Lighthouse My Story

This story belongs to David

and his Grandad Billy.

It's a tiny tale about Grandad Billy

and the things he used to do.

Wayyy...!

Whoopee!

Wayyy!

Now it's time for Grandad Billy

to take David on a journey of discovery

and share his memories of when he was younger.

Grandad Billy had a very important job -

he was a lighthouse keeper on a small island called North Ronaldsay,

which is part of the Orkney Islands, off the coast of Scotland.

Lighthouses can be found on the mainland, on small islands -

like Grandad Billy's -

and out at sea on their own.

A lighthouse is a tall building with a light on top of it.

The light, at night, lets sailors know

that they might be sailing too close to land,

or dangerous rocks hidden in the sea.

There are nearly 300 lighthouses around the coast of Britain.

Have you seen one?

Grandad Billy and David are playing a card game in the kitchen.

Snap!

We used to play cards in the lighthouse.

And look here at this old film.

There are some other lighthouse keepers playing cards

and doing the dishes, too!

-Would you like to come and visit the lighthouse, David?

-Yes, Grandad.

Wow! A trip to the lighthouse sounds like great fun.

I wonder how they're going to get there.

They're strapping themselves in.

Is it a boat to get them to the island?

There you go, you're safe now.

No, it's an aeroplane!

How exciting!

David lives on the biggest island in Orkney,

and Grandad Billy is taking him to visit the small island

he lives and worked on.

If a lighthouse is out at sea,

people have to get there by helicopter or boat.

They have to be lowered down by ropes onto the lighthouse

or the rocks beside it.

Ah, there it is - Grandad Billy's lighthouse!

The building with white stripes.

It's time to land the plane and explore the lighthouse.

Grandad Billy and David talk about being a lighthouse keeper.

Well, David, I have been a lighthouse keeper for many years.

I've lived here all my life,

and as a young boy growing up on the island,

I watched the lighthouse tower above the island,

and I eventually became a keeper here at this lighthouse.

It's one of the oldest working lighthouses in Scotland,

and Grandad Billy has worked in it for many, many years.

-So this is the lighthouse flag, David.

-Oh.

-It used to be raised every morning at nine o'clock.

-OK.

-And would you like to help me raise it?

-Yes, Grandad.

There we go.

Pull!

Well done.

The flag is raised

when very important people come to visit the lighthouse,

and today the flag has been raised because David is visiting!

It's time for Grandad Billy and David

to climb to the top of the lighthouse.

It's very tall!

I wonder how many stairs there are.

..174...

175...

176...

Phew!

176 stairs...!

That is a long way up!

Right, David, you see out there?

See the skerry?

That's where there's been many a shipwreck over the years.

Lots of them.

Well, David, your great-grandfather

was on one of the boats that crashed onto the rocks

away out in the bay there,

and he jumped overboard for safety.

And this is a photo of the actual ship he was on...

sinking.

It was in big trouble.

But don't worry, David's great- grandfather was quickly rescued

and was taken to safety.

I wonder what else they can see from the top of the lighthouse.

Can you see anything out here?

What are these things bobbing in the sea?

I can see seals.

-Seals?

-Seals.

Seals, a way out there.

Beautiful seals.

What do you see away out here?

-Where?

-Away out here?

-A ship.

-That's right.

That's a big ship.

Will that ship see our lighthouse, David, do you think?

-Yes.

-Yes, that's good.

So, now we are thinking about winding up the machine here.

And that's what the light-keepers had to do to keep the light turning.

I will show you now how to wind it up.

You have to be strong.

There you go, there you go.

Heavy, isn't it?

I think that'll do for the moment.

Look at this old film of a lighthouse keeper

winding up the machine in the same lighthouse as Grandad Billy's.

And the lighthouse keeper has to wind the machine every hour.

Imagine running up those 176 stairs every hour!

Lighthouse keepers must have been really fit.

This is how we do it nowadays.

We don't have to wind the light any more.

We just have to push this green button.

-So, would you like to help me push this button?

-Mm-hm.

Right, away you go. One, two, three!

There it goes.

Let it go now. That's lovely.

Pushing the button turns on the machine,

which makes the light turn.

Now it's time for Grandad Billy

to show David where the light comes from.

-So, David, do you see this lamp here?

-Yes.

-This was used to shine the light out. In the old days.

-Oh.

In the olden days, the lamp was lit using a liquid called paraffin.

The paraffin was lit by a match.

So what do you think they are?

Light bulbs.

They're giant light bulbs. Big ones.

Nowadays, the giant light bulbs are lit using electricity,

and come on automatically when it gets dark.

How clever!

Wow! Look how bright those lamps are!

Look, some fog has appeared at the lighthouse.

Do you think the sailors can still see the lighthouse through the fog?

In the old days, when it got foggy,

they used something very noisy -

a fog horn.

-So, David, this is the fog horn.

-OK.

And when sailors couldn't see the light, when it was foggy,

we sounded the fog horn.

OK.

So, would you like to do an impression of the fog horn?

Yes, Grandad.

ERRRRRRRRRRRRR!

That's very good!

-Can I do one now?

-Yeah.

ARRRRRRRRR!

That's not so good.

-No.

-Would you like to hear the real thing?

-Yeah!

Let's put these on, David.

Grandad Billy and David must put headphones on

to protect their ears from what they are about to hear.

So, let's hear the fog horn.

One, two, three...

VERY LOUD LONG BLAST

-How loud was that, David?

-Really loud.

Who do you think heard it?

The whole island.

The whole island, I think, indeed. Yes.

So when the sailors couldn't see the light, they heard the fog horns

which told them to keep away from the dangerous rocks.

-We had good fun.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

Grandad Billy wants to show David some treasure he collected

from boats that were shipwrecked many years ago.

Look, they're sitting next to an old shipwreck

that's been washed ashore.

I wonder what hidden treasures David will find.

Look at this, David, this is treasure.

Whoa, that's really shiny.

-See the lovely gold coin in the middle?

-Yeah.

-That's treasure. Real treasure.

-OK.

-Would you like to have a lucky dip in the chest?

-Yes, Grandad.

I'll help you to open it. Whoops...!

What is this, David?

I think it's a whale's tooth.

-It looks very old to me.

-Yeah.

-And that was washed ashore on the beach, too.

-OK.

Very exciting.

This looks like a golden spoon.

Oh, yes. That's a golden spoon

that was washed ashore here

a long time ago.

OK.

So, all this treasure was found on the island near the lighthouse.

So, David did you have fun?

Yes! Lots of fun.

We played cards.

Snap!

We went on a tiny aeroplane.

We raised a flag.

Well done!

We looked in the light room.

-What do you think they are?

-Light bulbs.

We looked for seals.

-Seals.

-Seals, a way out there.

We heard the fog horn.

One, two, three...

LOUD BLAST

We looked at old treasure.

This looks like a golden spoon.

What have you enjoyed the most?

Raising the flag!

Because it's really important.

Would you like to give me a really big hug now?

-Yes, Grandad.

-Come on, then.

What a fabulous heap of fun!

That was David and Grandad Billy's tiny tale

about being a lighthouse keeper.

Now Grandad Billy has shared his story with David,

it's time for David to start his very own story.

Do you know someone with a story to share?