0:00:02 > 0:00:05Covering an area of just two square miles,
0:00:05 > 0:00:08Sark is the smallest of the main Channel Islands.
0:00:10 > 0:00:15This picturesque and tranquil place has a unique status.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19Being a British dependent, it's part of the British Isles
0:00:19 > 0:00:22but it has its own Parliament and laws.
0:00:23 > 0:00:27The other unusual characteristic of this island is there are no cars,
0:00:27 > 0:00:31so the bicycle, the tractor or horse-drawn carriage
0:00:31 > 0:00:33are the only modes of transport.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37Sark may be just 80 miles off the mainland,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40but in many respects, it's a world away.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44I think we're lucky to live on Sark. We're spoilt.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51Over 50,000 tourists visit Sark in the summer,
0:00:51 > 0:00:56but out of season, this close-knit community of only 600 people
0:00:56 > 0:00:59must rely on each other to get through the winter.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03And the two churches on the island, the Methodist Chapel
0:01:03 > 0:01:07and the Anglican St Peter's, have an even more important role.
0:01:07 > 0:01:13St Peter's has come to our rescue in the days of unemployment.
0:01:13 > 0:01:18January's harsh weather will be a test for all Sark's inhabitants
0:01:18 > 0:01:22and many will do a variety of jobs to get through the lean times.
0:01:24 > 0:01:29But for those on Sark, the island is a lifestyle as much as a home.
0:01:29 > 0:01:33People love the things they do. They love the diversity of what they do.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10It's New Year's Day.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13And at the island hall,
0:02:13 > 0:02:16the scene is set for Sark's annual competition.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21The theme this year is three-day eventing.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25But this is Sark's unique take on the sport.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31The Master Of Ceremonies is builder Dave Cockesedge.
0:02:31 > 0:02:34Participants start on the car park here.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37Over the first fence, into the water jump,
0:02:37 > 0:02:40and then they come up onto what they call the hill
0:02:40 > 0:02:42and if they're over time they're penalised.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44Then they move on to the dressage
0:02:44 > 0:02:46where they have to interpret the music
0:02:46 > 0:02:51and they get points deducted and added for the best-looking one and what have you.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56The next competitor to arrive is Puffin Taylor.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59She's always prepared for a spot of horseplay.
0:02:59 > 0:03:04I've got that hat and I'm going to put my puffin hat underneath it,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08so it hides, and then I'm going to bring that up so it's like ears.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11So that's going to be the horse's head.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17- No-one's bribed us yet! - This is the bit that worries me.
0:03:17 > 0:03:22- Are you making it up as you go along?- Yes, more or less.
0:03:22 > 0:03:24Don't let everyone know!
0:03:25 > 0:03:28TANNOY: On your marks, get set, go.
0:03:30 > 0:03:35The first horse up is Ben and his friend Glenn Williams.
0:03:38 > 0:03:43It's silly this, isn't it? Perhaps that comes of living on Sark.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46If you're not like it when you arrive, you soon get into it.
0:03:49 > 0:03:54For some competitors, last night's celebrations are taking their toll.
0:03:54 > 0:03:56TANNOY: A fine.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58Whilst others clear the jumps with aplomb...
0:03:58 > 0:04:00Oh, yes!
0:04:00 > 0:04:04..and display some New Year exuberance.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11One, two, three.
0:04:11 > 0:04:17Before long, it's the turn of Puffin and her friend and hind legs, Jane Sams.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19Over the first fence.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28All four legs are working in harmony through the cross-country section
0:04:28 > 0:04:31but their greatest test is next.
0:04:31 > 0:04:33Now onto the dressage.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35GRAND ORCHESTRAL MUSIC
0:04:41 > 0:04:45- Nice movement there. - Yes, nice bit of movement.
0:04:47 > 0:04:48Chop-chop.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53Well done. Excellent.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55APPLAUSE
0:04:58 > 0:05:00I tell you what, the dressage was taxing, wasn't it?
0:05:00 > 0:05:03We got out of breath.
0:05:03 > 0:05:08The back doesn't know what the front is doing, obviously.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12And in gold medal position for that great effort,
0:05:12 > 0:05:14Puffin and Jane!
0:05:14 > 0:05:16THEY CHEER
0:05:19 > 0:05:23Well done, Jane. Congratulations. Well done.
0:05:23 > 0:05:25Perhaps they thought we were professional!
0:05:33 > 0:05:34Come on, then.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37Dave Scott moved to Sark as a child.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42By his early 20s, he'd embarked on a shepherding career.
0:05:43 > 0:05:47For the last 30 years, he's been building up his flock of ewes.
0:05:47 > 0:05:49He now has almost 100.
0:05:51 > 0:05:52Come on, girls.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57They've got a big old area up here to roam round.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00There's not a huge amount in the grass this time of year,
0:06:00 > 0:06:06so there's more goodness in the hay because it was cut in the summer.
0:06:06 > 0:06:11You know, you've got a belly full of hay to start their day with.
0:06:12 > 0:06:18And then they go and top up around the place with all various vegetation that's on the go.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22Dave's sheep might be fed and happy,
0:06:22 > 0:06:25but there's no time to put his feet up.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27Here you go, little one.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30Back home, he and wife Estelle, a charity worker,
0:06:30 > 0:06:32have one-year-old Robin to look after.
0:06:34 > 0:06:35And during the winter,
0:06:35 > 0:06:39Dave takes on other work to supplement his shepherd's income.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42The wintertime's about my busiest time, really.
0:06:43 > 0:06:49You know, you'll see me up a tree, delivering logs. We do all sorts.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53Just got to check the chain.
0:06:55 > 0:06:59Nothing worse than having a blunt chain saw, especially when you're up a tree.
0:07:01 > 0:07:02With no tourists around,
0:07:02 > 0:07:07it's the perfect time for some of the trees on Sark's main street, The Avenue,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10to get some much-needed attention.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13I take the lower limbs off,
0:07:13 > 0:07:16so just trying to work out the best way to do it.
0:07:16 > 0:07:22If you get snow on them, they'll come tumbling down.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37It's the nature of being over here,
0:07:37 > 0:07:41you need to be flexible what you do to earn a living.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47Most people have got different hats to put on.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50Or they put the same hat on but do different jobs, you know.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55Look up there. It's Daddy.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58We often find him up trees, don't we, darling?
0:08:00 > 0:08:04He said he was busy off up trees today and then he left the house.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06And that's where we found him.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Look at that.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14Yeah, I don't like the sound of him and running chain saws up trees
0:08:14 > 0:08:18so I just look the other way generally.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34After the excitement of Christmas and New Year,
0:08:34 > 0:08:38and without the tourists, business slows down on Sark.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42The Post Office is run by Caroline.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46And like many others on the island,
0:08:46 > 0:08:50she must also show resilience in the lean times.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54Obviously we don't get many visitors out of season
0:08:54 > 0:08:57and, yes, you do struggle to make ends meet,
0:08:57 > 0:09:00but you hope that your summer's good enough
0:09:00 > 0:09:04so you can put a little bit by and it'll see you through the lean times.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13You know, when you have a system where there's no NHS or benefits to call on,
0:09:13 > 0:09:15you have to be willing to work.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18It's no good coming to Sark thinking you're going to have an easy ride.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21You do have to work and I think that's a good thing.
0:09:22 > 0:09:27I've always thought that Sark is a very close-knit community
0:09:27 > 0:09:31and I think on the whole we do try and help each other out as well.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34You know, we allow people to put notices up here
0:09:34 > 0:09:37and hopefully they will pick up jobs from that.
0:09:52 > 0:09:57Dave and his friend Dick Adams, a fisherman in the summer months,
0:09:57 > 0:10:01must turn their hands to most things to get through the winter.
0:10:01 > 0:10:05Their job at the moment is for the Anglican Church.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Mm, deeper than you think.
0:10:10 > 0:10:16Well, the project is to straighten up all the gravestones to tidy up the cemetery.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22You know, a lot of these stones have been here for 100 years,
0:10:22 > 0:10:25as if nothing had happened to them. They were in a sorry state, really.
0:10:27 > 0:10:32Well, we sort of advertised that we were looking for a bit of work.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Yes, it was a project that they'd got.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40BELL TOLLS
0:10:40 > 0:10:42There, I think.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47Just give it a little wobble.
0:10:47 > 0:10:48Yes.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53Get the technology right.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57Yes, I think we'll get away with that. Yes.
0:10:57 > 0:10:59Yes.
0:10:59 > 0:11:03See, the whole thing of the island has changed.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07The fishermen who used to fish during the summer months
0:11:07 > 0:11:10through till, well, generally to the end of October,
0:11:10 > 0:11:13and then they used to go on road repairs and that.
0:11:13 > 0:11:18Just with the aid of a crusher and a roller, stuff like that.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20It gave employment through.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23But now that you bring in what we call the MERI crusher,
0:11:23 > 0:11:27which is a big tractor, which crushes and lays the roads,
0:11:27 > 0:11:30the world we live in at the moment, you've got to be realistic.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33Unemployment is worldwide, basically.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35And it's crept into Sark, inevitable it would.
0:11:35 > 0:11:42Yes, St Peter's has come to our rescue in the days of unemployment.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44Okey-dokey, David.
0:11:50 > 0:11:55With no airport, everyone and everything arrives on Sark by boat.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58And through the winter,
0:11:58 > 0:12:01the most important one is the Sark Viking,
0:12:01 > 0:12:06the cargo boat that makes the ten-mile journey from Guernsey three times a week.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09Every drop of diesel, every bag of cement,
0:12:09 > 0:12:13every can of baked beans arrives here.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19The ships that come to this island are very important.
0:12:19 > 0:12:20The lifeblood of the island.
0:12:22 > 0:12:23As one of the harbour masters,
0:12:23 > 0:12:28it's Peter Burns's job to make sure the entire operation runs smoothly.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31You get a different perspective on Sark being down here.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36When you live up on the top, you've got the life that happens up there.
0:12:36 > 0:12:40You're not really aware of what's needed to keep all that running up there.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44But when you come down here, you immediately are.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51Many on Sark have a couple of different jobs.
0:12:51 > 0:12:54Jeremy, the crane driver, is also the island's magistrate,
0:12:54 > 0:12:56and on a low tide like today,
0:12:56 > 0:13:00he's unable to see the boat he's unloading from.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04So he relies on Peter for direction.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10It's a standard procedure using standard signals and things...
0:13:10 > 0:13:13Like, that means take the weight.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15That means go down.
0:13:19 > 0:13:20That means go up.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25It takes a while to realise how the crane works.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28You have to think like a crane driver.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32You've got to be in tune. You get the speed of the crane,
0:13:32 > 0:13:35you know what's happening, so you're in a flow.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38There's only one absolute rule.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41If anybody goes, "Whoa!" or "Stop!" you stop.
0:13:53 > 0:13:59For over 200 years there's been a Methodist chapel on Sark.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02And for the last three of those years,
0:14:02 > 0:14:06it's been run by lay preacher Karen Le Mouton.
0:14:06 > 0:14:08Morning, Sally.
0:14:08 > 0:14:12In the long, quiet winter months with no welfare state on the island,
0:14:12 > 0:14:16her work is often away from the chapel amongst her parishioners.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22In the winter, it's different. It's a different sort of ministry.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25It's more engaging with people that are here all the time.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28Just coming alongside people whenever they need you.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34Karen's been a lay preacher for almost ten years now
0:14:34 > 0:14:36but all that could be about to change.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41It's funny how God takes you on little steps.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44I think he's been leading me down this path
0:14:44 > 0:14:47but I hadn't known what the end result would be.
0:14:47 > 0:14:49I thought it was just going to be the lay worker on Sark,
0:14:49 > 0:14:53but obviously there's more steps that he wants me to consider.
0:14:54 > 0:14:59It's Karen's hope to become ordained as a fully fledged Methodist minister.
0:15:01 > 0:15:06Well, the first step would be offering myself as a candidate for pre-ordination training.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09And that would be a process, then, of discerning whether
0:15:09 > 0:15:12God's call is right for me and for the church.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19Karen's journey begins on Sark, as she takes the shuttle service,
0:15:19 > 0:15:22known to all as the Toast Rack, down to the harbour.
0:15:25 > 0:15:29She's off to catch the ferry to the neighbouring island of Jersey.
0:15:29 > 0:15:34I think my tummy's jumping about as much as the Toast Rack is, actually!
0:15:38 > 0:15:41Karen will face the local Methodist committee today.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46It'll be their job to decide if she can progress to the next stage.
0:15:48 > 0:15:50There's a panel of 16.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54So...we'll see!
0:15:58 > 0:16:02'It's not a job, it's a vocation,
0:16:02 > 0:16:05'and if I am ordained,
0:16:05 > 0:16:07'then that would be for life.'
0:16:23 > 0:16:26The other church on Sark is the Anglican St Peter's.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32And the church committee, including Puffin and Sheila,
0:16:32 > 0:16:34are busy with a spot of upkeep.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40There is no permanent vicar at St Peter's at the moment.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42The post is unpaid
0:16:42 > 0:16:45so finding someone who can afford to take the job is a challenge.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50Until they do, they're relying on locum vicars to work a month at a time.
0:16:50 > 0:16:55Despite the uncertainty for the parishioners, there is an upside.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58I think it is quite good because I think it's helping the church
0:16:58 > 0:17:00and the congregation can decide what we would like.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03You know, we're an ageing congregation, really,
0:17:03 > 0:17:06so they'll bring in ideas
0:17:06 > 0:17:09and that's good to see because we've got to bring the church alive again.
0:17:10 > 0:17:15So, today's service will be the first taken by Neville Jacob,
0:17:15 > 0:17:18Sark's temporary Anglican vicar for January.
0:17:18 > 0:17:20Hymns - that's what I need to work out.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22Have we got the hymn numbers, John?
0:17:22 > 0:17:24'Well, I'm an unemployed vicar, in fact.'
0:17:24 > 0:17:29So, I thought having been unemployed for about 18 months, I thought
0:17:29 > 0:17:32it would be a good way of just keeping in touch with a bit of vicaring.
0:17:32 > 0:17:37It's the calm exterior, you see. It smoothes over everything else.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41Like a lot of people today, that's the way it goes, you know.
0:17:41 > 0:17:46It's the same for people in the Church as elsewhere, really.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55'It's like a very traditional style of Church here.
0:17:55 > 0:17:59'It's something that I can see means a lot to people here
0:17:59 > 0:18:01'and they get a lot of benefit from it.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07'It's good for me to join in and just do it the way they do it, really.'
0:18:07 > 0:18:10And that way, I'll sort of learn once more, you know,
0:18:10 > 0:18:12what the island's about, really.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16Beloved, we are come together in the presence of Almighty God
0:18:16 > 0:18:19and the whole company of heaven, to offer unto Him
0:18:19 > 0:18:24through our Lord, Jesus Christ, our worship and praise and thanksgiving,
0:18:24 > 0:18:28that we may know more truly the greatness of God's love
0:18:28 > 0:18:32through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
0:18:34 > 0:18:39I can see just having been here a week that people in the parish
0:18:39 > 0:18:41work so hard to keep things going.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46I can see it's a very strong, vibrant community of people.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50And slowly I've begun to learn people's names.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53It can be a struggle, but I feel that I'm getting there.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57The great loneliness in British society today
0:18:57 > 0:19:01is largely due to the fact that people don't know each other.
0:19:05 > 0:19:10Neville's first service in a year-and-a-half seems to have gone down well.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14Especially with leader of the choir, Baz Adams.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16I think it was great.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18He would be the ideal person for Sark, really.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21He's got a nice way with people.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24Everybody doesn't suit the job.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28And he's just one of these things who just fitted like a glove, you know.
0:19:28 > 0:19:30Yeah, Wednesday, that sounds good.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33'To be honest, I' thought with an 18-month gap,'
0:19:33 > 0:19:37your memory would sort of fail a little bit on how you did things.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43'So, the art is to try and make your way through'
0:19:43 > 0:19:47whilst making it look as if you know what you're doing, really!
0:19:58 > 0:20:03In the winter, Peter's job as harbour master is only part-time.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07Which leaves him free to concentrate on his passion - music.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13Peter's got dreams of turning his hobby into a profession.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16So he's building a studio in the back garden.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22I have wires running under the ground into the house,
0:20:22 > 0:20:26where I can connect microphones in various places around the house,
0:20:26 > 0:20:31and then feed it back out here into the recording desk.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35And then we'll come here to edit and mix things.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38Peter came to Sark ten years ago.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41In fact, over three quarters of the island's population
0:20:41 > 0:20:43are outsiders or blow-ins,
0:20:43 > 0:20:47drawn to Sark's peace and tranquillity.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49It sounds really...
0:20:49 > 0:20:52you know, cheesy, but I'd written a song when I was a kid
0:20:52 > 0:20:54and it was, you know, "I want to live by the ocean,
0:20:54 > 0:20:58"I want to live by the sea, where a man can learn to understand
0:20:58 > 0:20:59"and let his soul run free."
0:20:59 > 0:21:05I remember those lyrics perfectly well and Sark, I suppose, is that.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08# Take my hand
0:21:09 > 0:21:12# Lead me to a gentle land... #
0:21:14 > 0:21:17Somebody told me that Sark chooses you. You don't... You know.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21And it'd be nice to think that Sark chose me.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25I just love it here. It's such a lovely, peaceful place.
0:21:29 > 0:21:33The people on Sark are really... You know, they've got great ingenuity,
0:21:33 > 0:21:37and they have to because you can't just do one thing. You can't survive.
0:21:37 > 0:21:39And that's the way it is here. People love the things they do,
0:21:39 > 0:21:45they love the diversity of what they do, and it makes for a much more interesting life.
0:21:46 > 0:21:49Sark attracts individuals for that reason.
0:21:49 > 0:21:51You know, Sark is full of individuals
0:21:51 > 0:21:56and what the individuals love is that nobody's telling them how to be.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59You can be yourself on Sark.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08The thing I noticed when I came here especially was that
0:22:08 > 0:22:12when you go to work, it's like being part of your life.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15It's not like in the city where it feels you go to work
0:22:15 > 0:22:18and then you're free at the weekend and then you can be yourself.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Here, it's like when you get there it's part of you.
0:22:21 > 0:22:26The whole thing, the whole work ethic was just... Seemed so natural.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42It's mid-January and Sark wakes up to a blanket of snow.
0:22:46 > 0:22:48I think the children wanted to not go to school
0:22:48 > 0:22:51but they all managed to get there, or most of them did!
0:22:54 > 0:22:57As there's no transport system here to grind to a halt,
0:22:57 > 0:22:59things carry on as normal.
0:23:01 > 0:23:03People cope because they're used to walking.
0:23:03 > 0:23:08It's a small island so we just see if your neighbour's in, see if they need anything.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12The island pulls together, which is great.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17Neville, St Peter's locum vicar,
0:23:17 > 0:23:21might only be here for a few weeks, but today's a perfect opportunity
0:23:21 > 0:23:25to see the islanders' hardy constitution first-hand.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28- OK, take care in the...- Yeah.- ..ice.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34I think people get on and do what they have to do.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40Still going out doing their shopping and those tractors just pass by.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44People are going to school and things like that.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46I didn't bring any gloves with me either.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49My fingers are absolutely freezing, but, erm...
0:23:49 > 0:23:50I'm not letting on about that!
0:23:57 > 0:24:01Whatever the weather, shepherd Dave Scott must
0:24:01 > 0:24:05feed his flock of 90 pregnant ewes out on the headland every day.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10Come on! Come on!
0:24:10 > 0:24:12Today, he's got a treat for them.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14A bonus from his tree surgery work
0:24:14 > 0:24:17and a much sought-after delicacy in the sheep world.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19Ivy.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24There won't be a scrap of it left by the time I come back tomorrow!
0:24:24 > 0:24:26Just be a few sticks.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30Come on, girlies.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34Dave's ewes are only a month away from giving birth now,
0:24:34 > 0:24:39and with 75% of his income reliant on successful lambing,
0:24:39 > 0:24:41keeping his girls healthy is key.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47This is known as a gorse hayrack.
0:24:51 > 0:24:52Come on!
0:24:58 > 0:25:00You've got to check them once a day,
0:25:00 > 0:25:04so you give them enough for a day and then they don't waste any then.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30Lay preacher Karen is back from her interview on Jersey.
0:25:30 > 0:25:32And she's had news from her Methodist elders
0:25:32 > 0:25:35on her bid to become ordained.
0:25:35 > 0:25:40- So, tell me, how did it go? - It was a unanimous vote that, yes,
0:25:40 > 0:25:45that they're affirming my calling to go to the next stage.
0:25:45 > 0:25:48I think by the end, I expected to be sort of shouting
0:25:48 > 0:25:53from the rooftops with joy, but actually, I was very subdued
0:25:53 > 0:25:56and very quiet, but I think it was just the exhaustion, really.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58The emotional exhaustion.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02The next and final hurdle facing Karen and her dream
0:26:02 > 0:26:06of becoming ordained will be a trip to Hertfordshire,
0:26:06 > 0:26:10to meet the Methodist Church hierarchy in a month's time.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13The entire enterprise will rest on this.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16'I hope that even if I wasn't successful,
0:26:16 > 0:26:20'I would still grow in my faith and develop.'
0:26:20 > 0:26:22You don't know what God's got planned, really.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27So, Karen is back,
0:26:27 > 0:26:30but for Neville Jacobs, the temporary Anglican vicar,
0:26:30 > 0:26:33it's almost time to return to his home on the mainland.
0:26:34 > 0:26:36On his last day,
0:26:36 > 0:26:40there's just time to visit one of Sark's most famous landmarks.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44There's the window in the rock. Sheer drop.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48This is where you have to just sort of stop.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56How are you feeling about your time on Sark?
0:26:57 > 0:26:59I feel rejuvenated, yeah.
0:27:00 > 0:27:04What people don't know is I haven't been to a church for two years,
0:27:04 > 0:27:10really, since, and that was really just because
0:27:10 > 0:27:14when you lose your job, even if the reasons are quite...
0:27:14 > 0:27:16understandable, you still feel a bit lost,
0:27:16 > 0:27:19and perhaps I was feeling a bit lost.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24You know, I hadn't had a parish, really, for 18 months or two years,
0:27:24 > 0:27:27and I wanted to sort of see if I could manage that role, really.
0:27:30 > 0:27:31Feeling a bit emotional now.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35Yeah...
0:27:38 > 0:27:40I think it would be a good post.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44Do you have too much back on the mainland to consider taking the job full-time yourself?
0:27:44 > 0:27:47Well, I need to earn some money! HE LAUGHS
0:27:48 > 0:27:52- Bracken! Bracken! - In the days to come...
0:27:52 > 0:27:55Somewhere down there in the misty murks,
0:27:55 > 0:27:58there'll be ormers to be had.
0:27:58 > 0:28:03..spring tides on Sark provide the islanders with some unique opportunities.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05They'll take some bashing!
0:28:05 > 0:28:10A talent competition brings some of Sark's private performers...
0:28:10 > 0:28:12into the public domain.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16My hands just froze. I kept thinking, "All these people are watching me!"
0:28:16 > 0:28:21And as Karen's journey to become ordained reaches its final hurdle,
0:28:21 > 0:28:23she faces a difficult decision.
0:28:23 > 0:28:26You're kind of torn, feeling you want to be there
0:28:26 > 0:28:29but you know you've only got this one chance.
0:28:29 > 0:28:33I'm just praying that everything will work out at the right time.