The Sark Sheep Racing Festival celebrates its Silver Jubilee

  • Report by ITV Channel's Josh Wilde

The popular Sark Sheep Racing Festival returned this weekend with hundreds of people flocking to the island for a day of unique entertainment.

In its Silver Jubilee year the event welcomed Sark-born artist Martin Remphry for the first time after his godmother Sue Adams started the first sheep race 25 years ago.

She asked Martin to do a small illustration for the racing card that day and a quarter of a century on, he continues to design the iconic pictures and posters that advertise the event.

Martin has been designing the iconic pictures that accompany Sark's Sheep Racing Festival for the last 25 years. Credit: Martin Remphry

Martin explained: "Speechless. In 25 years for one reason or another I've never actually seen a sheep race but I thought since the anniversary's coming up, the Silver Jubilee, I really should come over."

Extra sailings were put on from Guernsey to allow as many possible to attend the festival and money raised from the weekend will go towards subsiding medical prescriptions for residents.

The quirky event also saw eagle-eyed visitors trying to spot different icons on a cartoon map of Sark, with one girl shouting, "I need a sheep sailing a boat".

A unique festival for a unique island.

A cartoon map of Sark celebrating 25 years of the Sheep Racing Festival. Credit: Martin Remphry