Lot's Ait is a
ait (
river island) in the
Thames. It is on the
Tideway near
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
, in the
London Borough of Hounslow,
England.
History
Lot's Ait, covering , has a very narrow divide from larger, downstream
Brentford Ait
Brentford Ait is a long uninhabited ait (river island) in the River Thames, without buildings, on the Tideway near Brentford in London, England.
Ownership and size
It is administered by the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and Port of L ...
. It was for centuries used for growing of grass and
osiers: basket willows, used for basketry, furniture, and cart-making, as well as cattle fodder. It was once known as
Barbel Island being a fruitful area for fishing. It contained a yard where barges were repaired until 1980, when it was sold. It acquired a wild character with naturalised willows, rotting boats and rusting dock roofs and became a haven for wildlife. In 2002, the island was offered for sale with outline planning permission for a restaurant, a leisure facility and boat storage. It is accessible by footbridge, at low tide in sturdy boots across the thick, shifting mud bed of the channel against the Brentford shore, and by water from the slipway Goats Wharf off Brentford High Street.
In 2011, a lease on the island was granted to a local company, John's Boat Works, which commenced boat building works on the island for the first time in over 30 years and put it back into use. In January 2012, a new footbridge, Dahlia Bridge, was installed to link the island to the Brentford bank of the Thames at Smith Hill. It was designed by Beckett Rankine and built and installed by MSO Marine.
In popular culture
*Film scenes in
** ''
The African Queen''
** ''
Stratton''
*Lots Ait boatworks featured in an episode of ''
George Clarke's Amazing Spaces
''George Clarke's Amazing Spaces'' is a British television series that first aired on Channel 4 on 23 October 2012. In 2015 it was nominated for BAFTA Best Feature.
Background
The show follows people who turn unconventional things, such as ol ...
''
* Site of the art performance "Offshore Rig" (1987) by Bow Gamelan Ensemble, which was the subject of an Alter Image (channel 4) documentary.
See also
*
Islands in the River Thames
This article lists the islands in the River Thames, or at the mouth of a tributary (marked †), in England. It excludes human-made islands built as part of the building of forty-five two-gate locks which each accompany a weir, and islets subordi ...
Notes
References
*
*
*
External links
Lot's Ait.comofficial site
{{Commons cat, Lots Ait
Geography of the London Borough of Hounslow
Islands of the River Thames
Islands of London