Britain is a strange group of islands altogether and although the Channel Islands are quite some way away, they are today assuredly British even though originally they formed a part of the Dukedom of Normandy.
Indeed, the monarch is still known in the islands as the Duke of Normandy even though the holder of that office resides in Buckingham Palace. The law of the Channel Islands, which are Crown dependencies, has been under the control of the Crown for centuries and even today from time to time court cases arise where the old ways of law-making are brought into the arguments.
The habitable islands are Jersey and Guernsey, Alderney, Sark and Herm, the latter four forming the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
As we recently reported, Guernsey has been virtually free of coronavirus for many months but suddenly it arrived in the latter part of January and the Bailiwick went into lockdown on 23rd January.
Sadly Alderney too has now succumbed for the first time and it is particularly pertinent since this firm is based there. The disease was found in an individual who was self-isolating so the authorities hope that it has already been contained.
Only time will tell.
You may wonder why we use valuable editorial space to report that a small island has had its first case – but that is the point. We must remember, vaccinations or not, that this is not over yet and vigilance and self-distancing remain of vital importance.
And finally, Alderney is special because it is the home of the blonde hedgehog! Think we are joking? Take a look at this BBC news article which explains it all:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/natureuk/entries/8bca86c6-5f8e-4dcf-8548-43bb6d9ed94c
Adrian Leopard 06-02-21
Photo Yuhan Chang