0:00:00 > 0:00:02My name is Lesley Riddoch.
0:00:03 > 0:00:07I grew up in Belfast because my parents, both Highlanders,
0:00:07 > 0:00:10moved there for work when I was aged three,
0:00:10 > 0:00:12then back to Glasgow when I was 13.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14So, I am a Scot.
0:00:14 > 0:00:16And as a journalist and writer,
0:00:16 > 0:00:20Scotland is the focus of most of my work.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23But I've never lost touch with Northern Ireland.
0:00:23 > 0:00:27In this series, I'm going to explore the relationship
0:00:27 > 0:00:29between Scotland and Northern Ireland,
0:00:29 > 0:00:31how it's expressed through community...
0:00:31 > 0:00:33I think the southern part of Scotland
0:00:33 > 0:00:35would nearly be like the seventh county,
0:00:35 > 0:00:37the amount of Northern Irish folk that have moved across.
0:00:37 > 0:00:38..through language...
0:00:38 > 0:00:40You would meet somebody every day
0:00:40 > 0:00:42that you would be tagging "Ulster Scots" to.
0:00:42 > 0:00:43..through culture and faith.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48And I'm going to meet people on both sides of the North Channel
0:00:48 > 0:00:51for whom those things that link Northern Ireland and Scotland
0:00:51 > 0:00:56are an integral part of their lives, their identity and their future.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58I don't know if it's Ulster Scots, if it's Scots,
0:00:58 > 0:01:00if it's Scot-Irish or what it is.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03I don't know what the label is, but there's something there.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23For over a thousand years,
0:01:23 > 0:01:27the narrow stretch of sea between Northern Ireland and Scotland
0:01:27 > 0:01:29has been a highway for traders and churchmen,
0:01:29 > 0:01:31seasonal workers and students
0:01:31 > 0:01:34travelling between our two countries.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37And it's those connections, forged through work and faith,
0:01:37 > 0:01:39that I want to find out more about.
0:01:45 > 0:01:49Farm labourers may no longer travel to Scotland to dig potatoes,
0:01:49 > 0:01:53as they once did, but the tradition of buying and selling livestock
0:01:53 > 0:01:57in the auctions of Stirling and Lanarkshire is alive and well.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06Lawrie Symington Auctioneers in Lanark
0:02:06 > 0:02:09is one of the biggest marts in Scotland.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13Each year, hundreds of thousands of animals pass through this ring,
0:02:13 > 0:02:16from family pets for a pound, to bulls worth
0:02:16 > 0:02:19tens of thousands of pounds.
0:02:19 > 0:02:20We've a mixed Japanese and Mexican...
0:02:20 > 0:02:24Among the 30 staff is farmer and auctioneer David Lowry,
0:02:24 > 0:02:26from Saintfield in County Down.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29Three, I'm bid. Four. ?4. I'm at five. Five. ?5. Six.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31Six. I'm at eight. ?8...
0:02:31 > 0:02:35'I started in 1976 as a boy
0:02:35 > 0:02:38'in my local town in Saintfield.'
0:02:38 > 0:02:4030, 32, 35...
0:02:40 > 0:02:43'You get the buzz and a kick out of it when the crowd gets going
0:02:43 > 0:02:44'and the atmosphere is there.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46'You get gathered into it as well.'
0:02:46 > 0:02:48?38. HE BANGS GAVEL
0:02:48 > 0:02:50?38. There we are, 204.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54I actually hold the world record for auctioning a sheep
0:02:54 > 0:02:57at 220,000 guineas.
0:02:57 > 0:03:0014. 16? 16, I'm bid. At 16. At 16...
0:03:00 > 0:03:02So, what actually brought you here?
0:03:02 > 0:03:04Probably the price of land.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07I could buy land in Scotland for anywhere between
0:03:07 > 0:03:11?2,000 and, at the very most, nearly ?3,000 an acre.
0:03:11 > 0:03:12And the same land in Northern Ireland
0:03:12 > 0:03:16was costing anywhere from ?15,000 to ?20,000 an acre.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19So, that was one big factor, because with only having ten acres,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21we had to rent quite a bit of land.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24So, we made the decision that we would move to Scotland.
0:03:24 > 0:03:29On April Fools' Day, I bought the farm privately over the phone,
0:03:29 > 0:03:31and I remember going up the stairs,
0:03:31 > 0:03:33my wife was already away to bed,
0:03:33 > 0:03:35and saying, "I have a farm bought in Scotland."
0:03:35 > 0:03:37And she says, "Ha-ha, April fool!"
0:03:37 > 0:03:39I says, "Aye, you're either on the bus or you're not on the bus!"
0:03:39 > 0:03:43And the family ended up in Scotland and never looked back.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48David keeps 200 Simmental beef cattle,
0:03:48 > 0:03:51and vet Chris McGregor has come to check on some of them.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55Aye. We've got some fluid in her uterus, certainly.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58Well, that's good news, for a start.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01Yeah, she's in calf, so she is.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04She's in calf, OK? Good. Yeah, just about six weeks.
0:04:04 > 0:04:07About the six-weeks mark? Yeah. Good. That's good news, at least.
0:04:08 > 0:04:10So, are you here checking everyone?
0:04:10 > 0:04:12Some people will get us to check every cow,
0:04:12 > 0:04:15so that they know which cows are going to calve,
0:04:15 > 0:04:17and also getting a stage of when they are going to calve,
0:04:17 > 0:04:19so they can manage them suitably up until that point.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23Obviously, from your twang, you're a Northern Irish chiel as well.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25Yes. Uh-huh. What took you over here?
0:04:25 > 0:04:28Initially, I came over to go to university in Glasgow,
0:04:28 > 0:04:32and after my five years studying there, I got a job with Clyde Vets,
0:04:32 > 0:04:33and I've just stayed so far, so I have. Mm-hm.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38So, are you a wee sort of Northern Irish cabal?
0:04:38 > 0:04:39THEY LAUGH
0:04:39 > 0:04:41Or is it just coincidence that there is a Northern Irish farmer
0:04:41 > 0:04:44and a vet in the same neck of the woods?
0:04:44 > 0:04:47It's partly a coincidence,
0:04:47 > 0:04:49but I thought when I moved over
0:04:49 > 0:04:52with family 16 years ago,
0:04:52 > 0:04:54that I would be a loner and there would be no Northern Irish about,
0:04:54 > 0:04:57until about after a month I realised
0:04:57 > 0:04:59just how many Northern Ireland farmers there were
0:04:59 > 0:05:02within a 20-mile radius of where I had bought the farm.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07So, are there differences, then, in the way that the Northern Irish
0:05:07 > 0:05:09and the Scottish farmer operate in an auction?
0:05:09 > 0:05:12In Northern Ireland, they're laid-back.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15And, eh, they see the animal in the ring and they think,
0:05:15 > 0:05:16"That looks a right beast there.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18"That would maybe do a job.
0:05:18 > 0:05:20"Will I buy it or will I not buy it?"
0:05:20 > 0:05:23Back home, you nearly could bid for a beast and go for a cup of tea,
0:05:23 > 0:05:27and come back and still be able to buy it before the hammer goes down.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30Whereas in Scotland, you have 30 seconds to make up your mind,
0:05:30 > 0:05:32or the lot is through the ring,
0:05:32 > 0:05:33the hammer's down, you've missed that one,
0:05:33 > 0:05:35so move on, pick something else.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37It seems, quite uniquely, actually,
0:05:37 > 0:05:39that farming seems to be one industry
0:05:39 > 0:05:43where there is an active industry spanning the channel.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46So, it's almost as if the channel between Northern Ireland
0:05:46 > 0:05:48and Scotland is not there?
0:05:48 > 0:05:50Yeah, I think the southern part of Scotland would nearly be like
0:05:50 > 0:05:53the seventh county,
0:05:53 > 0:05:55the amount of Northern Irish folk that have moved across.
0:05:55 > 0:05:57It's home from home.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04I knew there were a fair few Ulster folk
0:06:04 > 0:06:07living in this part of Scotland,
0:06:07 > 0:06:10but I'd no idea just how much business goes on
0:06:10 > 0:06:13between the Northern Irish and Scottish farming communities.
0:06:17 > 0:06:21Of course, agriculture isn't the only thing we share.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24One of the most enduring ties between our two countries
0:06:24 > 0:06:28is religion. And the links between the Presbyterian Church in Ireland
0:06:28 > 0:06:31and Scotland are particularly strong.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36The first Presbyterian congregations were established
0:06:36 > 0:06:41in Ireland in the early 1600s by settlers from Scotland,
0:06:41 > 0:06:44and there's been a flow of ideas and people backwards and forwards
0:06:44 > 0:06:46ever since.
0:06:49 > 0:06:54# Make me a channel of your peace... #
0:06:54 > 0:06:57I've come to Belfast to meet two Scotsmen
0:06:57 > 0:07:00ministering to congregations on the Shankill Road.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02Jack Lamb is originally from Stirling,
0:07:02 > 0:07:05and was called to Townsend Presbyterian Church
0:07:05 > 0:07:07in 1996.
0:07:07 > 0:07:12# Only light
0:07:12 > 0:07:17# And where there's sadness ever joy. #
0:07:21 > 0:07:24Just a short walk up the road, Colin Duncan is minister
0:07:24 > 0:07:27of Shankill Methodist Church.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31Well, we've got a little Scottish enclave here today!
0:07:31 > 0:07:34But I just wonder, just to start off with you, Colin,
0:07:34 > 0:07:38what was it that brought you over here in the mid-'90s,
0:07:38 > 0:07:40which would have been a pretty dodgy time
0:07:40 > 0:07:41to be coming to Northern Ireland?
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Yes, there was quite an interesting reaction to it at that time,
0:07:45 > 0:07:48to the news that we were coming over here.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50One of them was horror
0:07:50 > 0:07:53directed towards Brenda, my wife, and myself.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57"Why would you take your children over to that place?"
0:07:57 > 0:08:00And the other reaction was,
0:08:00 > 0:08:02"Oh, you're going to Northern Ireland, you'll love it."
0:08:02 > 0:08:05And certainly, in our time here,
0:08:05 > 0:08:07we've been at home from the minute of stepping off the ferry,
0:08:07 > 0:08:09back in 1994.
0:08:09 > 0:08:12I think one of the things I love about Northern Ireland is that
0:08:12 > 0:08:14you're never going to get a big head over here. No, that's true.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16It's like, back in Scotland, you know,
0:08:16 > 0:08:18if you ever thought you're getting up there,
0:08:18 > 0:08:21there'll be somebody coming along and say, "Oh, I kent his faither."
0:08:21 > 0:08:24And you'll never get ideas above your station. No, that's true.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28Was there any reaction from your congregation about a Scot
0:08:28 > 0:08:29coming in to take over the helm?
0:08:29 > 0:08:32I think, if the truth be told,
0:08:32 > 0:08:35sometimes the accent can be an asset.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38For many of them, it's like almost a...
0:08:38 > 0:08:42a memory, a generational memory.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46"This is an accent from the old country, going back."
0:08:46 > 0:08:49And they'll tell you, "My grandparents lived in Scotland,"
0:08:49 > 0:08:51or "My great grandparents lived in Scotland,
0:08:51 > 0:08:53"then they moved over here to get involved in
0:08:53 > 0:08:55"Harland and Wolff shipyards." Mmm.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57I think that's partly it, Lesley.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03What particularly is it about this community for you?
0:09:03 > 0:09:04Just the challenge in the Shankill.
0:09:04 > 0:09:07I think, as ministers, we've got to face the fact that,
0:09:07 > 0:09:10despite there being...
0:09:10 > 0:09:14roughly 41 places of worship
0:09:14 > 0:09:16in the Greater Shankill area,
0:09:16 > 0:09:21of the local population attending church services on a Sunday morning,
0:09:21 > 0:09:23it's reckoned to be something between 1% and 3%
0:09:23 > 0:09:25of the local population.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28Coming into the Shankill...
0:09:28 > 0:09:31This is a very working class sort of community.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33With people, what you see is what you get.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36There's no back doors to them.
0:09:36 > 0:09:37They'll say what they think.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40And I find it a very refreshing place to work in
0:09:40 > 0:09:41from that point of view.
0:09:41 > 0:09:47The last few years have been particularly exciting,
0:09:47 > 0:09:51because quietly, in the background,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54there are closer relationships,
0:09:54 > 0:09:57positive relationships happening
0:09:57 > 0:10:01between what I would want to call the one community.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04The people are struggling with the same issues,
0:10:04 > 0:10:06and there's just this thought that
0:10:06 > 0:10:08if they could come together in some way,
0:10:08 > 0:10:12my goodness, they would be a powerful voice, you know?
0:10:23 > 0:10:27Working class Belfast is the subject of a performance I saw recently
0:10:27 > 0:10:30at the Edinburgh Festival that made a real impression on me.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37I'm here at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow
0:10:37 > 0:10:39to meet its creator, Matt Regan.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45The millies -
0:10:45 > 0:10:48they're outside the factory now,
0:10:48 > 0:10:51shouting,
0:10:51 > 0:10:53whistling,
0:10:53 > 0:10:56watching the afternoon fade
0:10:56 > 0:10:58till the streets are still.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01Och, there's Belfast being made
0:11:01 > 0:11:03inside the giant linen mill.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07So, consider the mill.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09Those old machines
0:11:09 > 0:11:12from the mucky past.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15The show kind of unfolds like an album. There's kind of
0:11:15 > 0:11:17tracks, little bits.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20And one of the bits, one of the many bits, we talk about -
0:11:20 > 0:11:24the millies, which is a slang term for women who work in the mills.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28I think there's a very easy, kind of, metaphor about them
0:11:28 > 0:11:31making fabric and making the fabric of Belfast.
0:11:31 > 0:11:33And a lot of my family were millies,
0:11:33 > 0:11:36so I really connect to them making things.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38And I talk about the Ulster Museum.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40I talk about my experience of Belfast.
0:11:40 > 0:11:45In that superheated atmosphere, you are wet with water.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47Your hands are torn
0:11:47 > 0:11:50and lacerated to the bone
0:11:50 > 0:11:53for your contribution
0:11:53 > 0:11:56to the material of Belfast.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01It kind of makes you wonder, actually, why Scots theatres
0:12:01 > 0:12:05would get behind a piece of theatre that's fundamentally about Belfast.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07Aye, that was one of my concerns early on.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09I was always a little bit worried about,
0:12:09 > 0:12:12"Do they understand? Or are they relating to this
0:12:12 > 0:12:14"wee story about Belfast?"
0:12:14 > 0:12:17And, continually, people really would connect to it.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21Now, you yourself, you've been here since 2010 when you came,
0:12:21 > 0:12:24classically, for a couple of weeks and ended up staying.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26What do you make of it? Oh, it's wonderful.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30But it's so similar in so many ways, the people are so similar.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32it's the same kind of sense of humour.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34We have such a similar background of industrialism
0:12:34 > 0:12:36and sectarianism and divides...
0:12:36 > 0:12:39And the same kind of...
0:12:39 > 0:12:41Same kind of taste of the place.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44It was the perfect place for me to come to.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46And all the millies go...
0:12:46 > 0:12:48HE WHISTLES A TUNE
0:12:58 > 0:13:00So I says to him, so I do,
0:13:00 > 0:13:02"It's absolutely shocking, so it is.
0:13:02 > 0:13:04Och, hiya, Peter. How are you doing, love? Are you all right?
0:13:07 > 0:13:11Those links that we've looked at. Are they still there?
0:13:11 > 0:13:12Are there still links, really,
0:13:12 > 0:13:14between Scotland and Northern Ireland?
0:13:14 > 0:13:15Yeah, definitely.
0:13:15 > 0:13:19I think it might be more one-way than a lot of people
0:13:19 > 0:13:22would like to think. I think it is Northern Ireland looking outwards,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25and a lot of young people my age looking outwards.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27There's a huge contingency of us over here,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30Northern Irish people over here, who are...
0:13:30 > 0:13:34contributing over here, and one of the exciting things was,
0:13:34 > 0:13:36hopefully, me bringing this show to life
0:13:36 > 0:13:39and persuading people to consider Northern Ireland,
0:13:39 > 0:13:41to consider Belfast.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43Glasgow is such a vibrant cultural hub.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45I can't wait to see Belfast like that.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50Matt raises a point I've often wondered about -
0:13:50 > 0:13:53is the relationship between Northern Ireland
0:13:53 > 0:13:54and Scotland one-sided?
0:13:55 > 0:13:58Certainly, many more young people leave Northern Ireland
0:13:58 > 0:14:01to live in Scotland than vice versa...
0:14:02 > 0:14:04..but when you consider the contribution they make
0:14:04 > 0:14:06to Scottish life and culture,
0:14:06 > 0:14:09I'd say Scotland gains quite a bit from its connection
0:14:09 > 0:14:11to Northern Ireland.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16Here, you can stop and listen...
0:14:19 > 0:14:20..to voices...
0:14:22 > 0:14:23..in linen.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32I've come to the Verdant Works in Dundee,
0:14:32 > 0:14:36A museum dedicated to telling the history of the jute mills
0:14:36 > 0:14:40that once employed more than 50,000 workers in this city.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43MILLS THRUM AND WHIR
0:14:54 > 0:14:57Just one of these machines makes an incredible noise,
0:14:57 > 0:15:00and they're just a third of the size of the originals.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04Can you imagine the noise there must have been for the mill girls,
0:15:04 > 0:15:06the millies that Matt sang about,
0:15:06 > 0:15:09working here eight to ten hours a day
0:15:09 > 0:15:12with these machines clanging away in the background?
0:15:25 > 0:15:29Jute, which was used to make rope, twine and hessian sacks,
0:15:29 > 0:15:32was the reason many women with a background working
0:15:32 > 0:15:34in mills in Ireland came to Dundee
0:15:34 > 0:15:37in the 19th and early 20th century.
0:15:49 > 0:15:50But the mills have long gone,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54and today it's Dundee's universities that draw young people here
0:15:54 > 0:15:56from Northern Ireland.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00It's a tradition that dates back to the 17th century,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03when there was no university in Ulster.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06Then Anglicans went to Trinity College, Dublin,
0:16:06 > 0:16:09but most Irish Presbyterians seeking third-level education
0:16:09 > 0:16:11came to Scotland.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17Today, Dundee seems to be particularly popular
0:16:17 > 0:16:19with Northern Irish students,
0:16:19 > 0:16:22and to find out why I'm meeting Kevin Burns,
0:16:22 > 0:16:24vice president of the students' union
0:16:24 > 0:16:25and a regular at Scottish and Irish
0:16:25 > 0:16:29traditional music sessions that are so popular here.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36So, what is it about Dundee that you like?
0:16:36 > 0:16:39It's small enough to know everybody
0:16:39 > 0:16:41and it's big enough to still have loads of things to do.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44It's not one of those cities where it's a bit anonymous, if you know what I mean?
0:16:44 > 0:16:47You know everybody. Somewhere around 50% of our students
0:16:47 > 0:16:50are international students, so, they come from everywhere.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52It's an international village,
0:16:52 > 0:16:54but it's still a village, it's still very, very small.
0:16:54 > 0:16:58What do you think Northern Irish students contribute to Dundee?
0:16:58 > 0:17:00Our accents. Honestly, erm...
0:17:00 > 0:17:02That's true. Yeah, no, it's true.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04I mean, if you walk around this campus,
0:17:04 > 0:17:06you just hear people from all over the place.
0:17:06 > 0:17:07I can almost pinpoint the town they're from,
0:17:07 > 0:17:09at this stage. If not, definitely county.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13Students not from Northern Ireland kind of develop a twang.
0:17:13 > 0:17:14I mean, it's an accent that sticks.
0:17:14 > 0:17:16That's the thing. You know what I mean? That kind of, the...
0:17:16 > 0:17:18"De-ne NE ne-ne ne-ne"...
0:17:18 > 0:17:20It carries through.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26And does it feel like home from home?
0:17:26 > 0:17:29Yeah. I mean, home is still home, but I feel established here.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31I feel like I know a lot of people.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33There is Northern Irish people behind every shop counter and bar.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35Musicians? Musicians.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37Oh, loads of musicians.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41You're hard-pressed to find a society or a sports team
0:17:41 > 0:17:43in Dundee that doesn't have Northern Irish students.
0:17:43 > 0:17:45And also, you know, we bring our own sports over here,
0:17:45 > 0:17:48and we participate in the, kind of, the native sports here.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52I mean, the shinty team is full of people from Belfast,
0:17:52 > 0:17:54Gaelic team is full of people from Glasgow.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03The game of shinty is as old as Scotland itself,
0:18:03 > 0:18:06and it no coincidence that it looks so like hurling.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10Some say the game was brought here by the Irish 1,000 years ago.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13But over the centuries, it's developed its own style
0:18:13 > 0:18:15and rules of play.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18Jenni Cunningham had played hockey back home in Comber
0:18:18 > 0:18:22and took up shinty when she came to study in Dundee.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Jenni, you're a Northern Irish lass here in Scotland.
0:18:25 > 0:18:27What on earth would bring you to shinty?
0:18:27 > 0:18:29Well, I just thought, I've come to Scotland,
0:18:29 > 0:18:32so I might as well try something that's very Scottish.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35So, I've given camogie a crack as well and just thought,
0:18:35 > 0:18:37"Why not try shinty, too?"
0:18:37 > 0:18:39And tell me about shinty.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42It looks like hockey, but it's a lot freer, shall we say?
0:18:42 > 0:18:44Well, I mean, it is very similar to hockey.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47A lot of people say it's just a bit rougher. It is a contact sport,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50but it's not that bad. You know, there are rules, so you can't just flatten someone.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53And, I mean, that's compared to hockey, but compared to hurling or,
0:18:53 > 0:18:56camogie, how does it compare? Is it the same, basically?
0:18:56 > 0:18:59Well, sometimes some of the hurling ones would come and play with us,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03and they do hurling versus shinty as well, so they are quite similar
0:19:03 > 0:19:06in a lot of ways. There's a lot of similar rules.
0:19:06 > 0:19:08It feels to me that Dundee is half-full
0:19:08 > 0:19:09of Northern Irish students.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11I mean, maybe that's just my perception,
0:19:11 > 0:19:12but is that what you feel?
0:19:12 > 0:19:16It does feel very much like Belfast, and the people are really friendly.
0:19:16 > 0:19:17It feels like home, you know,
0:19:17 > 0:19:19doesn't feel like you've come to another country.
0:19:19 > 0:19:20And are you planning to stay here
0:19:20 > 0:19:22or leave when you've finished your course?
0:19:22 > 0:19:24I could actually see myself staying here.
0:19:24 > 0:19:26There's a lot more job opportunities where I'm interested,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28in Scotland, and I absolutely love it here.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31And you're only a flight away from home or a quick ferry,
0:19:31 > 0:19:32so it's not too far.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40It's interesting that all the Northern Irish people I've met
0:19:40 > 0:19:41who now live in Scotland
0:19:41 > 0:19:46express the same idea of it being home from home.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49Whether they came here for better work opportunities,
0:19:49 > 0:19:51to buy more land or to study,
0:19:51 > 0:19:54it's that easy familiarity of the place and its people
0:19:54 > 0:19:56that's allowed them to stay.
0:20:01 > 0:20:0430 miles off the coast of mainland Scotland,
0:20:04 > 0:20:07the Isle of Lewis is the largest and northernmost island
0:20:07 > 0:20:10in the Outer Hebrides.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12The history and culture of the island's been shaped
0:20:12 > 0:20:14by the Vikings and the Celts.
0:20:15 > 0:20:20More people here speak Gaelic than in any other part of Scotland,
0:20:20 > 0:20:22and it's one of the few places where the Sabbath is still
0:20:22 > 0:20:23strictly observed -
0:20:23 > 0:20:26everything's closed here on Sunday.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35Those who attend Back Free Church are among the few remaining
0:20:35 > 0:20:38congregations to sing psalms in Gaelic
0:20:38 > 0:20:41in the traditional way.
0:20:41 > 0:20:43THEY SING PSALM IN GAELIC
0:20:58 > 0:21:01We've been listening to this fantastic, emotional,
0:21:01 > 0:21:05powerful wave of sound that is Gaelic psalm singing. Yes, yeah.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07You're the presenter. What is the whole technique?
0:21:09 > 0:21:12Well, it actually all comes from a very simple melody.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16All these tunes that we have in the Gaelic psalm singing tradition
0:21:16 > 0:21:19are originated from very simple
0:21:19 > 0:21:21Lowland and Continental tunes.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24So, what we have done, or what the Gaelic tradition has done,
0:21:24 > 0:21:27is they've taken these simple melodies
0:21:27 > 0:21:29and they have ornamented these melodies
0:21:29 > 0:21:30with grace notes.
0:21:30 > 0:21:34THEY SING PSALM IN GAELIC
0:21:47 > 0:21:49And then when you put them all together
0:21:49 > 0:21:51with everyone doing their own thing,
0:21:51 > 0:21:53it should be an absolute horrible noise,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55but in this amazing way,
0:21:55 > 0:21:59there's a sort of harmony created, if you see what I mean.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01It doesn't matter if you're a croaker,
0:22:01 > 0:22:05you will not be heard and nobody will look round at you and say,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07"That's a horrible voice." It gets absorbed.
0:22:07 > 0:22:12And this mixture of good voices and not so good voices...
0:22:14 > 0:22:16..I think makes it what it actually is.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19We are called the Wee Frees, and we're always looked on as dour people,
0:22:19 > 0:22:21but we're not really, Lesley.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24You know, honestly, I mean, we might appear to be dour,
0:22:24 > 0:22:26but we're actually quite humorous people.
0:22:26 > 0:22:28HE SINGS IN GAELIC
0:22:33 > 0:22:35But the other thing that's unique is using Gaelic.
0:22:35 > 0:22:39It actually totally suits the Gaelic style.
0:22:39 > 0:22:42Now, people would ask me, "Can this be done in English?"
0:22:42 > 0:22:45And I said, "Yes, it can, but it won't sound right in English."
0:22:45 > 0:22:48This system, I think, that we have
0:22:48 > 0:22:53reflects what I would call the sean-nos Gaelic singing style.
0:22:53 > 0:22:54In other words,
0:22:54 > 0:22:57what we were allowed to do in the Protestant tradition,
0:22:57 > 0:22:59we were allowed to take what essentially is a secular
0:22:59 > 0:23:01style of singing into the church.
0:23:01 > 0:23:03THEY SING PSALM IN GAELIC
0:23:08 > 0:23:11Sean-nos is also an Irish musical tradition,
0:23:11 > 0:23:13and Calum, and members of the congregation,
0:23:13 > 0:23:17have been invited to sing in Ireland, North and South,
0:23:17 > 0:23:18many times.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20See, this connection that we have with Ireland, I think,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23is a very strong connection.
0:23:23 > 0:23:27I sometimes actually think that, musically, we've got more in common
0:23:27 > 0:23:29with Ireland than we have with southern Scotland.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31It must be very confusing, though,
0:23:31 > 0:23:36to folk in Ireland when they are hearing Protestants using Gaelic
0:23:36 > 0:23:38in song the way you do.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41It seems to confound all the divides within Ireland.
0:23:41 > 0:23:46Absolutely. Because, even now, the vast majority of Protestants
0:23:46 > 0:23:48in the North of Ireland,
0:23:48 > 0:23:52they look on the Gaelic as being
0:23:52 > 0:23:54very much a Catholic thing.
0:23:54 > 0:23:55And historically, that's not true,
0:23:55 > 0:23:59because the other thing that I find really intriguing...
0:23:59 > 0:24:02Over in Ireland, historically, they were...
0:24:02 > 0:24:04The Protestants were singing in Gaelic,
0:24:04 > 0:24:07because there is a Bible called the McLeod Bible over there.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11Interestingly, they have got the psalm exactly in our meter,
0:24:11 > 0:24:13in the Gaelic language.
0:24:13 > 0:24:15And the thing about the psalms, Lesley, is,
0:24:15 > 0:24:17theologically, you're on safe ground.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20Everyone likes the psalms, whether you're a Catholic or Protestant.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26Well, that was a complete surprise.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29There's music, language and religion in there,
0:24:29 > 0:24:32but not grouped together in the way you might classically think
0:24:32 > 0:24:34from a Northern Ireland perspective.
0:24:34 > 0:24:38One thing's sure, though, when it comes to culture and tradition,
0:24:38 > 0:24:40nothing in Scotland and Northern Ireland
0:24:40 > 0:24:42is as straightforward as you'd think.
0:24:48 > 0:24:50A member of Back Free Church,
0:24:50 > 0:24:53Lisa MacLean, from Bellaghy in County Londonderry,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55relocated to the Isle of Lewis 12 years ago.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59A tenancy had become available in the village
0:24:59 > 0:25:01that my husband grew up in,
0:25:01 > 0:25:04so that became something that looked like it was going to be
0:25:04 > 0:25:06a real opportunity for us to build our own home,
0:25:06 > 0:25:10and, I guess, look at...
0:25:10 > 0:25:13establishing something on the croft as well.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16One of the first things I actually commented on when I came here was,
0:25:16 > 0:25:18you know, I couldn't believe there were no hedges.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20It just seemed so strange to have no hedges.
0:25:23 > 0:25:27I think people back home and people here are quite similar.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32I think, probably, the differences I see are in a work context.
0:25:32 > 0:25:36I feel that there's a lot of entrepreneurship
0:25:36 > 0:25:38in Northern Ireland,
0:25:38 > 0:25:41whereas I think what I see here is people maybe think more
0:25:41 > 0:25:43in a community context.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50In 2010, Lisa became commercial development manager
0:25:50 > 0:25:52with the Galson Estate Trust,
0:25:52 > 0:25:56an organisation of local crofters who came together to buy the land
0:25:56 > 0:25:59that had been in the hands of private landlords for centuries.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04I just think it's just been so inspirational
0:26:04 > 0:26:06to see people
0:26:06 > 0:26:10take that ownership and run with it.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13It's just been great to be involved with something that has such a clear
0:26:13 > 0:26:17purpose, and that's to make the land sustainable for future generations.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22One of the biggest differences here, though, is Gaelic.
0:26:22 > 0:26:24Do you? No, I don't.
0:26:24 > 0:26:28And I have to be honest and say I probably spent
0:26:28 > 0:26:31a long number of years sort of saying, "I don't need to speak it.
0:26:31 > 0:26:33"I'm fine."
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Now, the time has come where I do probably need to start learning.
0:26:36 > 0:26:38One of my children is about to start school next year
0:26:38 > 0:26:40and he'll be going into Gaelic medium, so, yep,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43I need to brush up on some basic Gaelic
0:26:43 > 0:26:45to at least be able to help him.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48So, all of that really comes together in the church.
0:26:48 > 0:26:52It's kind of fused together, the music, the religion, the language.
0:26:52 > 0:26:54So, how important is your faith to you?
0:26:55 > 0:26:57Vital importance, vital importance.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00I think my faith really is what
0:27:00 > 0:27:03has helped keep me in such a remote area
0:27:03 > 0:27:04that I have struggled with at times.
0:27:08 > 0:27:10I mean, it's just so vast and so remote here,
0:27:10 > 0:27:13and home was... The landscape is just so different.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15The openness of here is just amazing and this skies here
0:27:15 > 0:27:17are just something else, I think.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20They're just huge and amazing, and it's hard
0:27:20 > 0:27:23not to be touched by creation, really, here.
0:27:28 > 0:27:29Growing up in Northern Ireland,
0:27:29 > 0:27:33I always knew that Scotland was our family's home.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35I just hadn't realised how many other folk
0:27:35 > 0:27:39share those strong cultural connections and family ties.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47In this series, I've discovered those connections
0:27:47 > 0:27:52aren't just ancient history, or some shortbread-tin version of culture.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55The Scots traditions played out in Northern Ireland
0:27:55 > 0:27:56are alive and kicking.
0:27:56 > 0:28:00Language is important to community and identity in both countries.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07One thing that's kept coming up is the ease with which folk
0:28:07 > 0:28:10from one nation fit and flit to the other.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12Whether it's a Scot in Northern Ireland
0:28:12 > 0:28:14or a Northern Irish person in Scotland,
0:28:14 > 0:28:17they all describe their new surroundings as a home from home.
0:28:23 > 0:28:281,300 years ago, the North Channel was a bridge, not a barrier,
0:28:28 > 0:28:31linking one ancient kingdom of Dalriada.
0:28:31 > 0:28:33Is it really so different today?
0:29:06 > 0:29:08True stories from the heart.
0:29:08 > 0:29:10I just feel as though the decisions I made when I was younger
0:29:10 > 0:29:13have just ruined my future.
0:29:13 > 0:29:15We'll go home and the horses still need mucking out
0:29:15 > 0:29:16and the animals need feed.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18Mightn't be in this particular outfit -
0:29:18 > 0:29:20I probably will take the hat off!
0:29:20 > 0:29:23In Islam, it's forbidden to force a girl into marriage
0:29:23 > 0:29:24without her permission.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27Come through that crowd, and the cheering - "Aaaah!" -
0:29:27 > 0:29:28and you get into that ring,
0:29:28 > 0:29:30and everything else fades away.
0:29:30 > 0:29:32True North returns with...
0:29:37 > 0:29:39You want to make some sort of a deal?
0:29:40 > 0:29:42By the command of His Majesty,
0:29:42 > 0:29:43kill him!
0:29:43 > 0:29:46No-one in this city has only one master.
0:29:47 > 0:29:48I do.
0:29:48 > 0:29:49Yah!