It is located about two and a half miles south of Newport, in the centre of the island.

[1] The parish church of St Olave's was dedicated in 1292, serving as a chapel to Gatcombe House and is a grade I listed building.

[2] The church contains stained glass of 1865–66 by William Morris, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Ford Madox Brown and Edward Burne-Jones; a monument by Sir Thomas Brock to Captain Charles Grant Seely (killed 1917), unveiled in 1922; and a carved wooden effigy of medieval or early modern date around which various legends have developed.

In 2009 Southern Water proposed that all households should pay the same rate, claiming that the reasoning behind the initial pact is now invalid, as the costs for the original project have since been paid off.

[3] Public transport is provided by Southern Vectis, which runs a line between Newport and Ventnor.