A new colouring book has been gifted to every primary school in the island to help young people learn about Manx traditions.

The book is themed around ancient Good Friday customs in the Isle of Man and it is illustrated by internationally acclaimed Manx artist and illustrator, Jay Cover.

Over the past few weeks hundreds of copies of ‘Flitter Dance: A Manx Colouring Book’ have been given to each of the Isle of Man’s 32 primary schools.

These have been provided for free thanks to Culture Vannin, who have been working with Jay Cover and the Department of Education, Sport and Culture.

The book tells the story of the old Manx tradition for Good Friday, when people went down to the shores to gather, cook and eat flitters (a shellfish known in England as a limpet), before throwing the shells into the sea and dancing the ‘flitter dance’ of the book’s title.

Each of the book’s 12 pages carry a simple line drawing of a key step in the process, leading the reader, or budding colourist, through the Manx tradition.

Jay Cover said: ‘This book was originally created for an exhibition in Japan, with the help of Culture Vannin we were able to translate it into a resource for schools in the island.

‘I’ve been living away from the Isle of Man for some time now, working in the UK, often travelling abroad.

‘The older I’ve got the more I’ve come to realise what an important impact these traditions had on me growing up; in relation to my identity and cultural inheritance and appreciating the Manx community and Manx ecology. So being able to help young folks around the island engage with one of our many wonderful traditions is a great privilege for me.’

A small number of the books are also available for the public.