Hello Ian, and welcome to the forum.
Your description of your local network set me wondering whether the island has a higher than average incidence of thunderstorms and strong winds, given your location in the Irish Sea.
I remember several years ago seeing a whole page of storm instructions in the front pages of a Manx telephone directory, which seems to support that.
For those not too familiar with the British Isles, here's a map which shows the island's location: