Max Davidson stays in a cottage on Osea Island, which has been turned into a high-end staycation venue. He describes the isle as quintessentially English in both its scenery and its ambience .
In the south of Essex lies Canvey, the fourth most populated island in the UK. In the 70s the island became known as the home to the sounds of ‘The Essex Delta’ when local bands Dr Feelgood and Eddie and The Hotrods hit the charts. These bands are still celebrated around the island with murals and plaques on bars, hotels, and seawalls. History pours through Canvey’s soul, the much-loved 17th century Lobster Smack pub, was the inspiration for the pub in Charles Dickens’ ‘Great Expectations’.
Foulness Island North of Southend is the largest island on the Essex coast, but only 160 residents.