Isle of Wight it hosting three prisons: Albany, Camp Hill and Parkhurst, all located outside Newport near the main road to Cowes. Albany and Parkhurst were among the few Category A prisons in the UK until they were downgraded in the 1990s. The downgrading of Parkhurst was precipitated by a major escape: three prisoners (two murderers and a blackmailer) escaped from the prison on 3 January 1995 for four days, before being recaptured. Parkhurst enjoyed notoriety as one of the toughest jails in the United Kingdom, and housed many notable inmates including the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe, New Zealand drug lord Terry Clark
Flag of the Isle of Wight Flag of the Isle of Wight The Flag of the Isle of Wight was adopted and registered in January 2009. It shows a diamond shape (the island) hovering over ocean waves. The indentation of the top corner of the diamond represents the River Medina, which is the largest river on the island. There is anecdotal evidence that the Isle of Wight county colours have been used as a flag. These consisting of two thinner green vertical stripes surrounding a central thick white stripe, and these flags are still available from various sources. Other than this the only established flag of