The Teatime Islands: Adventures in Britain's Faraway Outposts [Paperback]

Ben Fogle is of course the writer and travel presenter who also vollunteered for the Taransay "Castaway" 2000 project spending a year on a normally uninhabited Island with a bunch of strangers.

The Teatime Islands, are not in fact a long forgotten archipelago in the middle of the pacific but a collective name given to some of the most remote places on earth all linked together by the fact that they are British Overseas Territories. Even as a young boy, Ben Fogle dreamed of visiting these far off places and walked the globe with his fingers at teatime..hence the name.

Following on from his experience on Taransay, Ben is determined to take a year and visit some of these places he has only dreamed about. Organising such a trip is not easy, with normal commitments and the sheer inaccessbility of the Islands he has selected. However he begins his journey in 2002.

Ben visited six different regions, and these are Tristan da Cunha, Falkland Islands, St Helena, Pitcairn, Ascension Island, British Indian Ocean Territories and his journey was not without the occasional mishap, as well as the most wonderful opportunity to meet like minded individuals.

I loved the straightforward flow of the book, and as each Island or Group of Islands was written as a separate chapter, then it made it easy to read them in the order you wish to, rather than in chronological order, some Islands being better known (or simply have a higher profile in the news), than others.

It was a joy to read this book and I literally could not put it down, completing it in just a few short reading sessions. If I could have found a way to read it in the car on the way to work I would have done!

Ben's style was relaxed and down to earth, which is exactly what is needed for someone undertaking such a journey. The book had an element of wit, and this often caused me to laugh out loud, at his account of situations, which are probably not that funny out of context.

It was also fascinating to understand the different travel routes, and the extremes which would be visitors would have to go to, to be able to visit any of these places. Not the Chairman's Lounge at Heathrow, but instead the RAF base at Brize Norton for example, or long boat journeys across two thousand miles of ocean, causing days of seasickness.

Of course the Pitcairn Islands have had their share of negative press over the last few months, and despite this Ben had arranged authorisation for a visit. However I could feel his pain in his writing when the authorities would not allow him to stay on the island as he gave his occupation as Journalist, and BBC as an employer....his childhood dream was ruined, despite the massive efforts to reach the island in the first place. Its current population are direct descendants from the SS Bounty.

Or the Falklands whose location is now infamous thanks to that invasion over 22 years ago, which many will remember only too well, despite the fact that until then all to many of us thought the group must be part of the Shetlands or Orkneys; the first British claim to the islands dates as far back as the 16th Century.

Some of the place names on the various Islands are so straightforward in their description that they are most amusing. My particular favourite has to be "Ridge-where-goat-jump-off" on Tristan da Cunha. No prizes for guessing how it gots its name. In fact while this Island is known on the Scottish pub quiz circuit for the other place with a capital called Edinburgh, it takes the cup for the most amusing place names, with Soggy Plain, Down-where-the-minister-lay-his-things, and Noisy Beach being some faviourites, with another Island in the group being named inaccessible Island.

It is fascinating to read about the history of all of these islands/island groups, and both their early inhabitants and how they came to be British Overseas Territories. It is also inspirational and somehow mildly amusing to read about the islanders daily lives, and how so far removed their existence is from our Western society. Even here, gossip and "them and us" situations prevail, particularly with regard to overseas staff (or RAF/Army staff) versus residents. However even residents of these remote places need to get away from it all at times, as there was more than one Island where residents had a weekend retreat, down by the tater fields often little more than one mile away.

Ben's passion for travel and in particular his fascination for these remote islands exudes in his writing style from start to finish, and this enthusiasm certinaly made me want to pack a bag and follow even part way in his footsteps.