The Island Above All Others An Island Parish

94 miles north of the Scottish mainland,

where the blustery Atlantic meets the North Sea, lies Shetland.

An archipelago of some 100 islands, mostly uninhabited.

Until the late 15th century, they belonged to Scandinavia,

and being closer to Bergen than Edinburgh,

the Islanders remain proud of their Norse heritage.

Recently, new industries have swept in,

supplementing the island's crofting and seafaring heritage.

The most northerly island is Unst,

where locals mix tradition with innovation

to survive in a fast-changing world.

At the heart of this community is Baltasound,

part of the most northerly parish in Great Britain,

led by Minister David Cooper.

One thing that you can never do

with someone living in a place like Unst

is underestimate them.

Isolation leads to an element of self-sufficiency.

Some would find it harsh,

but if you can persevere, it's boundless.

12 hours by ferry from the north-eastern coast of Scotland

is Lerwick, the capital of Shetland,

where most of the 22,000 islanders live.

But the most northerly island is Unst,

another two-hour drive and a further two ferry hops away.

It's midsummer here

and, being just 400 miles south of the Arctic Circle,

the 700 inhabitants are enjoying a period of almost perpetual daylight,

known locally as the Simmer Dim.

Peak tourist season is under way

and the ferries are bustling with visitors.

Across the bay, at his manse on the neighbouring island of Yell,

Minister David Cooper is keeping a watchful eye on the weather.

My life in the islands is governed by the ferry timetable.

Now it's visibly the horizon of the open sea out there,

it's constantly, constantly changing,

and if you're really romantic,

you can look at some mist or low cloud

and think that you're seeing a Viking longship come out of it.

Like most rural vicars,

David Cooper looks after more than one parish,

spanning three churches on different islands.

Today he's travelling over a mile stretch of open ocean

for his regular Sunday service on Unst.

Always keep a book in the car to read if you've missed a ferry!

Far From The Madding Crowd at the moment!

This morning's service is at St John's,

with a regular congregation of 20.

THEY MUTTER QUIETLY

I'm a Methodist minister,

and under the discipline of the Methodist Church,

but I'm paid by the Church of Scotland and working for them.

PIANO MUSIC BEGINS

-Good morning. How are you?

-Not too bad.

-But you're here.

-I'm here.

-You're here. Yes.

Good morning.

Good morning.

Located just a short distance from the church

is Britain's most northerly shop,

the aptly named Final Checkout,

one of three grocery stores on Unst.

Islander Pat Burns is one of the owners.

It's a bit of a hub in here, yeah.

Usually there's a lot of people that come here.

As an island, it's the shop that has everything. DIY, mainly.

We have a cash machine, which is quite popular.

We sell Shetland Tuskers, for cutting peat.

You know, fuel up here is very expensive,

so a lot of people are going back to peat stacks

and digging their own peat.

Sometimes, of course, there's no perishables to get in Lerwick,

because if weather's too rough

then the boat from Aberdeen to Lerwick maybe is delayed

and everybody starts panic-buying

as if they're never going to see food again!

This week, the islanders are preparing

for one of the biggest events of the year, UnstFest,

and festival committee member Pat

is bracing herself for the influx of visitors.

I think it's getting to the stage where the ferries can't cope

and the accommodation can't cope, so it's good.

If they can't get accommodation, they just bring a tent or a caravan.

Over at Westing Beach,

looking out to the neighbouring island of Yell,

a group of local volunteers, led by Desley Stickle,

are preparing for one of UnstFest's newest events.

We're gathering stones

for the stone-skimming competition on Friday.

Ideally, as flat as possible.

Various sizes, various shapes,

so we're just moving stones from this beach,

which is a good beach for stones for skimming,

over to the beach that we're having the competition on.

Hopefully, we'll have plenty of people turn up.

The weather's not looking too good for Friday,

but fingers crossed it stays like this just now. Ideal conditions.

It's the first time we've ever had a skimming competition,

so you want your name on the trophy first.

In the 1890s, Baltasound Harbour

was home to one of Europe's largest herring fleets,

employing 10,000 workers in peak season.

Today the island retains its close affinity with the sea,

and has become a pioneer in marine aquaculture.

One of the biggest companies here is the salmon hatchery,

employing 32 people.

This is the finished product.

If you take agriculture away from Unst and Yell,

here in the North Isles, a massive blow

because the only thing that's left is sheep farming

and it's vital to this community that that continues.

Recently hired is Frank Roberts, whose first trade is carpentry.

But Frank's real passion lies elsewhere.

HE CALLS OUT

Come on, lassie! Come on!

Frank is Unst's resident horse whisperer.

He and his wife Jem run the Clibberswick Stud,

breeding ponies to be sold at auction

to potential buyers from across the globe.

I've always had a fascination for horses, always.

I don't work with horses, I play with them.

Hey, hey. Come on.

And this year, they have high hopes for one young foal in particular.

And we've got a name for her.

It's the only one we've got named.

We name her Seula.

Originally bred for the coal mines,

now most ponies are bought for children,

or as companions for larger riding horses.

But following the economic downturn, the market has recently been tough.

Well, we're going to show her,

and then we're going to take her in October to the sale,

and hopefully get a good new home.

For Seula to fetch a good price at the sale,

she'll first need to pass a rigorous judging process.

We want something that's going to catch the judge's eye,

to begin with.

But every judge is different.

They don't all like the same kind of pony.

She's got...a pretty head.

It's in proportion with the rest of her body.

It doesn't look big, as I would say, this... I know he's a boy,

but he's got a heavy head.

And she's got a pretty head.

She looks feminine. She's got a nice square rump.

Overall, she's just a...nice...

proportioned pony.

Get the halter on her and...

get her halter-trained.

We want them to yield to the pressure of the halter.

And this will be the first time in her life

she's going to be actually...

trapped or restricted in some way.

So, it's quite a bit of pressure.

No.

What pressure is there in it? I'm having fun.

Oh, it's the cheeky monkey.

As UnstFest fast approaches,

tourists and visitors continue to arrive on the island.

True UnstFest veterans, the Robertsons,

are arriving home from Aberdeen and Edinburgh

for a family reunion on the island.

-So, we've still got to finish that one off.

-Yeah.

So, we'll just attach this onto the roof section.

It should, in theory, be very simple.

It should be.

Patrick and his brother-in-law Andrew

are planning a construction

for the biggest event of the UnstFest calendar,

the summer carnival.

At the moment, between the house and two extra caravans,

there's 17, or there will be 17 of us on Saturday,

by the time the actual carnival is,

which should be absolutely fantastic.

UnstFest always brings out something different as well.

-They bring in different ideas each year and that keeps it fresh.

-Yup.

This year, the Robertsons have decided to pool their DIY skills

and build a float for the carnival,

inspired by this infamous Unst landmark - Bobby's Bus Stop.

A young fellow from up the road, Bobby Macauley,

he had the bus shelter that he waited for the school bus in.

He started, he first of all put a chair in it,

and then he put a table,

and then suddenly he thought he'd put flowers on the table,

then he found an old TV,

and basically it grew arms and legs then,

and actually became a tourist attraction,

which is pretty good going for a bus shelter.

The theme of the bus shelter changes annually

and this year is based on the iconic bird of the Shetland Islands,

the puffin.

What we're planning to do is get the kids all dressed as puffins

and they'll be on the back of the trailer, in the bus stop,

having a party. Why not, eh? Why not?

Yeah, this is for the puffin-hunters.

Back at the house, Patrick's wife, Helen,

is marshalling all the younger cousins

into making costumes and props for the big day.

Over there. Look! That way.

You missed him.

THEY LAUGH

Trust me, this is going to look very like this

by the time we've finished with this.

Yeah, and a bit less like a mummy.

There's a prize for, I think, the top three.

And we've not ever won, so we're hoping that maybe this is the year.

There we go. Want to try them out? See what they're going to look like.

At Westing, on the other side of the island,

other secretive plans for the carnival are being hatched.

Can you just take the hubcaps out, Rob?

We could be putting those on

because you don't keep them on, do you?

-Right, shall we put the hubcaps on?

-Aye, put them on, then.

Travelling from their native Nottinghamshire,

the Gills transported their beloved bubble car 700 miles,

including three ferry journeys, to reach Unst.

This will be part of our float.

We have got some ideas and it will involve bubbles.

-It will involve bubbles.

-The theme is bubbles.

-Yes, that's right.

We wanted to bring it up to Shetland from our base in Nottingham,

but I think there are about 50 left on the road.

This might be the first time that one had actually appeared here,

certainly for many, many, many years.

They're quite a unique vehicle, and we... As you can imagine,

it attracts attention because people just find it so odd.

We're going to go for it, aren't we, though, eh?

-Indeed.

-We're making a little go a long way.

-Oh, look, there's Sammy's here.

-Eh?

-Sammy.

-The seals are here.

-Sammy's here.

Sammy the seal.

Martin and Heather, both retired schoolteachers from the Midlands,

unexpectedly fell in love with Unst six years ago.

I remember saying to Heather, "I've booked a fortnight in Shetland.

"I don't know if this is a good idea.

"We could be just sitting in a windy field for two weeks."

I just, I mean, honestly, it's shocking, isn't it?

I did not know anything about it.

It's very difficult to put into words,

but there is something very special about this place.

Weather's coming in. It's a squall, I think.

I don't think it will last too long.

Go on, Madge. Here we are.

Come on, Madge. Sit down, sit down.

That's it, good girl.

Absolutely, yes.

A squall on Unst.

-Oh, look, the rainbow's following us.

-Yes.

Just over there's a pot of gold.

We're back in the sunshine, again, look, now.

It's not like you'd get in the middle of Birmingham, is it?

Sorry, Birmingham.

Also keen to see if he can get amongst the medals

is minister David Cooper, who's taken a break from his church duties

to test his arm for the approaching stone-skimming competition.

You know that the shepherd boy David

went down to the water's edge - although it was a stream then -

to collect stones for his catapult

before he felled Goliath

with a stone between the eyes.

I don't think I'm in that league.

Three? Mm, still not good enough.

Towards the ferry.

It'll depend on the wind, it'll depend on the tide.

Oh, come on, this is, you know...

This is a Lord's Test match at sea.

Oh, but not with that stone!

Oh, there we go! That was much better.

But he can't practise for long,

as his parish duties beckon at Brucehall,

a home providing sheltered housing for Unst retirees.

-You've been here about three months now.

-Mm-hmm.

-But you've been in Unst all your life!

-Yes.

-94.

-94 years.

Well, three months is nothing, out of 94 years, is it?

-That's my mother, there.

-Oh, I see, right.

That there is Dad standing.

Dad. Yes.

People stopped wearing these wraparound pinnies, didn't they?

-Aye, she was, "Put on an apron!"

-Right!

-You have to follow the instruction.

-"Put on an apron."

-Put on an apron.

With these elderly residents unable to participate

in many of the UnstFest activities, Jane Macaulay from the care home

is hoping to create an event to bring the festival to them.

-Yeah, we have done this a few times, I think.

-In previous lives.

In previous lives, yes, we have done it.

And it's certainly not just for the bairns. Everybody likes it.

-Will I test it?

-Go ahead.

-Yeah?

-Whoa!

-Perfect.

-Do you think Rev Cooper will come on this? Yeah!

-Course he will.

-Yeah, I think he is OK.

-It has worked.

It's not very dignified!

We are inviting everybody on the island,

we're catering for 300.

We don't know how many will come.

And we want to provide something for everybody,

so that is why we have got a bouncy castle, face painting,

guinea pigs, ride-on toys, sandpit,

duckpond, Connect 4,

Jenga, barbecue, sandwiches, just...

We want everybody to come and enjoy.

Back at the pony stud farm,

horse whisper Frank and his son, Frank Jr,

are getting ready to break in their prize-winning hopeful, foal Seula.

We're going to put the foal into the halter for the first time.

Let's see what happens, see what reaction we get.

Before I can get a lot done, I need to get this halter onto it.

I don't want to do it through fear.

That's it. Whoa!

She knows there's something up.

Some are easier than others.

Some are more nervous.

There. Got to take that off, then. Don't want to be too loud.

With Seula resisting the halter,

Frank calls in extra help from his wife, Jem.

Come on now. Behave.

That's the halter on.

Now Seula is in the halter,

Frank will need to tame her natural instincts

and train her to obediently walk to heel.

She is going to try every trick she knows

to get away from that halter.

It is still a struggle for Frank

and he's going to have to draw on all his lifetime's experience

to settle this feisty foal.

I want her to be close and, when she's close to me,

I want her to feel comfortable.

In the past, we would have just broke them physically and mentally -

that's the way it was done.

We just pulled them along.

I haven't done that for 26 years now.

This is much better.

There we go.

-FOAL WHINNIES

-I've always loved horses.

Since I was a boy. I wanted to be a jockey.

Why didn't you?

Because my father come home and says,

"I've got a job for you.

"You're going to be a cabinetmaker in the shipyards,

"Henry Robinson, Leith docks."

And in those days, what your dad said, you did.

And that was it.

Just trying to get the foal to move a little bit towards him.

Putting a bit of resistance on the rope.

And if it moves, he lets the rope go instantly,

to make it feel comfortable again.

Just slowly trying to get it to move its feet.

Just put a bit of feel in and see if she's going to follow my feel.

That's good. Right, another bit.

Come on. There you come. Good.

You notice she's not fighting so much?

She's not fighting it.

She's... She's following the feel.

There we go.

Quite quickly, Seula falls under Frank's spell.

Good.

That's good.

Put in a little bit of feel and she gave, just like that.

That's what we want.

And she'll just go like this, nice and smooth

It's the first step on the long road to getting a good price

at the Shetland pony sale in three months' time.

You can see her eyes going soft.

Her head's dropped, she's relaxed,

she's got that inside ear locked on me. That's all signs of...

submissive.

This is an entirely different animal to what it was 10 minutes ago.

Yeah?

Look at that.

OK, we can take them back.

Back in Baltasound,

the much-awaited day of the summer carnival has arrived.

The local Viking jarl squad from Uyeasound,

who celebrate Norse traditions throughout the year,

pour onto the streets of Unst,

as the Robertsons put the final touches

to their mobile bus stop float.

It actually looks like a bus shelter.

For me and Andrew to construct something

that looks like what it's supposed to look like is pretty darn good.

-It's a triumph.

-Yeah.

THEY SING AND CLAP

We are desperately trying to find some puffins.

THEY CHEER

It's fantastic. In the Unst sunshine, you cannae beat it.

Not to be outdone by a parliament of puffins,

the Gills have pulled out all the stops

with their bubble-themed float car.

So we're going to tow it

and we're going to blow bubbles out of our car while we do it.

I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles. You know that one?

Yeah, I played it on the banjo.

It's all about taking part.

Hup, hup! Hup, hup.

They haven't put their hats on yet.

Where are they?

Good girl. Oh, yes. Very good girls.

She's thinking, "What the hell is this about?"

If the RSPCA get hold of this, we're in trouble!

As the island's population swells to over 1,000,

residents, neighbouring islanders, and tourists alike

line the streets.

Hello, everybody! Hello, hello, hello!

Hooray. Hey!

ALL CHEER

ALL: Freedom!

# I'm forever blowing bubbles

# Pretty bubbles in the air... #

ALL CHEER

Fantastic. Great night for it.

The weather stayed good as well, and that's always a bonus.

The most famous bus stop in all of Shetland.

Only in Unst. Only in Unst.

The procession reaches its finale at Baltasound Hall,

where crowds gather for the judging

and the announcement of the coveted Unst carnival trophy.

Hello, everybody.

Thank you for turning out for the UnstFest carnival.

ALL CHEER

The second-place prize goes to Braveheart.

CHEERING

Well done, Braveheart. And the first prize goes to Whaar's Tammie?

CHEERING

Hip-hip, hooray! Hip-hip, hooray! Hip-hip, hooray!

Winning isn't everything.

-It helps.

-But it sure beats losing, that's for sure.

What a great day we've had. It's all come together.

The bairns have enjoyed it.

They've been dancing the birdie dance and singing their songs.

And we won!

This year, victory belongs to the Robertsons.

But there is some consolation for the Gills.

The prize for the most bizarre entry.

A dog driving a bubble car.

I thought he drove rather well, actually -

right behind us all the way.

You did well, girls. You got the bottle of red wine,

which you're not allowed.

People assume on the UK mainland

that we're sort of tending the croft,

or sitting round a peat fire wrapped in a sheepskin!

Stop it! No, we don't!

Little do they know!

Over at Uyeasound Harbour, at the south of the island,

crowds welcome an important delivery.

It's the start of the new stone-skinning competition.

I'd prefer something round, that...

That fits in the hand.

Something like that.

We now know that in David's day,

armies had great slingshot soldiers,

who were highly accurate,

and they must have known the exact stone to choose.

OK, who wants to go first?

-Right, name?

-Connor.

Pretty nervous.

Please try not to hit the boats.

I doubt it was 10.

Up for the bragging rights are competitors of all ages.

10.

But one decides to keep his powder dry.

I don't know how these people are getting 10 and 12 leaps.

They must be staying very much on the surface of the water.

They're mainly using bigger stones than I used as well.

Anybody else?

-Who's next?

-I'll go this time and I'll throw three.

-OK, you can throw all three, that's fine.

-All right.

-Two.

-Oh!

-Two!

-This one will be as high as the Tyne Bridge.

Two!

But they're not going far! Ha-ha!

Very consistent!

Well, a weary arm.

Not many bounces on that at all.

But great consistency with three stones.

As UnstFest draws to a close,

everyone is congregating at one place, Brucehall -

much to organiser Jane's delight.

Fantastic. We've had a really good response.

Lots and lots of people from the community

but from much further afield as well.

And that's what UnstFest does.

I think the residents have done really well.

Pretty much all of the residents

are out and involved in what's going on.

And they've been watching and they've been laughing

and they've been eating

and, of course, crowds of folk who they know.

So it's a good chance to catch up as well.

I think it's gone really well for them.

You're outside?

We're outside, yes.

It's the kind of gathering that happens here

because folk do enjoy being together.

It's quite extraordinary.

In the days to come...

..Unst welcomes some visitors from afar.

SHE SINGS

Hopefully they will like it.

I think it looks more like the kids have made it!

It tastes good, that's the main thing.

The island's only Eastern Orthodox nun is having a clear-out.

It's an ecumenical inter-island parish freezer!

And Frank the horse whisperer struggles with stallion Heston.

Are you OK?

I thought we performed very well too...

apart from knocking the vet over!