Original subtitles

And lying offshore -

to get to.

that island life weather can often mean

and in this series I'm setting out of the Scottish islands,

Crisscrossing north to the Bass Rock in the south.

There are nearly 300 islands big

that surround the myriad of stacks and skerries

the Atlantic Ocean to the North Sea.

For the first

The island of Foula is officially the edge of the world.

You can still take west of Shetland.

four days a week to Foula.

of cliff-girt terrain

Now here we are,

Experienced travellers

tells you everything from airport to hotel

where the sense of remoteness is surely true of Foula -

living on a small island could be a In the past especially,

fair share of hardship.

visiting strangers like me island people used to put

Now I like to consider myself

Now, Bryan... Yes, Paul.

it's an active thing, yeah.

Well, you see that's the thing, not that I know of.

So you've three days for it to know of and it'll develop. Right.

So was there a history of disease and they won't catch anything.

And then there was the influenza, Did it really?

half the population were gone.

So what was it? to run his B

Well, no, I just looked it upon as the island, would you say?

Like most islanders, Bryan has

a lot of call for that one.

Bryan also keeps some sheep

to their needs,

a great skua with Bob,

Whilst it's OK for bonxie Bob Are you going to catch it? That's it.

All groceries and booze now have to but it closed years ago.

I meet up with two island women, Flouting quarantine etiquette,

Da Sneck o da Smaallie, they both agreed to guide me to see

is that a Norse word as well?

and Fuglaey is the Norse word well, it's from Fuglaey

Right. So not too long.

No, not yet.

known as Da Daal,

It doesn't actually look much like some of Bob's relatives I suspect.'

They must be quite difficult birds

laid their eggs yet,

Now this looks very our way to Da Sneck o da Smaallie.

It's like a Grand Canyon of Foula.

the Grand Canyon.

Penny and Fran disappear down

Look at these huge chalk stones

I think it's best not to think just waiting to fall on my head.

walk underneath it.

'Folk who've left the island one of Foula's secret places.

'where the Atlantic surf pounds 'At last we emerge onto the shore,

'this time they're not so 'bonxie Bob's relatives,

Phsssh! Phssssh!

'as fearless protectors upheld their clan's reputation

search of a more restful sea view.'

This magnificent sight is called

in Britain.

back in the old days,

cliffs and collect the eggs

for their dinner.

and it was all done by hand, that you ate

Every family had maybe

of sheep

vegetables, everything.

'A film shot in 1972, shows life on

were better at building than others,

of building.

or great granduncle, I think,

'were filmed playing to an 'an accomplished singer/songwriter

'He wrote four or five songs

the first time was when he went on in his life,

It was OK I suppose, a bit crowded.

I take the ferry

in Britain.

Neil Henderson

the average North Isles man,

..I can put on an Orkney Fair Isle lad.

boat o'er is 11 metres.

were on to something,

With 70 residents,

and, unlike Foula, it has a shop.

a bar somewhere on the island,

Isle punches way above its weight

But perhaps the main reason that the name of a sea area.

world famous.

'From the 1920s

woollen garments.'

and a lot of the patterns that you The Vikings, they settled this area

indeed all round in Scandinavia,

and they were making virtually The winters could be quite severe

was a huge benefit.

Trading with foreign ships

knitters across the seas.

In 1902, the garments

King Edward VIII was painted

wearing a Fair Isle V-neck.

'Back at Stewart's home,

coming in two days' time

as possible to sell the tourists.

painstaking work.'

Do you think

on their knitting machine.

I think the term knitter of a finisher rather than a knitter.

The fame of Fair Isle knitting

a liability

lighthouse, and the bombs that fell

and badly injured their daughter.

New Year,

and this time the bombs killed the deadlier force -

the lighthouse.

by this plaque over here.

Now it's terrifying to think that

But this mini Blitz in

a dogfight with the RAF.

And this is the wreckage of

Fair Isle is an important breeding to be precise.

than anywhere else in the UK, making are more rare species found here

We're very, very keen to see

We've had three, what they call

and two thrush nightingales.

I think it's not the most We are very fond of the puffins.

The unique status of Fair Isle

Today, the whole island is owned was first recognised in the 1930s.

and bird watchers alike.

I'm joining the island's keenest riches on offer,

Erm, also a lot of,

'I was once a proud member

There's a lot of fulmars What else have we got?

Of all the sea birds that you're there's three birds. Oh, yeah!

Oh, that's a hard question.

So how long does a puffin Yes, I do enjoy puffins actually.

It's almost four times your age.

Henry's accent

a migrating bird himself,

'artist Tommy Hyndman, when I meet his father,

that you're not from these parts, tell from your accent

'Tommy has lived on the island New York.

'The weather's not helping either.

through the fog on this,

keepers to Fair Isle,

their families and their traditions,

a couple of sets of golf clubs.

they devised a little golf course.

In those days, they would use

a flag on it,

stuck in the ground.

Pretty rudimentary stuff.

I'm a pretty good player.

You beauty!

No, no, I see it. It's miles away!

let's go and find those balls.

demolition site than a golf course.

six holes to play.

Well, in February...

washed out by humongous waves.

they were actually the highest waves

Tommy tells me through the rubble,

was decommissioned,

an interesting thing to reinstate,

Right, so it's a tourist attraction? do besides bird watching."

Perhaps it's the thought of playing

Oh, no! No! No! Stop!

that's me out of the game really.

There's a lot at stake here

Oh! You're a gentleman, sir,

by the light of a setting sun.

and rocky headland,

magical, peaceful island.

than to watch the sun set over Grand Tour of Foula and Fair Isle,

to experience the delights of Loch when I'll be voyaging south

Brand new...