Episode 3 Home Ground


Episode 3

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Hello and welcome to Home Ground,

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the series celebrating the richness of rural life.

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Yes. Tonight, Jo and I will be introducing

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you to a host of stories

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and people who use the countryside for work, rest and play.

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And here's what's coming up on tonight's programme.

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Come on, darling.

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That's my baby.

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From Game Of Thrones to Bafta Award-winners,

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I meet the stars of the big screen with a difference.

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We were on the lookout for birds, but ended up surrounded by dolphins.

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Just your average day out on the Antrim coast.

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THEY SHOUT, JO LAUGHS

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And I'm repairing dry stone walls with a special group of volunteers.

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Later in the programme,

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we'll have a full weather forecast for you for the week ahead.

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First tonight, I'm on Carrick-a-Rede

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and, just for a change, this rope bridge isn't the main attraction.

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Last year, more than 300,000 visitors came here to cross

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this rope bridge,

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but I'm here to see what's tucked in around the far side -

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the fisherman's cottage and fishery.

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Two years ago, the crane at the fishery was smashed during

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a winter storm, so, a few weeks ago, the National Trust embarked

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on a project to replace it

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and help restore the fishery to how it used to be.

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The crane really tells the story of why the bridge,

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the rope bridge itself, is here in the first place.

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This was a working salmon fishery,

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a really important part of our history here,

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and cultural heritage...

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at the site.

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So, for over 300 years, there has been salmon fishing here

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and, because it's quite an inaccessible place,

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it was easier to store the boat on the island

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than to take it back to the nearest harbour,

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which would have been Ballintoy.

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It was a good hour and a half's row from here.

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So, they winched the boat up onto the island and stored it overnight,

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and they had to fish the next day again.

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And it hasn't been a straightforward job.

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Every part of the crane has had to be carried over the bridge,

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down to the fishery, and then assembled at the far side.

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Well, Frank and his team have been hard at it.

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And today, I'm back to meet them as they apply the final touches.

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-Well, Frank, how are you doing?

-Hello, Jo.

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-You're making great progress here.

-We are indeed.

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It's gone really well so far, thankfully.

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Super. Another hard day at the office.

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-Indeed. It's not easy.

-Somebody's gotta do it.

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Listen, people flock here in their thousands -

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it's not hard to see why.

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-Primarily for the rope bridge.

-Yeah.

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But not many talk about the cottage or even know that it's here.

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No, it's hidden inside of the cliff here, so...

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But, I mean, the cottage and the fishery was the main reason

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for the bridge being replaced.

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It's beautiful, but it's fairly remote.

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You wouldn't want to get stuck here on your own for too long, would you?

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No. It is very remote, it's very difficult,

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and I think it was probably one of the most difficult

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fisheries on the north coast

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while it was in operation. The sheer...

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problems of getting the boat and the fish onto the island...

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and then getting them back up to the ice house,

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which was right up the roadside...

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was a big task.

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Do you know? It's not till you're down here that you appreciate

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just how hairy it is and how difficult

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it would have been for fisherman, you know,

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at the end of a busy day, to start trying to bring this boat up here.

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I can't imagine.

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Yeah. I think that's the one thing that, for us,

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is the appreciation we have gained for the effort that those

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guys had to go through...

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to catch fish.

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Such a precarious place.

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The whole coastline here was dotted with fisheries,

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but this was one of the better ones and Carrick-a-Rede itself

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-translates as "to rock in the road"...

-Yeah.

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..so we're standing on the rock that was in the road of the fish,

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as they hugged the coastline, trying to find the rivers

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to go back to spawn.

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So, it was the perfect place to catch fish...

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although it left it more difficult.

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We're doing the finishing touches.

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-Just putting the steel straps on and securing all the bolts...

-Right.

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..so it's nice and tight,

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and all the joints are nice and tight.

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Well, you've a willing volunteer here. Have I got a job at all?

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We'll certainly get you a job, all right.

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-SHE LAUGHS

-I'll be glad to hand it over.

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If you just want to step on in.

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Through here, yeah. Great. OK.

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'There's no salmon fishing here any more,

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'but this project aims to preserve the history of Carrick-a-Rede.'

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Very helpful. You can see I'm a dab hand at this.

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I mean, this is all about preservation, really, isn't it?

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We need to be able to tell this story for years to come.

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It's really important to hold on to our heritage and our past,

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and be able to tell those stories.

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So the crane, hopefully, will be here for ever,

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the salmon fishery restored, and now people can access it

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and enjoy a wider experience here at Carrick-a-Rede,

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rather than just the bridge.

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-And see it as it once was, in all its glory.

-Indeed, yeah.

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You know what? I think I'm going to leave this to the professionals.

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-Stick to my day job.

-SHE LAUGHS

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All right.

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If you've been watching Game Of Thrones

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then it's highly likely you'll recognise some of this

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stunning coastline from the series, but maybe you haven't noticed

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some of the stars from Richhill in County Armagh.

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The animals of Forthill Farm

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have been in some of the biggest productions around.

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I've been to meet some four-legged celebrities.

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'Kenny Gracey is a farmer who knows all about diversification.

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'His family have been farming this land just outside Tandragee

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'for more than 300 years.'

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But, in more recent times, things have taken a twist.

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Kenny has turned his hand to training and supplying animals

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to the growing TV and film industry here

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and I am here to meet a few of the stars.

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Hilda and Mabel are in here.

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-Big girls.

-Now, you don't see too much or too many like them,

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but a lot of the films

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that are being done at the moment are medieval.

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I don't think they're too happy you've just woken them up.

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Oh, no, they're happy. They're as happy as Larry.

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They just... They want to talk to me.

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Sure...you could lie down with them, you know?

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They are just saying hello, aren't you?

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They just love a wee bit of a scratch.

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A scratch behind the ear.

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-Yeah.

-Like us all.

-Sure, yeah. Oh, dear, dear.

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The old back leg up, there. KENNY LAUGHS

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-But these are specifically bred by you.

-Yeah.

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I...experimented with three or four different breeds,

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crossed them back and forth,

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till I got a pig to look like the Iron Age, the old breeds.

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Here, Hilda. Come back, come back. So...

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-It turned out...

-Hilda, behave yourself!

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-It turned out very well.

-It did, surely.

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Had those in the Game Of Thrones a few times,

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and a couple of other films.

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Come on, darling. Come on.

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That's our Jana. That's my baby.

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Hello, darling.

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Look, here's a man come to see you. Yes.

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Give us a kiss.

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-Yes, you're my baby, aren't you?

-Amazing.

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These are normally so timid, these creatures, aren't they?

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That's right. I hand-reared her, and...

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She actually lives with the dogs,

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her and the two deerhound-wolfhound cross.

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Big dogs, I have, in the house, there.

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They are all best friends.

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So, yeah. Aren't you?

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Jana has secured a role

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in a forthcoming Ridley Scott sci-fi film.

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But for Kenny, this is more than just a sideline.

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In difficult times, it's helped subsidise his farm.

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I'm not a modern farmer, and modern techniques -

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I'm working with the old breeds because it is a passion that I have

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and it is not as profitable, either, so sometimes,

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I'm on a hiding to nothing,

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but I love the animals, and it's just...

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The joy and the comfort and the solace they give you

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at times is unbelievable,

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especially when you have to calm them down

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and work them, and when you take them out onto the set

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and they do the things that even the directors and the producers can't...

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They just can't believe it,

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when you bring what is really a wild animal

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out on set and you take it into the middle of a forest,

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that normally, it should run away, and it just stands there,

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or it lies down.

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'And Kenny doesn't just represent stars of the small screen -

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'he also has a few award winners.'

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-Bafta winners.

-Bafta winners, yeah.

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CHEEPING

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-Boogaloo.

-Boogaloo?

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What are you going to call yours, Malachy?

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Graham.

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Well, there's Boogaloo.

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If I can get Boogaloo...

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Is Jana allowed in there, yeah?

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She'll come in. She'll probably chase them.

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Graham, come here.

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-Oh, dear...

-Careful.

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That's Graham.

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Boogaloo was a wee bit lighter in colour.

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You didn't!

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You washed that chicken in my good sink?

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Well, how am I supposed to wash him, Mummy?

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You're not so quick to wash yourself!

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We had to have them pretty quiet,

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because if you saw Boogaloo and Graham,

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the two wee lads had to handle them,

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so they walked down the street on their shoulder.

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Smells fine.

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Come on, big man.

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Go on, there is a man here to see you.

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Come on. Down that way. Go on, come on.

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Come on, Logan.

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'I started this herd up about the mid '90s.

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'I love the breed.'

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They are thought to be the animals

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that are depicted in the old cave drawing.

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I'm walking about through them here, they're great -

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I had them on Blandings.

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Oh, look at that.

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Isn't that good, boy? Eh? Yeah?

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Sure, look at that, eh? Sure, he just loves it.

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Look at his lips.

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He is drooling, he's liking that so much.

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He loves it, doesn't he?

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Higher or lower, big man?

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I was asked to train a pig to go on a lead.

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This boar was actually in Dani's Castle as a little pig,

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eight weeks old.

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When the chips are down,

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you can always count on your own flesh and blood.

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Now, he's three years old.

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He is a bit bigger.

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He's a lot bigger.

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He hasn't been on a lead lately, so...

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And bearing in mind he looks quite relaxed, we'll see how it goes.

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-We'll see how it goes, will we? Will we try it?

-We'll try it.

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Squeaker? Mr Squeaker, come on, boy.

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Come on, Grunter, come on. Up you get, come on.

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Hello? Wakey wakey!

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How are you doing, boy? Are you all right?

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He WAS doing all right!

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He's still all right. What about you?

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How are you doing? Look at his tusks, look.

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Get up, come on, you lazy, big brute!

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Up you get, come on!

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All right, do you remember you used to be on a lead, boy?

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Do you remember that?

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Remember as a wee piggy, we had you on a lead?

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We are going to try you again.

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Here, come over to the side.

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Here, you take him.

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I'll try - I'm sorry to get you up. I know you were resting, there.

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You're the Barbara Woodhouse of the pig world.

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Walkies!

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Come on, big fella.

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-Walk on.

-Walk on.

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So...tell me about those days, working for the BBC.

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What was it you were on again?

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Well, the birdlife along these shores is healthy and clear to see,

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but what about elsewhere along our coastline?

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Ruth has been to the Copeland Islands

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off the North Down coast, to take part in a quay survey.

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'I am at Bangor Marina,

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'where I am meeting my skipper for the day, Shane Wolsey.'

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Come in the boat, here.

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-Thank you.

-Take care, it's a bit slippy.

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'We are off to the Copeland Islands

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'to do a once-in-a-decade survey of nesting sea birds

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for the British Trust of Ornithology.

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So, Shane, tell me a bit more

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about what the British Trust of Ornithology,

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the BTO, actually do.

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Well, the BTO is actually a science organisation

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as opposed to a conservation body.

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So what we do is collect data

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and we collect data mostly about birds,

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but we also collect data for mammals and other things as well.

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The data feeds into conservation and environmental policy-making.

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-And environmental planning, management.

-Yeah.

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There are three Copeland Islands -

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Big Copeland, Mew and Lighthouse.

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And they're around three miles off the north Down coast.

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While few of us will ever visit them,

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they're teeming with bird life.

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-What are we looking for?

-It's really any birds at all on the shore

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or on the sea. Flying in there.

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So birds like curlew and oystercatcher,

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which are waders, that's the primary

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reason we're surveying but we'll record any other ducks or any gulls.

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Also shore birds, sea birds and wildfowl

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on the rocky shore.

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You're counting all these by eye and writing them down individually

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but when you've got a big flock of birds like we just had over

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there, what do you do?

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A lot of it's down to experience.

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It's using methods to try and count those birds quickly.

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I've been doing this so long so you know what ten birds looks like

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so you can quickly go, 10, 20, 30, 40 or 20, 40, 60.

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You get an approximation.

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Curlews, lapwings and terns have been in severe decline over

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the past 30 years in Northern Ireland.

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So these ten-year surveys off the coast are crucial.

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There's a large flock of curlew on the rocks there.

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Curlew, now that's pretty special.

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A lot of the birds here will use these islands for roosting.

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They have declined as a breeding species.

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The lapwing has declined as well.

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Is it encouraging to see so many curlews especially?

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It is and it isn't, because at this time of year

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a lot of the birds aren't actually from here.

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-They're from Scotland and from other parts of Northern Europe.

-Yes.

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In actual fact...

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It's good to see that the numbers are still high

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but it doesn't really relate to our population

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because our populations are really so small they they're insignificant

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compared to the birds that are still coming in from other areas.

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Is that not to do with figures in Northern Ireland?

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It just means Northern Ireland is still a very important

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wintering spot for these birds.

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Places like this are important because there are precious few

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places like that now left where you can go and you'll not see anybody.

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Sea birds like guillemots, lapwings, tern all nest on the ground

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and often in burrows.

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And, unusually, the birds in the Copeland Islands have no

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natural competition.

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None of the islands have rats, cats, ferrets, mink, foxes, dogs,

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those predators. And so for sea birds,

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ground nesting sea birds, it is an absolutely fabulous place.

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How the Copelands have got away with a history without any ground

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predators, I do not know.

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It's incredible.

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Presumably as well,

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because it's an undisturbed place for nature, it must be a great

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barometer of which birds are doing well and doing badly because

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if they're not doing well, they're unlikely to do well anywhere.

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That's right.

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Once we've finished at the Copelands,

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we nip up the coast to see if we can find more nesting birds.

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But it's not long until we realise we've got company.

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There he is.

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The dolphins are coming straight for us. Absolutely beautiful.

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Just here off the coast of Northern Ireland, it's incredible.

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So close to the boat, just wonderful creatures, wonderful creatures.

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Amazing.

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Dolphins do swim off the coast here but it's rare to get so many.

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Especially when there's a camera crew in tow.

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Oh!

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SHE LAUGHS

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-This is amazing. Is this unusual?

-It is astonishing.

0:18:190:18:24

And with bottlenose dolphins, this is just fantastic.

0:18:240:18:27

-I've never seen such a display before.

-Really?

0:18:270:18:30

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant.

0:18:300:18:33

So, Shane, how has today gone?

0:18:350:18:39

We have got the sections of the coast that I wanted to survey,

0:18:390:18:43

surveyed.

0:18:430:18:45

So we did that and we saw some quite interesting bits,

0:18:450:18:48

a lot of duck out on the island.

0:18:480:18:50

Some peregrines there at the cliffs.

0:18:500:18:54

But also to have had the privilege of seeing those bottlenose

0:18:540:19:00

dolphins today has been unbelievable.

0:19:000:19:03

Absolutely unbelievable. It's been superb.

0:19:030:19:07

I'm very pleased that I've been made by the survey to get off my...

0:19:070:19:11

..rear end and go and do something. It's been brilliant.

0:19:130:19:16

We're a good bit into May now and it does feel a little bit milder.

0:19:200:19:24

Let's see what the forecast has in store for the week ahead.

0:19:240:19:27

Now, the Mourne Mountains attract thousands of visitors each year

0:20:030:20:07

but with all the footfall, many of the paths and dry stone

0:20:070:20:11

walls are suffering.

0:20:110:20:12

So I joined a special group of volunteers to help repair

0:20:120:20:16

the damage.

0:20:160:20:17

The dry stone walls that wind along the Mourne Mountains

0:20:230:20:26

are a distinctive part of the landscape here

0:20:260:20:29

and a treasured part of its heritage.

0:20:290:20:31

Stretching for hundreds of miles, the Mourne Heritage Trust takes

0:20:330:20:37

a lead role in their preservation.

0:20:370:20:39

John, this is a perfect example of one of the

0:20:400:20:42

many walls around the Mournes.

0:20:420:20:44

Absolutely and you can see over the passage of time,

0:20:440:20:47

you can see this bulge. If you look

0:20:470:20:49

here, you can see the stones are now leaning out towards the lane.

0:20:490:20:53

Is that one of the big problems you face, these walls starting to...?

0:20:530:20:58

Over the passage of the next few years this will fall.

0:20:580:21:01

And then once it...

0:21:010:21:02

It's like dominoes, it'll just keep falling and falling.

0:21:020:21:05

So that's where we come in and try and get, get it done at an

0:21:050:21:08

early stage and get those all... Those all fixed up again.

0:21:080:21:10

-It's maintaining it and spotting the problem, really...

-Yeah.

-..before it gets, gets too much.

0:21:100:21:15

The problem is, it's a big stretch on resources

0:21:150:21:17

but...most of these are all owned by farmers or land managers

0:21:170:21:20

or mountain trustees and they will be trying their best

0:21:200:21:23

to continuously take down and repair different sections each year

0:21:230:21:27

and try and keep on top of all this but the problem is, there's that

0:21:270:21:30

much of it and, as you know, the stone walls in the Mournes

0:21:300:21:32

are one of the most iconic features we have,

0:21:320:21:34

right up through to our Mourne Wall which spans the entire length of the

0:21:340:21:37

Water Commissioner's land, owned by Northern Ireland Water.

0:21:370:21:41

So an extra pair of hands is always welcome.

0:21:440:21:47

Today, I'm joining a project that gives migrants and asylum seekers

0:21:490:21:53

the opportunity to volunteer and help repair

0:21:530:21:55

and maintain these walls. You come from Colombia, what do you make

0:21:550:21:59

of all this?

0:21:590:22:01

You know, in my city we had a small mountain, not like that,

0:22:010:22:05

so I think this is beautiful.

0:22:050:22:07

I've found this is a peaceful place for me. So, yeah, I like that.

0:22:070:22:12

-And different from your life in Belfast?

-Yes!

0:22:120:22:15

SHE LAUGHS

0:22:150:22:17

Because I live in the south, so this is big houses...

0:22:170:22:20

Not a lot of space for green space, yeah.

0:22:200:22:24

-So is this something you're going to keep up?

-Yeah.

0:22:240:22:29

-I am learning a lot.

-SHE LAUGHS

0:22:290:22:32

And I suppose...there's nothing better than...

0:22:320:22:36

a bit of hard work.

0:22:360:22:38

It's not hard work! We are just helpers. Not a hard job.

0:22:380:22:41

It's hard work for me!

0:22:410:22:43

LAUGHTER

0:22:430:22:45

'These volunteers are here as part of the Amal Project,

0:22:450:22:47

'run by Mediation Northern Ireland.'

0:22:470:22:49

It is getting out of Belfast, it is being in somewhere beautiful.

0:22:510:22:54

It is having a conversation with someone who sees you

0:22:540:22:57

as, you know, another human being who

0:22:570:22:59

has a right to be here as much as anybody else.

0:22:590:23:02

And it's making a contribution, the same as anybody else.

0:23:020:23:05

But life is still difficult, because in the end of the day what

0:23:050:23:08

most of the people who come to Amal want is

0:23:080:23:11

to be able to have a job... To be able to, you know...

0:23:110:23:14

To integrate here, to have friends, to rebuild some sense

0:23:140:23:18

of family or community.

0:23:180:23:20

-It's...

-Good.

-Is that OK?

0:23:230:23:25

-No...

-SHE LAUGHS

0:23:250:23:27

-Er...

-HE EXHALES

0:23:270:23:29

-..probably...

-You're being very diplomatic here.

0:23:290:23:32

Flat face to the front.

0:23:320:23:34

The more stones you use, the worse your selection gets.

0:23:350:23:37

'Thankfully, a local stonemason is on hand to keep me right.'

0:23:370:23:41

Whenever you're building the front of the wall...

0:23:420:23:45

-there's the back of the wall to build as well.

-Uh-huh.

0:23:450:23:47

-There's two sides to the wall.

-It looks fabulous on the other side.

0:23:470:23:50

-You get this bit looking nice...

-Like a dog's dinner.

0:23:500:23:53

You have to get the other side looking nice as well.

0:23:530:23:55

-Even though the sheep wouldn't be as fussy.

-So let's take a step back and...

0:23:550:23:59

admire.

0:23:590:24:00

Dry-stone walling at its finest.

0:24:030:24:06

Huh?

0:24:060:24:07

Oh, there we go, there we go.

0:24:070:24:10

Sold?

0:24:100:24:12

Mohamed is originally from Algeria

0:24:140:24:17

and has been living here for two years.

0:24:170:24:20

I worked as a police officer in my country.

0:24:200:24:22

-Uh-huh.

-And I had some trouble

0:24:220:24:27

and I leave my country and I came here...since two years.

0:24:270:24:31

-Two years, yes.

-Difficult decision to have to leave?

0:24:320:24:35

Yes, yes, it's very hard.

0:24:350:24:38

It's, you know, it's look like...

0:24:380:24:40

You are newborn.

0:24:420:24:43

Totally, totally newborn.

0:24:430:24:47

You come here, you haven't friends. You know, in my country I had

0:24:470:24:51

-nearly 1,000 friends and...

-You're trying to make a new life here?

0:24:510:24:55

-Yes.

-So, does something like this help, can you get to meet people?

0:24:550:24:58

Yes. I think, yes, it's very helpful.

0:24:580:25:01

But why did you have to leave home?

0:25:010:25:03

-Is it too personal to ask?

-I had a problem with my government,

0:25:040:25:09

-a very serious problem. This is why.

-Life-threatening?

-Yeah.

0:25:090:25:14

And...they tried to kill me.

0:25:150:25:18

It was... I had just one night to have a good decision.

0:25:200:25:26

I leave everything, my home, my parents, my friends, everything.

0:25:260:25:32

-To come here?

-Yes.

0:25:320:25:34

Hard to imagine.

0:25:350:25:37

HE SIGHS

0:25:390:25:42

-It's not easy.

-Difficult to talk about?

-Yes...

0:25:420:25:46

It's not easy.

0:25:480:25:50

Whenever you do begin to understand some sense of what their life

0:25:510:25:54

has been like, you can't help but be touched and

0:25:540:25:57

understanding that, well, you know, we're all human

0:25:570:26:00

and some people have it tougher than others.

0:26:000:26:03

-Nearly there. Final stone, Mohamed.

-Yes...

0:26:100:26:13

There we go.

0:26:170:26:19

Perfect. Happy?

0:26:190:26:21

Happy enough.

0:26:210:26:23

That's a good morning's work.

0:26:230:26:25

Perfect, Mohamed, just another 200 mile to go.

0:26:270:26:31

LAUGHTER

0:26:310:26:33

-I have to say, I am very impressed with your handiwork, there. Well done.

-What are you laughing at(?)

0:26:370:26:42

What are you laughing at? That dry-stone wall will never be the same but...I'll take the compliment.

0:26:420:26:46

-LAUGHTER

-Listen, if you're heading to the Balmoral Show this week,

0:26:460:26:50

-we'll see you there.

-That's it for this episode.

0:26:500:26:52

Next week, we're back at our usual time of 7.30. We'll see you then.

0:26:520:26:55

Bye-bye.

0:26:550:26:57

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