 2022 to be closer to their cafe, situated just off the coast of Northumberland.
Andrew Mundy, 40 and his wife, Victoria, 36, were keen to cut the commute to their business and made the jump to Holy Island-life, where the tides prevent full-time access.
Andrew said: “We wanted to have and liked the idea of bringing children up on an island – specifically on Holy Island.
“I’ve been around the island since I was born really and I know what it’s like when the tide shuts.
“I’m not really a city dweller and I don’t see anywhere better to live.
“I’ve appreciated it for my entire life.”
The family have owned Pilgrims Coffee House & Roastery on the island for 18 years and moved to Holy Island from Belford.
What was once a 15 minute commute is now a 5 metre one and they don’t have to time their journey with the tides.
The pair are thrilled to be bringing their three children up in a rural landscape with Aida, 10, attending school off the island and Heidi, seven, and Thea, four, attending the local primary.
This school has only five pupils in it – students are taught locally for the first few hours before the small class catches a ride off the island.
The mini school bus travels along the singular road to the larger off-island school, Lowick, when the sea level permits, which is only twice a day.
With the tide moving forward and backwards daily there are two points per day in which the road is not completely submerged.
Similarly, Mount Pleasant Primary School in the Falklands, has only 26 kids on its register, and has been branded “the UK’s loneliest school.”
The journey to Mount Pleasant is a tad further to get to the mainland than on Holy Island, requiring a 8000-mile commute to the Falklands.
Andrew added: “We’ve always not had amazing success in enrolling the kids into clubs because of the tides but otherwise we just spend our time going wild on the island!
“They quite regularly bring all the kids from Lowick over to the island as well.
“They all get along and know each other – they muck in together.”
“Ultimately, my business is here and I see the benefit for the children of living here.”
The remote island with a dark past
One of the most isolated places in the world has an eerie history
Pitcairn Island, situated amongst a series of islands in the Pacific Ocean, is home to only 38 people
It’s a volcanic island that stretches two miles long and one mile wide
The island was left uninhabited after archeologists presume the community that once lived there went extinct due to depletion of natural resources
In 1789 British mutineers discovered it while looking for a place to hide after a rebellion broke out on their ship
Despite being left to die in a boat Captain Bligh and his loyal men ended up on the island and settled there with six Polynesian men and twelve women from Tahiti
Within just four years, only four mutineers and ten women and their children remained, with the rest massacred in acts of violence
The population then began to grow again but in 2004 seven men were put behind bars for a string of sex offences – this made up almost half of the island’s male population
The island has been surviving on government aid since 2004 and now we are trying to become self-sufficient again
Andrews family has been involved with the island for 40 years with his parents purchasing the cafe but the remote area has gone through some changes.
There is a currently a campaign on Holy Island to tackle the shrinking population and aging demographic – the Mundys moved as part of the campaign along with another family.
It’s also undergoing an improvement project called ‘Holy Island 2050’ to address sustainability issues brought about by extreme levels of tourism.
The luscious landscape has attracted a fair amount of media attention and the area is labelled one of the seven “wonders of the north.”
Lindisfarne was also supposedly the first place the vikings raided and was depicted in the first season of the popular TV show Vikings.
Andrew said: “Since we’ve been living here, tourism hasn’t changed as much.
“They’ve put a lot of effort in to attract more tourists and I think now it’s more about tourist management, rather than bringing in more.
“Environmentally, it’s a small community and making it a little beacon for sustainability is something I’m fully behind.”
9
9
9
9
9
