Fisherman

0:00:20 > 0:00:25This story belongs to Fraser and his dad - called Donald.

0:00:25 > 0:00:28It's a tiny tale about Donald's life as a fisherman

0:00:28 > 0:00:32and the things he used to do when he was younger.

0:00:36 > 0:00:39Now it's time for Donald to share his memories

0:00:39 > 0:00:43and take Fraser on a journey of discovery.

0:00:49 > 0:00:51And they went for a walk

0:00:51 > 0:00:54to talk some more about life for Donald

0:00:54 > 0:00:57as he grew up by the sea on the east coast of Scotland.

0:00:57 > 0:00:59I grew up very close to the sea.

0:00:59 > 0:01:02My family's always been involved in fishing.

0:01:02 > 0:01:05My dad, your grandad, was a lobster fisherman.

0:01:05 > 0:01:08I spent most of my life at the harbour helping him

0:01:08 > 0:01:10and your Uncle Tommy on the boat.

0:01:10 > 0:01:12And just when I was old enough,

0:01:12 > 0:01:16I couldn't wait to go out to sea and help them.

0:01:17 > 0:01:21Look, even as a baby, Donald loved being by the sea.

0:01:23 > 0:01:26He just couldn't keep away from fishing.

0:01:26 > 0:01:32In fact, he was so good at fishing, he won lots of trophies.

0:01:32 > 0:01:34Doesn't Donald look proud?

0:01:40 > 0:01:44Fraser wants to find out all about his dad's life.

0:01:51 > 0:01:54Fraser and his dad, Donald, are in the garage.

0:01:54 > 0:01:57Donald is showing Fraser a creel.

0:01:57 > 0:02:01A creel as a special basket used to catch lobsters.

0:02:01 > 0:02:04- What are you doing, Dad? - I'm fixing this creel.

0:02:04 > 0:02:07- Why?- You know how the lobsters go in here to eat?

0:02:07 > 0:02:10- Yeah.- They go in here and get stuck,

0:02:10 > 0:02:13but this one's got a big hole - the lobster can get out.

0:02:13 > 0:02:17This is called a net needle. I tie it round the netting

0:02:17 > 0:02:20and tie it round onto the creel to close the hole up.

0:02:20 > 0:02:23It's like when you get a hole in your jumper,

0:02:23 > 0:02:27you get the knitting needle and knit the hole back together.

0:02:27 > 0:02:29How did you learn to do that, Dad?

0:02:29 > 0:02:32Watching your grandad and uncle fix creels.

0:02:32 > 0:02:34When I was your age,

0:02:34 > 0:02:38I used to go down and watch them fix the creels and help them.

0:02:41 > 0:02:46But what exactly are lobsters? Let's find out.

0:02:52 > 0:02:56Wow. So that's what lobsters look like.

0:02:56 > 0:03:00What big claws they have! Incredible!

0:03:00 > 0:03:02Some people like to eat lobster

0:03:02 > 0:03:07and lobsters are sold in restaurants and shops all over the world.

0:03:07 > 0:03:10Donald's job is to catch lobsters

0:03:10 > 0:03:12which he sells to restaurants and shops.

0:03:12 > 0:03:16Look at these old pictures from all around the British Isles.

0:03:16 > 0:03:19For many years, people have been fishing

0:03:19 > 0:03:22for all sorts of different types of fish and shellfish

0:03:22 > 0:03:24using big boats and little boats.

0:03:24 > 0:03:28They used nets very similar to the ones they use today.

0:03:28 > 0:03:32And they used to use creels then, too.

0:03:32 > 0:03:37Everyone used to get involved. It was hard, hard work then.

0:03:37 > 0:03:39And still is now.

0:03:44 > 0:03:47So, how do they fish for lobster?

0:03:56 > 0:04:00In the olden days, they used rowing boats to go lobster fishing

0:04:00 > 0:04:04so you couldn't travel too far from the shore.

0:04:10 > 0:04:14The lobster creels were thrown into the water

0:04:14 > 0:04:19and pulled out by hand, just like in these old pictures.

0:04:25 > 0:04:29But as the years went by, the boats became bigger

0:04:29 > 0:04:31and bigger boats meant more creels.

0:04:39 > 0:04:43Wow. What an interesting job.

0:04:52 > 0:04:56Dad Donald is taking Fraser to a very special fishing museum.

0:04:56 > 0:04:58They're going to find out

0:04:58 > 0:05:02how Fraser's grandad used to fish for lobsters in the old days.

0:05:02 > 0:05:06This is an old boat they used to use for fishing for lobsters

0:05:06 > 0:05:10You used to have to pull up all the lobster creels by hand.

0:05:10 > 0:05:12It was really hard work.

0:05:12 > 0:05:16- Do you want to see if you can pull the creels up by hand?- Yeah.

0:05:16 > 0:05:19The creel has been weighed down with a stone

0:05:19 > 0:05:24to make sure it sinks to the bottom of the ocean, where lobsters live.

0:05:24 > 0:05:27- Do you want Dad to give you a hand? - Yes.- Yes.

0:05:27 > 0:05:29Hold the rope here. Right, let's pull.

0:05:29 > 0:05:34It also means it's very, very heavy to pull back up.

0:05:34 > 0:05:35Oh, this is heavy.

0:05:37 > 0:05:39There we go.

0:05:40 > 0:05:42Was that easy?

0:05:42 > 0:05:45No, that was very hard.

0:05:45 > 0:05:47That was just one creel. In the olden days,

0:05:47 > 0:05:50you used to have to pull 80 creels.

0:05:50 > 0:05:53Wow, that's a lot.

0:05:57 > 0:06:01Fraser wants to know more about the olden days.

0:06:09 > 0:06:13It wasn't just the fishermen out at sea that worked hard.

0:06:16 > 0:06:18Look at these old pictures

0:06:18 > 0:06:21and see how hard everyone worked back on the shore.

0:06:23 > 0:06:27Look at these girls. They were called the herring girls.

0:06:27 > 0:06:30Herring is a type of fish.

0:06:30 > 0:06:33And the herring girls worked hard

0:06:33 > 0:06:36getting the herring ready for people to eat.

0:06:36 > 0:06:39What a lovely smile.

0:06:44 > 0:06:47Fishing is a very messy and cold job.

0:06:47 > 0:06:50So what did they wear way back then?

0:06:55 > 0:06:59Nice caps. Keeps your head warm.

0:06:59 > 0:07:02Scarves to keep your neck warm.

0:07:02 > 0:07:06Warm jumpers. Yeah, good idea.

0:07:06 > 0:07:09Long white wellies. Perfect.

0:07:09 > 0:07:13Oh, that jumper looks scratchy.

0:07:13 > 0:07:16Oh, yes. Full waterproof and wellies.

0:07:16 > 0:07:19Big boots to keep your feet warm.

0:07:19 > 0:07:21Nice yellow jacket, too.

0:07:23 > 0:07:29Wow. And look who this is in an old-fashioned fishing outfit.

0:07:30 > 0:07:32These are called oilskins.

0:07:32 > 0:07:36This is a sou'wester and the jumper you have is called a Guernsey.

0:07:36 > 0:07:41- Is anything missing from our clothes? - A lifejacket.- That's right.

0:07:41 > 0:07:45They didn't used to wear lifejackets so it wasn't as safe as it is now.

0:07:45 > 0:07:47What fun.

0:07:52 > 0:07:56There has been so much talk of fishing in the olden days,

0:07:56 > 0:08:00it must be nearly time to get on the boat now.

0:08:04 > 0:08:08This is my Uncle Tommy.

0:08:08 > 0:08:11Uncle Tommy is Donald's big brother.

0:08:11 > 0:08:16He works with him on their boat, fishing for lobsters.

0:08:17 > 0:08:21They're taking Fraser out towards the deep blue sea

0:08:21 > 0:08:25to give him the chance to catch his own lobsters.

0:08:25 > 0:08:28Where do you normally catch lobsters and crabs?

0:08:28 > 0:08:30All over the place out here.

0:08:30 > 0:08:35All the places with rocks out here. That's where lobsters are staying.

0:08:35 > 0:08:41- Fraser, do you want a shot of steering the boat?- Yeah.- Yeah?

0:08:44 > 0:08:50- Can you see where we're going? - No. I can't. Oh, is it on there?

0:08:50 > 0:08:55This computer shows a map which will tell Fraser which way to go.

0:08:55 > 0:08:58The red flashing dot is their boat.

0:08:58 > 0:09:02The fishing boat is heading towards this float in the water

0:09:02 > 0:09:06with a black flags on it. The float sits on top of the water

0:09:06 > 0:09:11and that shows Fraser and his dad where their creels are.

0:09:11 > 0:09:16Look, they've caught their first lobster!

0:09:16 > 0:09:20Here comes along another creel.

0:09:20 > 0:09:22You know, years ago, Fraser,

0:09:22 > 0:09:25they pulled the creels up by hand into the boat.

0:09:25 > 0:09:27Now we've got this winch,

0:09:27 > 0:09:31which pulls the creels into the boat and makes it easier.

0:09:31 > 0:09:35And the winch makes it faster. Has Fraser caught anything?

0:09:35 > 0:09:39- Have we caught anything, Fraser? - Yes, we've caught a lobster.

0:09:39 > 0:09:44- Do you want to help get the lobster out?- Yes.- Right, pull on this here.

0:09:45 > 0:09:49If the lobsters are too small, they go back into the sea.

0:09:49 > 0:09:54- Will we check this lobster's big enough to keep?- Yeah.

0:09:54 > 0:09:57Donald checks the length with a special measure.

0:09:57 > 0:09:59This one is big enough to keep.

0:09:59 > 0:10:05Uncle Tommy looks pleased with what they've caught.

0:10:05 > 0:10:07Now it's time to get back to shore

0:10:07 > 0:10:11but not forgetting to drop the lobster creels back in the water

0:10:11 > 0:10:14for tomorrow's catch.

0:10:17 > 0:10:19After a hard day at sea,

0:10:19 > 0:10:23let's find out what this young fisherman likes to do next.

0:10:28 > 0:10:36- This is my big brother, Kyle. He likes ice cream, too.- Come on.

0:10:36 > 0:10:41Come on, boys, let's go get that ice cream. It's been a hard day.

0:10:41 > 0:10:43Fraser, Kyle and their dad Donald

0:10:43 > 0:10:46are off to get some well-earned ice cream.

0:10:46 > 0:10:50I wonder if there's a fishy flavour. I don't think so.

0:10:50 > 0:10:53It looks like mint for the boys and strawberry for Dad.

0:10:53 > 0:10:57- Let's go to the beach.- Come on.

0:10:57 > 0:11:01The beach - excellent idea.

0:11:01 > 0:11:04It's meant to be in your mouth, not on your nose.

0:11:04 > 0:11:06You got it on your nose.

0:11:12 > 0:11:15- Let's go and play football.- Yeah.

0:11:22 > 0:11:25Oh, unlucky, Fraser. Keep trying.

0:11:25 > 0:11:28Well done, Kyle.

0:11:28 > 0:11:30Goal!

0:11:30 > 0:11:31Oh, good goal.

0:11:31 > 0:11:35- I am the champione!- No, you are not.

0:11:35 > 0:11:38Yay!

0:11:50 > 0:11:54So, this fisherman and his son have worked very hard and they like

0:11:54 > 0:11:58nothing better than a good game of table football.

0:11:58 > 0:12:01I wonder if Fraser woul rather be a footballer than a fisherman.

0:12:01 > 0:12:05We'll have to wait a few years to find out.

0:12:20 > 0:12:22Have you had fun, Fraser?

0:12:22 > 0:12:27- Yeah.- And have you enjoyed finding more out about Dad's story?- Yes.

0:12:27 > 0:12:30What an adventure for Fraser.

0:12:30 > 0:12:34He found it all about his dad Donald's love of fishing

0:12:34 > 0:12:38when he was young and what he does today - lobster fishing.

0:12:38 > 0:12:42Donald showed him how to mend a lobster creel

0:12:42 > 0:12:45and took him to a special fishing museum

0:12:45 > 0:12:48where he tried to lift a very, very heavy one.

0:12:48 > 0:12:52They had a lot of fun trying on the clothes fishermen used to wear

0:12:52 > 0:12:57and then it was time for Fraser to take to the sea

0:12:57 > 0:12:59with his dad and his Uncle Tommy

0:12:59 > 0:13:03to see if he could pull in some lobsters of his own. And he did!

0:13:04 > 0:13:07Come and give Dad a high five.

0:13:14 > 0:13:17What a fabulous heap of fun.

0:13:17 > 0:13:21That was Fraser and his dad Donald's tiny tale about the things

0:13:21 > 0:13:24he used to do and still does today

0:13:24 > 0:13:27and why he has a lobster creel.

0:13:27 > 0:13:29Donald has shared his story with Fraser

0:13:29 > 0:13:32and Fraser is starting his own story.

0:13:32 > 0:13:36Do you know someone who has a story to share?

0:13:36 > 0:13:39Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd