Another poignant legend refers to a large rock of granite above Telegraph Bay fashioned like a seat and the locals call it Lover’s Chair.
The story goes that a young couple were deeply in love. When their elders refused their betrothal they flung themselves into the sea to their deaths to be together for eternity. This story and my novel certainly highlights the conflict between the strict moral code of the islanders back in the nineteenth century and the wishes of the youth, influenced greatly by the many visitors among them.
On a more light hearted note I was also charmed by the ghost of The White Bull which is said to charge along Le Val- yes many of the island names are still in French /Norman dialect which has died out since the island was evacuated. The official language on the island was French right up until World War 2. Before then school children sang both the English and French National Anthems at school each day.
Back to the legend of the bull, close to the beginning of the Riduna Jack and Joseph (the father’s of Harriet and Edward my main hero and heroine) were returning from a drink or two at The Diver’s Arms, which incidentally remains much the same as it was then near the harbour. They were more than slightly inebriated when they encountered The White Bull. Fortunately, or unfortunately a more pressing emergency caught their attention and the apparition was soon forgotten.
Diana Jackson 