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TRAVELLER
from in March is even closer), but it all feels like a
world away.
The 350-acre island has been settled for more
than 5,000 years – it displays evidence of Neolithic
villages and was developed by the Romans – but, until
quite recently, was largely off-limits to visitors. At
the beginning of the 20th century, it was bought by
the brewery heir and temperance reformer, Frederick
Charrington. Then, during the First World War,
it became a top-secret naval base and, later still,
a rehabilitation centre – the late Amy Winehouse
was one of its guests. This all changed last March,
when its current owner, Nigel Frieda, a record
producer, recording-studio owner and brother of
hairstylist, John, opened its doors to holidaymakers.
It didn’t happen overnight though; Frieda first set
eyes on Osea more than 20 years ago. “I was making
an album with an eccentric musician who arrived at
the studio one day rather flustered and with wet feet,”
he says. “He told me that he lived on an island, had to
walk across the causeway and had misjudged the tide.
The more I heard about this island called Osea, the
more intrigued I became.”
Coincidentally, a year later and weary from
overrunning renovations on his London home,
Frieda picked up
The Times
and saw an article about
a cottage for rent on a small tidal island in Essex. It
turned out to be Osea.
“I was so excited at the prospect of escaping and
getting my two young children away from the building
site that was our home. So, after a sleepless night,
I drove to the island at the crack of dawn,” he says.
The owner picked him up in his boat and, before
he’d even seen the cottage, Frieda agreed to lease
it. He then spent the best part of the next 10 years
visiting Osea and it opened up a whole new world for
his family. “It’s a little bit Enid Blyton-esque mixed
with
Swallows and Amazons
, and it’s so magical for
kids to be able to go crabbing, fishing, exploring and
cycling in a safe environment,” he says. The island’s
owner, a passionate conservationist and by now a good
friend, later decided to sell most of the island and,
although the Beckhams were interested at one stage, it
was Frieda who swapped hats to become the landlord.
Walking around Osea, it doesn’t take long to
discover what he found so spellbinding about
“Themore I heard about this island called
Osea, themore intrigued I became”
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