Loved by rockers and royals, Eel Pie Island is threatened by tide of red tape

Eel Pie Island on the River Thames with Twickenham on the left. Photograph: Andy Hall/The Observer

From Henry VIII to the Rolling Stones, Eel Pie Island has drawn people for centuries, curious about what life is like on a small patch of ground surrounded by the River Thames.

Yet the 100 or so people who live and work on the island believe their unique community is now under threat from the casual stroke of a bureaucratic pen.