''An Island Parish'' is a British television documentary made by

Tiger Aspect Productions Tiger Aspect Productions (formerly known as Tiger Television from 1988 until 1993 and also known as Tiger Aspect Films for theatrical films) is a British television and film production company, particularly noted for its situation comedy, situa ...

for

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

. Series 1 and 2 covered the lives of residents of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

parish of the

Isles of Scilly The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of the ...

. These series were supported by the

Diocese of Truro The Diocese of Truro (established 1876) is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury which covers Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and a small part of Devon. The bishop's seat is at Truro Cathedral. Geography and history The di ...

. They followed ''

A Seaside Parish ''A Seaside Parish'' is a British television documentary made by Tiger Aspect Productions for BBC Two which was first broadcast in 2003. Following the success of '' A Country Parish'', the programme concerns the life of a new incumbent (known as t ...

'', which covered the work of the Reverend Christine Musser in the parish of

Boscastle Boscastle ( kw, Kastel Boterel) is a village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, in the civil parish of Forrabury and Minster (where the 2011 Census population was included) . It is south of Bude and northeast of Tint ...

in Cornwall, and also '' A Country Parish'' before that. Series 3 and 4 looked particularly at the work of the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

on the

, as seen through the eyes of the local minister, the Revd David Easton. Series 5 moved north and followed Fr John Paul in his first year as the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest at

Castlebay Castlebay ( gd, Bàgh a' Chaisteil) is the main village and a community council area on the island of Barra in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. The village is located on the south coast of the island, and overlooks a bay in the Atlantic Ocean domi ...

on the island of

Barra Barra (; gd, Barraigh or ; sco, Barra) is an island in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, and the second southernmost inhabited island there, after the adjacent island of Vatersay to which it is connected by a short causeway. The island is na ...

, the second southernmost inhabited island in the

Outer Hebrides The Outer Hebrides () or Western Isles ( gd, Na h-Eileanan Siar or or ("islands of the strangers"); sco, Waster Isles), sometimes known as the Long Isle/Long Island ( gd, An t-Eilean Fada, links=no), is an island chain off the west coast ...

(after

Vatersay The island of Vatersay (; gd, Bhatarsaigh) is the southernmost and westernmost inhabited island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, and the settlement of Caolas on the north coast of the island is the westernmost permanently inhabited place in ...

, to which it is linked by a causeway). Series 6 was filmed on Barra by Tiger Aspect Productions during 2011 and aired in early 2012, while series seven began in late 2012 and follows the Anglican priest and Methodist minister on

Sark Sark (french: link=no, Sercq, ; Sercquiais: or ) is a part of the Channel Islands in the southwestern English Channel, off the coast of Normandy, France. It is a royal fief, which forms part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, with its own set of l ...

. Series 7 and 8 (2013 and 2014 respectively) remained on Sark, while Series 9 and 10(2015) focuses on the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

. The eleventh series is set in The Shetland Islands, broadcast in March and April 2016. The twelfth series, broadcast from January 2017, focuses on

Anguilla Anguilla ( ) is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin. The territo ...

Episodes

First series

The first series, in eight parts, focused on life in the

and aired in January 2007. It followed the

Bishop of Truro The Bishop of Truro is the ordinary (diocesan bishop) of the Church of England Diocese of Truro in the Province of Canterbury. History There had been between the 9th and 11th centuries a Bishopric of Cornwall until it was merged with Crediton ...

Bill Ind William Ind (born 26 March 1942) is a retired English Anglican bishop. He was formerly the Bishop of Truro. The son of William Robert Ind and Florence Emily Spritey, Ind was educated at the Duke of York's School in Dover, at the University o ...

, known as "Bishop Bill"', as he searched for the right person to become the new chaplain to the islands. After much soul-searching,

the Reverend The Reverend is an style (manner of address), honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and Minister of religion, ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and c ...

Guy Scott decided to leave his parish in

Mullion A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

on the mainland in Cornwall and apply for the position. The series subsequently followed his eventual arrival on the islands with his family and the difficulties he has faced in adjusting to island life. It also followed the fortunes of islands police force Summer Attachment, PC Nikki Green, local fishermen Martin and Joel Bond and the veterinarian who left the Isles, Rik Barrowman.

Second series

Following the success of the first series the BBC commissioned a second series of twelve weekly episodes, which were first broadcast on 8 January 2008. The series looked at various aspects of island life including

gig racing The Cornish pilot gig is a six-oared rowing boat, clinker-built of Cornish narrow-leaf elm, long with a beam of . It is recognised as one of the first shore-based lifeboats that went to vessels in distress, with recorded rescues going back as ...

, employment prospects for the young, tourism and different ways for islanders to increase income, as well as the daily life of the Reverend Guy Scott and other figures on the islands, including PC Nikki Green, the award-winning baker Toby Tobin-Dougan, the Seven Stones

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

's new head chef, Paulie Websdale, and the new veterinarian, Heike Dorn. The series also featured

Radio Scilly Islands FM, previously known as Radio Scilly, is a non-profit community radio station. Originally launched as Radio Scilly in September 2007, the station broadcasts to the residents of the Isles of Scilly. Radio Scilly rebranded as Islands FM ...

and the station's first day on air, 3 September 2007.

Third series

The third series of ''An Island Parish'' began on 19 September 2008 on

. The series was again in twelve parts. The series looked particularly at the work of the

British Methodist Church The Methodist Church of Great Britain is a Protestant Christian denomination in Britain, and the mother church to Methodists worldwide. It participates in the World Methodist Council, and the World Council of Churches among other ecumenical ass ...

in the islands, as seen through the eyes of the local minister, the Revd David Easton. Of the third series,

Nigel Farrell Nigel George Farrell, born on 22 January 1953 in London, died 24 September 2011, was a television documentary film-maker who was a pioneer in what has been termed 'docu-soaps'. He initially followed his father into medicine, but soon entered the wor ...

, the director said, "We do not have any actors, or scripts, so what you see and hear is the reality of life, which can sometimes be hard in any small community. Up to now we have focused very much on the ministry of

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

clergy, but in Cornwall especially, almost all communities have an active Methodist presence, and we felt it was time to show some of the ways in which

Free church A free church is a Christian denomination that is intrinsically separate from government (as opposed to a state church). A free church does not define government policy, and a free church does not accept church theology or policy definitions from ...

ministers are involved in the busy lives of their communities." The third series was filmed over the preceding six months before the first episode aired, with more episodes completed while the series aired. Also included in the series was the story of the Scilly Boys' Atlantic row, and the

Eden Project The Eden Project ( kw, Edenva) is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England, UK. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay pit, located from the town of St Blazey and from the larger town of St Austell.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS E ...

farewell to Bishop Bill Ind, who retired in April 2008.

Fourth series

The fourth series of ''An Island Parish'' began on 19 October 2009 on

. It ran for 14 episodes.

Fifth series

In January 2011 a fifth series of ''An Island Parish'' began, this time located on

in the Scottish

. It features Fr John Paul's first year as the parish priest at

Sixth series

A sixth series was filmed by Tiger Aspect during the Spring and Summer of 2011 on the islands of Barra and South Uist.

Seventh series

The seventh series, set in

and broadcast in 2013, ran for 6 episodes.

Eighth series

The eighth series, set again in Sark and broadcast in 2014, ran for 6 episodes.

Ninth series

The ninth series, set in the

and broadcast in 2015, ran for 6 episodes.

Tenth series

The tenth series, set again in the Falkland Islands and broadcast in 2015, ran for six episodes.

Eleventh Series

The eleventh Series was set in the

Shetland Islands Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

and broadcast in Spring 2016 for six episodes.

Twelfth Series

This series was broadcast in early 2017 and was set in the

British Overseas Territory The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...

References

External links

* *
First and second series episode guide on My-BBC websiteSecond series episode guide on BBC Cornwall siteRadio Scilly websiteRichard Pearce website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Island Parish, An 2007 British television series debuts 2018 British television series endings 2000s British documentary television series 2010s British documentary television series BBC television documentaries Television series about Christianity Television series by Banijay Christianity in Cornwall Isles of Scilly Television series by Tiger Aspect Productions Mass media in Shetland English-language television shows