Whilst George Williams, a popular local man, was having heart surgery his belongings and cash were being stolen in a hospital in Plymouth.

John Mckitterick at The Atlantic Inn held a fundraising raffle on Thursday night and raised £150 to help Williams.

The Isles of Scilly Council has unveiled a new strategy for hygiene inspections of the islands local food businesses to its Councillors this week.

Currently there are two “Category A” food premises which are high risk and will be visited twice a year.

All of the islands other restaurants, cafes, and food outlets will be once a year, as they are in thought to be low risk.

81% of the islands outlets are labelled “Category E” or low risk, this is generally outlets which sell pre-packaged or wrapped food a selection of which will be visited each year.

It is thought that the calls could be made in the evening or weekend due to the islands seasonal business needs.

The Council is launching an investigation into heightened levels of radon in two of the islands water supplies. The council manages the water on both St.Marys and Bryher the islands whose waters supplies are being looked into.

Though radon is a naturally occurring problem in granite areas it is the second largest cause of lung cancer after smoking and could cause a risk to islanders if it is not controlled.

The water on Bryher has also been found to contain coloforms, a bacteria caused by fecal matter, this is a worrying discovery as the water treatment on the islands should have removed it.

It is hoped that the problem may be remedied by the introduction of a 4th water hole, as the water in the borehole near the Timmys Hill Tanks can become contaminated with sea water if its overused and this is thought to be the cause of the contamination.

Cost is thought to be an issue in the investigation at a time when councillors have also been told that the Desalination plant on St.Marys which is paramount to the islands water supply is coming to the end of its life.

The captain of a cargo ship struck by gale force 10 winds off the Isles of Scilly has been winched to safety after being seriously injured. A rescue helicopter lifted six people from the vessel, two more of whom had sustained less serious injuries. It is thought the three were hurt after a large wave hit the ship causing the cargo to shift. The rescue attempt which began on Friday had to be abandoned overnight because of the severe weather conditions and darkness. The vessel, which had been bringing fruits from Costa Rica was meant to be traveling to Dover but has now been re-routed to Falmouth and is expected to arrive their late this afternoon.

A Russian seaman has been airlifted to hospital after suffering a heart attack off the Islands.

According to the BBC, the man was on the fish processing ship Granitnyy Bereg 270 miles off Scilly when the alarm was raised.

Falmouth coastguard asked the vessel to head towards the Islands to reduce the distance necessary for an RNAS Culdrose helicopter to reach it.

The helicopter landed on Scilly to refuel before flying out to the ship, after which the victim was airlifted to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro.

Footballer David Beckham has made a surprise visit to St Mary’s.

Beckham signed autographs and posed for snaps as he filmed an advert for Adidas on Tuesday. He also joined about 100 pupils from the Five Islands school for a kickaround on the Garrison sports field, according to ITV News. 

England player Steven Gerrard was among other football celebrities on the Islands the previous day.

Radio Scilly boss Keri Jones wrote on the station’s website: “David Beckham called into Radio Scilly today. Just a usual day here. He sat on our famous white sofa. Get it straight on EBAY! We spoke to Steven Gerrard yesterday. David signed some merchandise for some island ‘good causes’. ”

Check out the pics at Radio Scilly, Scilly Webcam and BBC Cornwall.

Scilly has received a glowing write-up in the Daily Mail.

Reporter Margarita Madden spent three days on St Mary’s, enjoying visits to St Martins and Tresco, as well as a bike ride to Pelistry.

“It is difficult to believe such stunning azure waters and long sandy beaches can be part of Great Britain,” she writes. “The Scillies are not far from the mainland but they seem a world apart - a place where time runs at a different pace.”

 Check out the article at Daily Mail - Scilly.

The Isles of Scilly is the third most unspoilt county in England, a survey has revealed.

Just 26% of land on the Islands is disturbed by buildings, transport and noise.

A ‘tranquillity map’ compiled by the Campaign to Protect Rural England shows that more than half of the country is affected by nearby roads, towns, pylons, aircraft and trains.

The map does not include areas within two-and-a-half miles of a power station, two miles from large roads or towns, or half a mile from a main railway line.

Northumberland is the most unspoilt county with 17% of land disturbed, followed by Herefordshire with 21%.

The charity warns that the last remaining tranquil areas may disappear by the end of the century if the current trend continues.

CPRE chief executive Shaun Spiers told the Daily Mail: “The findings are a wake-up call for the Government. The impact of development spreads way beyond its immediate footprint. More must be done to protect what is left from further fragmentation.”

In the early 1960s, 26% of England was disturbed by the sight and sound of urban development, growing to 41% by the 1990s and to about 50% by this year.

Penwith District Council has decided that the sternboard from the HMS Association, which was wrecked near the Islands in 1707, should remain in Penzance.

The vote confirmed a decision by Penzance Town Council in July not to return the artefact to the Islands.

In April, the Policy and Resources Committee of the Islands’ Council had resolved by 6 votes to 1 that the sternboard - currently in Penzance Magistrates’ Court - should be displayed in the council chamber as part of a commemoration of the 300th anniversary of the disaster later this year.

The latest decision was welcomed by Cllr Gordon Bilsborough, who had argued that retrieving the sternboard would cost the average Scilly taxpayer £20 per head.

He said: “I am delighted that common sense has prevailed. There was a real danger that the sternboard could have fallen to pieces when being removed from the wall in Penzance.

“But more importantly, it means that it will save council tax payers on the Isles of Scilly £20,000 which had been allocated from our dwindling reserves.  We have far more important priorities to deal with.”