AN ARTIST gave up everything in her bustling hometown of Blackpool to live on a Scottish island of just 60 people. Artist Lisa McQueenie, 51, has lived on Easdale - a car-free island in Scotland, 115 miles from Glasgow - for over a year. Locals insist that the only connection to the outside world is a 10-person ferry that operates seven days per week, approximately every 30 minutes for £2.
20 per return ticket. The boat ride is a quick three-minute transfer to get to the island. While relying on a ferry may seem inconvenient, the locals find it a blessing rather than a burden, because it makes people more grateful to have arrived.
Easdale Island sounds almost mythical with approximately 60 people inhabiting the island, making it the smallest permanently inhabited island in the Inner Hebrides. This new islander currently runs an art gallery out of her home, selling a range of hand-made items including sea-glass jewellery, crystal necklaces, and driftwood houses, mainly to passing tourists. McQueenie said she moved to Scotland from Blackpool at the beginning of 2022 because she longed for a change of pace.
After living for 30 years in Blackpool, she spent four months in Oban, on the Scottish mainland. McQueenie said she and her partner decided to relocate to Easdale after she accidentally discovered the island during a walk in a rainstorm. The artist said she was walking on Seil, another island that's connected to the mainland via a bridge that overlooks Easdale, when she first.