Pharaoh's Island, River Thames

Pharaoh's Island from The Thames Court (taken when the river was red-boarded to navigation)

Pharaoh's Island is an island in the River Thames, in Surrey, England, 270 m (300 yd) upstream of Shepperton Lock.

Overview

The island has a length of 280 m and a maximum width of 60 m. Shepperton Lock is 270 m downstream and two other channels leading to weirs diverge off after the island to its southeast. These channels then surround Lock Island and Hamhaugh Island.[1] The island is only accessible by boat, with the facilities of Lock Island downstream and moorings there or by the pub The Thames Court almost opposite its eastern tip on the nearer, north bank.

River level

Above the lock, the variation in river level has been between 0.08 m at the lock gate and 0.99 m. This compares favourably with variation below the lock at between 2.67 m and 4.95 m in depth.[2]

History

The whole island Dog Ait in about 1880.[3] Click for broader map and to enable varied magnification.

It was purchased by the Treasury to give to Admiral Nelson after the Battle of the Nile (1798).[4] He used it as a fishing retreat.[5] The island was known as Dog Ait until at least the end of the 19th century. Tory MP and High Court Judge Sir Cyril Atkinson[6] built the first house on the island in 1903 and named it Sphinx due to his interest in Egyptology.[7]

Residential development

Since the late 20th century it has hosted 23 homes with individual moorings.[8] Most of the properties have Egyptian names.[9]

The property names are, clockwise, starting in the west:[10]

• Kantara 51°22′55.5″N 0°28′00.2″W
• Memphis 51°22′56.1″N 0°27′58.9″W
• Nyanzh 51°22′56.4″N 0°27′58.5″W
• Thebes 51°22′56.6″N 0°27′57.5″W
• Nile 51°22′56.7″N 0°27′56.4″W
• Nakhti 51°22′56.8″N 0°27′55.4″W
• Isis 51°22′57.2″N 0°27′54.4″W
• Willow Hayne 51°22′57.4″N 0°27′53.9″W
• Nada 51°22′57.7″N 0°27′52.3″W
• Mannana 51°22′57.6″N 0°27′51.5″W
• Maleesh 51°22′57.6″N 0°27′50.9″W
• Philae 51°22′57.4″N 0°27′50.2″W
• Sphinx 51°22′57.2″N 0°27′49.6″W
  • (annex) 51°22′56.7″N 0°27′50.2″W
• Sunset Cottage 51°22′56.3″N 0°27′50.6″W
• Lotus 51°22′56.1″N 0°27′51.8″W
• Mabrouk 51°22′55.9″N 0°27′52.9″W
• Pyramid 51°22′55.8″N 0°27′53.7″W
• Osiris 51°22′56.0″N 0°27′54.5″W
• Amasis 51°22′55.9″N 0°27′56.0″W
• Ishta 51°22′55.8″N 0°27′56.5″W
• Pharaos Cottage 51°22′55.7″N 0°27′57.2″W
• Luxor 51°22′55.7″N 0°27′58.1″W
• Minoru 51°22′55.5″N 0°27′58.7″W

As of May 2020, Sphinx has fetched the highest cost, £1.318 million. This took place in 2013.[11]

Deaths in January 2011

In January 2011, a small dinghy ferrying people from the island capsized with the loss of two lives. The fatalities were named as university academic Dr Rex Walford OBE,[12] and record producer Keith Lowde.[13]

Media representations

As the home of his family, the island was the setting for director John Boorman's two semi-autobiographical films: Hope and Glory in 1987 and Queen and Country in 2014.[14]

Notable residents

Ian Hendry and his wife, fellow actor Janet Munro.[15]

See also

• Islands in the River Thames

References

1. Grid Reference Finder distance tools
2. Environment Agency daily measurements at lock stations Retrieved 2013-07-14
3. Ordnance Survey: Map of Surrey 1871-1882, Sheet 011
4. The Thames Path, page 75, Leigh Hatts, Cicerone Press Limited, 3rd Ed. 2016 (1st. Ed. 1998)
5. Ben Flanagan (29 June 2003). "Living with the Nelson touch". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
6. Mandy Lebentz (25 June 2018). "Luxury riverside home for sale but you can only reach it by boat". SurreyLive. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
7. "Shepperton's Islands". Shepperton Matters. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
8. Grid square map Archived 30 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine Ordnance survey website
9. Caroline McGhie (26 July 2006). "Nelson's Egypt-on-Thames". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
10. "House prices in Pharaohs Island, Shepperton TW17 stand at £866,281 on average - Zoopla". www.zoopla.co.uk.
11. landregistry.data.gov.uk/app/ppd/search?et%5B%5D=lrcommon%3Afreehold&et%5B%5D=lrcommon%3Aleasehold&limit=100&nb%5B%5D=true&nb%5B%5D=false&postcode=TW17+9LN&ptype%5B%5D=lrcommon%3Adetached&ptype%5B%5D=lrcommon%3Asemi-detached&ptype%5B%5D=lrcommon%3Aterraced&ptype%5B%5D=lrcommon%3Aflat-maisonette&ptype%5B%5D=lrcommon%3AotherPropertyType&tc%5B%5D=ppd%3AstandardPricePaidTransaction&tc%5B%5D=ppd%3AadditionalPricePaidTransaction
12. Mike Younger and Joan Whitehead (10 March 2011). "Rex Walford obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 July 2013.
13. Harrison, David (9 January 2011). "The Sunday lunch on a river island that ended in tragedy" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
14. O'Brien, Christy (5 September 2022) [3 September 2022]. "Surrey island that's like being in Egypt and once home to famous actors and scene of boat tragedy". Surrey Live. Retrieved 16 March 2023.
15. "Ian Hendry Rowing Home Across The Thames To Sphinx, Pharoah's Island, Shepperton". Ian Hendry.com. 7 November 2017. Retrieved 25 January 2018.

• "Shepperton Lock". The River Thames Guide. Retrieved 8 January 2009.

Next island upstream	River Thames	Next island downstream
Laleham Burway (including Abbey Mead)	Pharaoh's Island Grid reference TQ068659	Lock Island Hamhaugh Island

51°22′57″N 00°27′53″W