0:00:02 > 0:00:05The Outer Hebrides - among the farthest flung of Scotland's
0:00:05 > 0:00:07many islands.
0:00:07 > 0:00:11For centuries they've supported a vibrant culture, yet to outsiders
0:00:11 > 0:00:15they once seemed to be remote Atlantic outposts.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22But in the early years of the 20th century some intrepid individuals
0:00:22 > 0:00:26set forth to record the last days of a disappearing world.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34These are the most westerly inhabited islands in Scotland.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38The next landfall is the icebound coast of northern Canada,
0:00:38 > 0:00:42three and a half thousand miles away across the wild Atlantic.
0:00:45 > 0:00:49For centuries, the magic of the Scottish islands has drawn
0:00:49 > 0:00:52travellers from far and wide.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54I'll be following in their footsteps,
0:00:54 > 0:00:59exploring the remote and fascinating places scattered around our
0:00:59 > 0:01:00coastline...
0:01:00 > 0:01:01Any chance of a lift?
0:01:01 > 0:01:05..and meeting the people who call these islands home.
0:01:05 > 0:01:06This is quite exciting!
0:01:06 > 0:01:10To find out how isolation preserved a unique way of life
0:01:10 > 0:01:12I'm travelling to the islands
0:01:12 > 0:01:15at the southern end of the Hebridean chain -
0:01:15 > 0:01:18places which early travellers described
0:01:18 > 0:01:21as being at the ends of the earth.
0:01:33 > 0:01:37To discover what life is like for the people of these islands,
0:01:37 > 0:01:40I'm travelling from Eriskay across to Barra,
0:01:40 > 0:01:44before making the short trip to Vatersay, and ending
0:01:44 > 0:01:49my journey at the very southern tip of the Hebrides, Barra Head.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54My first stop is the magical little island of Eriskay.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58It may be only two and a half miles long,
0:01:58 > 0:02:03and home today to just 140 inhabitants, but visitors have
0:02:03 > 0:02:08always been welcomed with stunning scenery and a fascinating history.
0:02:09 > 0:02:15And on the 23rd of July 1745, after a dangerous voyage from France,
0:02:15 > 0:02:19the most important visitor ever to arrive on Eriskay
0:02:19 > 0:02:23walked on Scottish soil for the first time.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26- ARCHIVE:- On this very rock, Prince Charlie
0:02:26 > 0:02:30first set foot in Eriskay in the summer of 1745.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34The centuries contract, the past leaps to life.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37A figure on the beach might be that lonely prince.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43Now, it seems an unlikely starting point for a campaign that
0:02:43 > 0:02:46almost overthrew the British state,
0:02:46 > 0:02:50and it got off to a very shaky start.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55Among the Highland clans, there was considerable
0:02:55 > 0:02:59support for Bonnie Prince Charlie's claim to the throne.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03But instead of bringing an army as expected, the prince came with
0:03:03 > 0:03:05just seven men - and no money.
0:03:06 > 0:03:12The local laird, Alexander MacDonald of Boisdale, was unimpressed.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15When he came to meet the prince he advised the royal personage
0:03:15 > 0:03:17to go home.
0:03:17 > 0:03:21To which the prince famously replied, "I am come home."
0:03:23 > 0:03:25The prince didn't listen to the laird -
0:03:25 > 0:03:29instead he insisted that he was on a mission from God to reclaim
0:03:29 > 0:03:33the throne for the Stuart dynasty - whatever the cost.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37The cost was huge -
0:03:37 > 0:03:42after initial success the Jacobite rising was crushed.
0:03:42 > 0:03:47Defeated and humiliated, Charles escaped to France, never to return.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53Ultimately, his presence here was a fleeting one.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56The tide soon washed his footprints from the sand.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03Almost 200 years later another Continental visitor
0:04:03 > 0:04:06arrived on these shores.
0:04:07 > 0:04:12He landed with even fewer companions than the prince had done
0:04:12 > 0:04:16and he came not to conquer but to record.
0:04:16 > 0:04:21His name was Werner Kissling, a wealthy German aristocrat
0:04:21 > 0:04:26with a fascination for photography and ethnic culture.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29The film he made about Eriskay is a beautiful
0:04:29 > 0:04:33and evocative depiction of an almost forgotten way of life.
0:04:35 > 0:04:37Eriskay - one of the smaller Hebridean
0:04:37 > 0:04:41islands of song, fable and legend, handed down from generation
0:04:41 > 0:04:44to generation for hundreds of years.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49I first saw Kissling's film when I was a student and immediately
0:04:49 > 0:04:53fell in love with its intimate portrayal of Hebridean life.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00I now have an opportunity to discover how much has changed
0:05:00 > 0:05:02since these scenes were recorded.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06At the village shop, I meet up with Iain Ruaraidh MacInness
0:05:06 > 0:05:08to join him on his post round,
0:05:08 > 0:05:13which has to be one of the best ways of getting to know the island.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19Iain Ruaraidh is going to show me the place where Kissling arrived.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21So this bay appeared in the film?
0:05:21 > 0:05:25This is the first opening shot of the film...
0:05:25 > 0:05:28is the yacht coming through the bay.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31Kissling is an intriguing character.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35He'd fought in the First World War and then had a career as a diplomat
0:05:35 > 0:05:39until the rise of Hitler forced him to resign
0:05:39 > 0:05:41and leave Germany forever.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45His wealth enabled him to pursue his passion for anthropology
0:05:45 > 0:05:48and to document how these islanders lived.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52What do you think they made of Kissling?
0:05:52 > 0:05:54He would have been quite an exceptional character.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56He was German - a foreign chap,
0:05:56 > 0:05:58coming here with lots of money on his big yacht.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01It must have been fascinating for them -
0:06:01 > 0:06:06wandering around with his camera and his butler and his cameraman!
0:06:06 > 0:06:08A wonderful character
0:06:08 > 0:06:10but obviously he must have had a good rapport with the people
0:06:10 > 0:06:14able to talk with them, to get them to stand, photograph them.
0:06:18 > 0:06:23Iain Ruaraidh's family connections to Eriskay go back generations
0:06:23 > 0:06:26and several of his relatives appear in the film.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30In the scene showing the working the cloth,
0:06:30 > 0:06:33four or five of the girls were aunts of mine.
0:06:35 > 0:06:38It must be a unique insight
0:06:38 > 0:06:41into a lost way of life now?
0:06:41 > 0:06:43Yes, it's quite stunning.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48What do you think Werner Kissling would have made of Eriskay
0:06:48 > 0:06:51when he arrived in the 1930s?
0:06:51 > 0:06:54I think he would have been fascinated with the island because
0:06:54 > 0:06:58he was an anthropologist and he would have been interested that the islanders
0:06:58 > 0:07:02still maintained their own culture through their language.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05The island was totally Gaelic-speaking.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07So he had an academic interest in coming here?
0:07:07 > 0:07:09Yes.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16- ARCHIVE:- Eriskay - island of crofter fishermen and tweed weavers.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19The home of less than 500 inhabitants, all Gaelic-speaking.
0:07:19 > 0:07:23And all wresting a bare existence from the sea that is their highway
0:07:23 > 0:07:26and the little crofts that are their farms.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32A lot of the houses were still old
0:07:32 > 0:07:34black-houses, thatched houses -
0:07:34 > 0:07:37no electricity, no running water -
0:07:37 > 0:07:39tilly lamps provided the light.
0:07:41 > 0:07:46Do you think he realised the life on Eriskay wouldn't continue
0:07:46 > 0:07:48for much longer into the 20th century
0:07:48 > 0:07:50when he was making that film?
0:07:50 > 0:07:56Yes, I think that's possibly the whole idea of doing it.
0:07:56 > 0:08:01Finding a community like this before it went.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04- It's a portrait of a lost world, in a way.- It is.
0:08:04 > 0:08:08I suspect that's what he wanted to portray.
0:08:08 > 0:08:13Capturing it before it was lost for ever.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16Music is in the soul of these people
0:08:16 > 0:08:18and it's as natural as talk.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21Traditional and melodious as only such a people could make,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24living as they do in a land where the errant voices of the wind
0:08:24 > 0:08:26forever whisper.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37Werner Kissling wasn't the only film-maker to be
0:08:37 > 0:08:40inspired by life on Eriskay however.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43I'm heading around the coast to a place where an astonishing event
0:08:43 > 0:08:47would bring this tiny island to world attention.
0:08:49 > 0:08:54Out there, just a few yards offshore and barely visible through the mist
0:08:54 > 0:08:57and the rain, is the tiny island of Calvay.
0:08:57 > 0:09:03And locals still raise a glass "to the man who failed to see it".
0:09:03 > 0:09:07Back in February 1941 the steamship Politician,
0:09:07 > 0:09:09laden with cases of whisky,
0:09:09 > 0:09:12ran aground right there.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16Imagine the excitement that caused to the good folk of Eriskay.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22Invoking the ancient rights of salvage,
0:09:22 > 0:09:25the islanders "liberated" thousands of bottles of whisky
0:09:25 > 0:09:27from the stricken vessel,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30prompting the wrath of customs officials and police.
0:09:30 > 0:09:35This was the inspiration for the book Whisky Galore!
0:09:35 > 0:09:38Written by Compton Mackenzie in 1947,
0:09:38 > 0:09:43it was made into the classic Ealing comedy of the same name.
0:09:45 > 0:09:47Film versions of historical events
0:09:47 > 0:09:51often use a degree of artistic licence to beef up the drama.
0:09:51 > 0:09:56To find out how much Whisky Galore! deviated from the true story,
0:09:56 > 0:10:00I've come to this Eriskay pub, aptly named The Politician.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07Some 70 years after the event, I'm amazed to see
0:10:07 > 0:10:12some of The Politician's valuable cargo on display in the bar.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15This bottle is one of the originals that's never been opened.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18Morag MacKinnon is the landlady here,
0:10:18 > 0:10:21and she explained that, while fictional accounts focused
0:10:21 > 0:10:25on the whisky, there was much more in the holds of The Politician.
0:10:27 > 0:10:31There was linens and cottons, bicycles, machetes -
0:10:31 > 0:10:35that's not much use... Well, you never know.
0:10:35 > 0:10:40- Why machetes?- She was going to Jamaica, so the machetes were for the sugar cane.
0:10:40 > 0:10:45Food, of course, and shoes.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49It was wintertime, February 1941, wartime,
0:10:49 > 0:10:52and people on the islands didn't have a lot of money.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54Didn't have a lot of anything, really.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57The fact that they were able to get these things from the ship
0:10:57 > 0:10:59was great.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02It was a bonanza!
0:11:02 > 0:11:05Absolutely. Yes, it was a very valuable cargo.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09Everybody who had access to a boat went out to salvage some of it.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12But it didn't go down well with the authorities?
0:11:12 > 0:11:15No, it didn't.
0:11:15 > 0:11:19In the film, the game of cat and mouse between customs officials
0:11:19 > 0:11:23and islanders is portrayed as a humorous romp.
0:11:23 > 0:11:28In reality, however, the authorities took the matter extremely seriously.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33Homes were raided and crofts were turned upside down.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35Bottles were hidden,
0:11:35 > 0:11:38or sometimes drunk in order to get rid of the evidence.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43They tried to find people in possession of the whisky,
0:11:43 > 0:11:46or anything that came off from the ship.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48And they were determined to make examples of those people.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52This is my partner's uncle - he was called James Campbell.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54He was the first person that boarded the ship.
0:11:54 > 0:11:55This is a copy of the charge.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58The items, as you will see, are pretty insignificant.
0:11:58 > 0:12:00Door locks and fittings.
0:12:00 > 0:12:01A shovel.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03Shaving stick...
0:12:03 > 0:12:06- A bunch of keys.- No whisky.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09All very, very insignificant.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11- Paint brush.- Low value items.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14But he was obviously found in possession of this stuff
0:12:14 > 0:12:17and they could prove it came from the ship.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20James Campbell was sentenced to four weeks in prison
0:12:20 > 0:12:24and several islanders received similar harsh sentences.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27Were they being made an example of, do you think?
0:12:27 > 0:12:30Yes. That's certainly what the reckoning was,
0:12:30 > 0:12:31because there was no need for it.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35Some of the hidden whisky has reappeared over the years.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38The most valuable are those with the contents intact,
0:12:38 > 0:12:42like this one, which was found in a peat bog.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45Although unfit for human consumption,
0:12:45 > 0:12:49bottles like this can fetch upwards of £12,000.
0:12:50 > 0:12:54Unfortunately, since it was removed from the peat the lead seal
0:12:54 > 0:12:59has corroded and its precious contents are evaporating.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02Do you think there's any chance of finding fresh bottles
0:13:02 > 0:13:05of undrunk whisky on the island?
0:13:05 > 0:13:09I would say that there is a chance, because people hid them in a panic
0:13:09 > 0:13:12and a lot of them were slightly under the influence.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15A lot of them forgot where they hid them.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18I think that people will occasionally come across them.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21- Something to look forward to. - Yes, indeed!
0:13:23 > 0:13:26In the film, the stricken ship eventually sinks,
0:13:26 > 0:13:31but in reality events came to a more dramatic conclusion.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34To put an end to further temptation,
0:13:34 > 0:13:38the authorities had the wreck of The Politician blown up -
0:13:38 > 0:13:41along with the remaining whisky, much to the dismay of
0:13:41 > 0:13:46the islanders, one of whom famously commentated, "Dynamiting whiskey,
0:13:46 > 0:13:50"you wouldn't think there were men in the world as crazy as that!"
0:13:55 > 0:13:57I'm heading south on the ferry
0:13:57 > 0:14:01and my next stop is the isle of Barra, population
0:14:01 > 0:14:03of around 1,000,
0:14:03 > 0:14:07living on 24 square miles of hill, moor and machair.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13Barra was granted to Clan MacNeil in the 15th century
0:14:13 > 0:14:16by the Lord of the Isles and remained in the family
0:14:16 > 0:14:21for the next 400 years, largely thanks to the impregnability
0:14:21 > 0:14:26of Kisimul Castle, which was home to the great MacNeil chief himself.
0:14:28 > 0:14:29From the top of the tower
0:14:29 > 0:14:33MacNeil's trumpeter once cried, "Hear ye all ye people
0:14:33 > 0:14:37"and listen all ye nations, the great MacNeil of Barra having
0:14:37 > 0:14:41"finished his meal, the princes of the earth may dine."
0:14:42 > 0:14:46And there's one local delicacy that the boastful McNeil chief
0:14:46 > 0:14:49would certainly have dined upon.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52This wonderful stretch of beach is reputedly
0:14:52 > 0:14:56the best place in the entire country to find cockles,
0:14:56 > 0:14:58and to do the job you need
0:14:58 > 0:15:02nothing more sophisticated than a bucket and a garden rake.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05So let's see what's lurking beneath the sand!
0:15:10 > 0:15:12Cockles are small, clam-like creatures
0:15:12 > 0:15:15that were once popular in seaside resorts.
0:15:17 > 0:15:21Here we have an empty cockle shell - not much use!
0:15:21 > 0:15:24They lie just under the surface of the sand
0:15:24 > 0:15:28and are best harvested between autumn and early winter.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32The harvest of cockle shells from this fantastic beach
0:15:32 > 0:15:36found their way to tables throughout the country,
0:15:36 > 0:15:39usually via a jam jar full of vinegar.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43Given their abundance around our coast,
0:15:43 > 0:15:47it's unfortunate that they have of late fallen out of favour.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52But during the dark days of the Clearances, these tidal sands
0:15:52 > 0:15:56would have been dotted with the silhouettes of hundreds of people,
0:15:56 > 0:16:01whole families, raking through the wet sand to find something to eat.
0:16:02 > 0:16:05The great cockle beach covers eight square miles.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10One man with a rake patiently gathering cockles,
0:16:10 > 0:16:13a man contented with life.
0:16:14 > 0:16:18A man who is doing a lot better than me!
0:16:18 > 0:16:20I think I might be going hungry tonight!
0:16:20 > 0:16:22I can't find anything at all.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28There's something beneath... Oh, look at that!
0:16:28 > 0:16:31Yes! I'll be feasting on that tonight!
0:16:36 > 0:16:37Another one.
0:16:39 > 0:16:44There we go. I have to say, it's a very peaceful place
0:16:44 > 0:16:49to spend an hour or two raking the sands for your tea.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55# ..Through streets broad and narrow... #
0:16:57 > 0:17:01But cockle picking on this beach is not without its dangers.
0:17:01 > 0:17:06One of which is, rather surprisingly, low-flying aircraft.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11The prospect of being hit by a plane
0:17:11 > 0:17:13in this vast expanse of sand
0:17:13 > 0:17:16might seem an unlikely one, but the hazard is real.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25Because this is the runway of Barra's airport -
0:17:25 > 0:17:31the only airport in the world where scheduled flights land on the beach.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35It first opened in 1936,
0:17:35 > 0:17:41and has been voted by pilots as one of the top airports to fly into.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44Every year, 10,000 passengers arrive here.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49Neil MacLean is the man who ensures aircraft land safely,
0:17:49 > 0:17:53a task made more complicated by the fact that twice a day,
0:17:53 > 0:17:57when the tide is high, the runway is under water.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01So what are the hazards associated with landing on sand?
0:18:01 > 0:18:06Dead seal, dead dolphin, dead birds, some barrels.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10The fire service go out twice a day and check the beach to make sure
0:18:10 > 0:18:11there's no rubbish left behind
0:18:11 > 0:18:14that might cause problems with the aircraft.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16So the runway could be closed because of a dead dolphin?
0:18:16 > 0:18:18Not for long, we'd shift it!
0:18:18 > 0:18:20If we had a whale, I think we might have an issue.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24That would cause a problem cos our tractors aren't that big!
0:18:24 > 0:18:28We've had one occasion where someone had built an enormous sandcastle
0:18:28 > 0:18:31with a moat and they were quite put out when we went out
0:18:31 > 0:18:36with a tractor and flattened it! Kind of felt sorry for the children!
0:18:36 > 0:18:39Conditions on Barra can change quickly.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43Landing here can sometimes be very challenging for pilots,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45and passengers too.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50We've had one gentleman on one occasion,
0:18:50 > 0:18:52as the aircraft was coming in,
0:18:52 > 0:18:54who though the aircraft was in fact crashing
0:18:54 > 0:18:57and he proceeded to start working on the emergency exits
0:18:57 > 0:19:00to try and get out. Which is probably disconcerting for other passengers.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04But luckily he never managed to open the door or the window.
0:19:04 > 0:19:06- But I think he got quite a fright. - I bet he did!
0:19:09 > 0:19:12The reward for landing on Barra is immediate.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16Visitors can enjoy some of the most stunning scenery
0:19:16 > 0:19:20anywhere in the world, and Neil has offered to show me around.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26Today, tourism is a vital part of the local economy.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29But in the past islanders had to rely on crofting,
0:19:29 > 0:19:31the traditional way of life here.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38Like a lot of islanders, Neil chose to leave Barra to see
0:19:38 > 0:19:43something of the world, but returned home to take on the family croft,
0:19:43 > 0:19:47making him the archetypical multi-tasking islander.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49What do you actually do on the croft?
0:19:49 > 0:19:53Well, sheep, pigs, ducks, geese, turkeys.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57I grow carrots, onions, leeks. I've got some apple trees,
0:19:57 > 0:20:01I've got a couple of plum trees and a couple of pear trees.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06Crofting is unique to the Scottish Highlands and Islands.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09Traditionally, tenant farmers worked
0:20:09 > 0:20:13small and often poor-quality plots of land to eke out a living.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18Is crofting still quite important here on Barra?
0:20:18 > 0:20:20I would say it's very important, it ties people to the land.
0:20:20 > 0:20:23And a lot of people fail to understand how important
0:20:23 > 0:20:26for people on the edges of the Hebrides,
0:20:26 > 0:20:28how important land is.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31When you look at the history of these islands
0:20:31 > 0:20:34and how the population suffered in the past
0:20:34 > 0:20:36when others owned the land,
0:20:36 > 0:20:38it's always controlled by someone else.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41And now we've got land, people like to keep it.
0:20:41 > 0:20:45Over the years, Neil has turned his hand to many different things.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47But his latest product is something
0:20:47 > 0:20:51not traditionally associated with the Hebrides -
0:20:51 > 0:20:54making his own wine.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56I made 50 litres of wine off this one vine.
0:20:56 > 0:20:58What's it like, your Hebridean wine?
0:20:58 > 0:21:03- Well, it's a work in progress, let's say.- Well, I'm impressed.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08It's this kind of resourcefulness and hard work
0:21:08 > 0:21:11that has kept crofting alive on these islands.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15I'm heading south across the causeway
0:21:15 > 0:21:17that links Barra to Vatersay,
0:21:17 > 0:21:19a place where the locals had to fight
0:21:19 > 0:21:22for the right to make their homes here.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Back in the 19th century, hundreds of people lived here
0:21:26 > 0:21:29until they were forcibly evicted by an absentee landlord
0:21:29 > 0:21:33who wanted the whole island as a single farming unit.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39For more than 50 years, the owner of Vatersay refused to allow
0:21:39 > 0:21:44anyone from the overcrowded neighbouring islands to settle here.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48Desperate and defiant, the islanders began to return,
0:21:48 > 0:21:53led by a group of men known to history as "the Vatersay Raiders".
0:21:54 > 0:21:57The Vatersay Raiders were a group of 10 crofters
0:21:57 > 0:22:01determined to stake a claim to this land.
0:22:03 > 0:22:08In the summer of 1906, they landed here on Vatersay
0:22:08 > 0:22:13and invoked an ancient law whereby they could claim ownership of ground
0:22:13 > 0:22:18by building a wooden dwelling and kindling a fire within a day.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20That might have been the islanders' way,
0:22:20 > 0:22:24but in the eyes of the law, the men were criminals.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27They were arrested and jailed. But in urban Scotland,
0:22:27 > 0:22:30where there was increasing sympathy for their plight,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34the men were seen as the heroic victims of injustice.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39Their case became a cause celebre,
0:22:39 > 0:22:42and although the men spent two months in prison
0:22:42 > 0:22:44they ultimately succeeded.
0:22:44 > 0:22:48In 1909, the government bought the island for the people
0:22:48 > 0:22:52and divided it into 58 crofts.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55Today, the raiders are hailed as heroes
0:22:55 > 0:22:59and many of their descendants still live on Vatersay.
0:23:01 > 0:23:05But it's not just the land that sustains this island community.
0:23:06 > 0:23:10Fishing has always been a hugely important part of life here.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16And so, donning my traditional Fair Isle fishing hat, I'm joining
0:23:16 > 0:23:18skipper Neil Sinclair,
0:23:18 > 0:23:21whose grandfather was one of the Vatersay Raiders,
0:23:21 > 0:23:24and fisherman Paul McGuire on their lobster boat.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32Would you say, Neil, that it's a dangerous job,
0:23:32 > 0:23:34being a creel fisherman?
0:23:34 > 0:23:37One of the most dangerous jobs you can get, fishing.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39You know, the tides and the winds.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42And hidden rocks. Just beneath the surface.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45There's plenty of those around here, I can see.
0:23:45 > 0:23:46Yeah. You get taught
0:23:46 > 0:23:50by your dad and other fishermen and they keep you right.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52Older fishermen keep you right.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55Kenny learns how the lobster pots work
0:23:55 > 0:23:58and is shown how to handle the creatures.
0:23:58 > 0:24:02Many of the Vatersay fishermen learned their skills
0:24:02 > 0:24:04from their fathers and grandfathers,
0:24:04 > 0:24:08but that's not the case for Neil's ship-mate, Paul.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12- Well, I'm actually from Cumbernauld. - From Cumbernauld?- Cumbernauld.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15- Land-locked Cumbernauld! - Land-locked Cumbernauld.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18How did you get into fishing?
0:24:18 > 0:24:19For a laugh.
0:24:21 > 0:24:23What's the appeal of bobbing around
0:24:23 > 0:24:25in a small boat in the North Atlantic?
0:24:25 > 0:24:27Every day is different.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29There's a bit of a challenge to it.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32And it's quite rewarding when you catch things.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37- Is that a conger eel?- Yeah. - My goodness me, look at this!
0:24:37 > 0:24:38An enormous eel.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42Amazing. This is quite exciting, isn't it?
0:24:42 > 0:24:45You never know what you're going to pull up!
0:24:45 > 0:24:47A lot of crabs.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50- Do you keep the big ones? - Just the decent ones.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55A lobster man is the most precise of fisherman.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57And if the waters he fishes are dangerous,
0:24:57 > 0:25:01he still has to place each pot if he's going to make a living.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07But there is one way into a lobster pot and no way out.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14- That's another creel coming in. - Yeah.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16Oh, look, we've got a beauty in there.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18An absolute whopper, look at that.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20Those are powerful claws, aren't they?
0:25:20 > 0:25:23- Hey, I must be lucky! - You're coming back!
0:25:26 > 0:25:29Another beauty, look at that!
0:25:30 > 0:25:33So, what's the biggest lobster you've ever caught?
0:25:33 > 0:25:357 or 8 kilos.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37- 7 or 8 kilo lobster?- Yeah.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40It must have been about the size of a dog!
0:25:40 > 0:25:42Yeah, they're huge, you know.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44They're very rare.
0:25:48 > 0:25:50Look at the size of that one!
0:25:50 > 0:25:52That's a beauty!
0:25:54 > 0:25:57And so, with our catch safely landed,
0:25:57 > 0:26:02I continue my journey, heading south to my final destination.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04The tiny island of Barra Head.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08Passing the neighbouring island of Mingulay,
0:26:08 > 0:26:12I'm greeted by a simply stunning sight.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14Hundreds and hundreds of seals!
0:26:15 > 0:26:16That's incredible!
0:26:20 > 0:26:22There must be hundreds of them.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27I've never seen so many seals in my entire life.
0:26:27 > 0:26:28And they're going crazy.
0:26:32 > 0:26:33Oh, that is amazing.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Barra Head, also known as Berneray,
0:26:39 > 0:26:43is just 1½ square miles of rock.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47One 19th-century travel writer described how it sits
0:26:47 > 0:26:52"far out into the Atlantic, exposed to its fullest fury,
0:26:52 > 0:26:55"and generally inaccessible".
0:26:56 > 0:26:58Yet these ruined buildings prove
0:26:58 > 0:27:01that the island once sustained a population.
0:27:02 > 0:27:07In fact, people lived here until the early years of the 20th century.
0:27:09 > 0:27:11Reflecting on my journey so far,
0:27:11 > 0:27:14it occurs to me that the people of these islands,
0:27:14 > 0:27:19despite the odds, have held on to their culture and traditions.
0:27:19 > 0:27:22But sometimes the struggle proved too much,
0:27:22 > 0:27:25and that seems to be what happened here.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29In 1911, the last residents abandoned the island.
0:27:32 > 0:27:35But before they left their island homes for the last time,
0:27:35 > 0:27:38the scene was captured by the lens of a camera.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49Like Werner Kissling's remarkable film of Eriskay,
0:27:49 > 0:27:52these images seem to belong to another time entirely.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59The man who took these pictures was called Robert Milne,
0:27:59 > 0:28:02but unlike Kissling, almost nothing is known
0:28:02 > 0:28:05about who he was or why he took these photographs.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10But they are the only remaining visual record of life here
0:28:10 > 0:28:13and a fascinating insight into the people
0:28:13 > 0:28:16who once called these ruins their home.
0:28:18 > 0:28:23No-one lives on Berneray today and the wilderness has now taken over,
0:28:23 > 0:28:25which I suppose is appropriate
0:28:25 > 0:28:29for an island that's at the ends of the earth.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34Join me on my next grand tour,
0:28:34 > 0:28:36when I'll be heading to the Isle of Mull
0:28:36 > 0:28:40to escape the hustle and bustle of the modern world.