Past and Present An Island Parish

The Falkland Islands are home to a population of around 2,500 people,

half a million sheep

and over a million penguins.

They may be the other side of the world from the UK,

but this small, tight-knit community,

many of whom are descended from 19th century settlers,

still has strong ties with the mother country.

As the new year gets underway,

it's summer in the Southern Hemisphere,

and for the first time, the rector's wife, Jen,

has decided to brave the competition at the annual horticultural show.

When you look at the cakes, they are just

mouth-wateringly good.

And the islanders welcome some honoured guests,

veterans of the 1982 war

who have returned to remember their fallen comrades.

Every time I come back it makes me that little bit stronger, I think,

but it makes me glad that I do keep coming back.

It's a bright Sunday morning in Stanley

and the rector of the Falkland Islands,

the Reverend Richard Hines,

is on his way to Christchurch Cathedral.

This will be his first service back after a three week round trip

that took him the tiny island of South Georgia,

one of the furthest corners of his 6,000 square mile parish.

Good morning to you all and welcome, everyone.

Thank you. I'm pleased you could come!

RICHARD LAUGHS

'It's good to be back here in the Falkland Islands,'

it's been three weeks or more, I can't quite remember.

I have to stop and think carefully about it now, but anyway, we've done

well over 3,000 nautical miles.

I'm pleased to say it does feel like coming home.

As well as ministering to his congregation in the cathedral

and his wider parish

Richard has several other regular commitments,

one of which is as an occasional presenter

of the weekly classical music programme on Falkland Islands Radio.

I first did this

just a few months into my time here in the Falkland Islands

when somebody discovered I had an interest in classical music.

Basically, I get to indulge my own musical tastes.

I like to put together an hour's worth of music.

I usually, well almost always, write a script,

so I know where I'm going,

just a short little introduction to the pieces I'm going to play,

I look for themes.

And I suppose I've presented now,

perhaps seven or eight times a year at least

for the last six years,

so I'm becoming quite a seasoned presenter, really.

Perhaps there's a job for me in the future.

But Richard's tastes aren't restricted to the classics.

MUSIC: Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush

I couldn't live without music, I wouldn't want to live without music.

I have good reason, Jen and I, to be grateful to God for Kate Bush,

because at times, when it's been a bit stressful

in the work I do and in our life here in the Falkland Islands,

we've often turned to Kate Bush and her albums for enjoyment.

CLASSICAL MUSIC

While Richard settles back into life at the Deanery,

over in Government House, they're preparing for a big change.

The governorship of the Falkland Islands

is a three to our year posting

and in a few weeks' time the current incumbent,

Nigel Haywood, will be retiring

and returning to the UK for good.

One of the things about being a diplomat is you get used to

packing everything up and moving every few years.

It doesn't make it any more pleasant,

but it's kind of an occupational hazard.

And there's a lot of, obviously personal pleasure I've had

from just simply being down here, in a wonderful place,

having so much wildlife,

just lots of clear air and so much fishing to do.

Nigel is a keen angler and one of the definite perks of this job

has been that the Falkland Islands boasts

some of the finest trout fishing in the world

and today is probably the last chance he'll get

to indulge his passion.

OK. Right.

So, what's the plan today then?

Well, we'll go out to the Pedro River and see what's out there.

One of the great things about the job is,

almost the minute you're out of the door, you're in amazing country,

scenery and everything.

The Pedro River is only an hour and a half's journey out of Stanley.

At this time of year, the sea trout are heading back upstream to spawn

after a summer spent eating krill or baby shrimp out in the open sea.

As you see, most of the flies are bright and orange,

to look a bit like a krill. It's very, kind of impressionistic.

I've had my biggest fish on the Falkland Islands on one of these,

so it's a bit of a lucky fly to fish with.

The Pedro River is known as a bit of a hot spot for sea trout

and for his swansong, Nigel is determined to land a whopper.

Everyone says you must be incredibly patient to go fishing,

but it's not patience at all, it's, sort of controlled impatience.

And third time lucky.

You'd probably give up

if you didn't catch fish reasonably consistently.

But getting a big fish,

which, sort of frightens you up a bit, is largely a matter of luck.

Here you are!

About 11 inches, but not what we're after.

I was excited for a minute there.

This is genuinely interesting,

I really have no idea where they are.

They must be in there somewhere!

Very strange.

Still, let's keep on trucking.

It's been over 30 years now

since the Falklands conflict turned the spotlight of the world

on to these wild and rugged shores.

Since then, island life has changed dramatically.

Industries like fishing and tourism have brought new prosperity,

but the memory of that violent and bloody time remains.

In his six years on the islands,

the Reverend Richard has witnessed first hand

the effect of the war on those who lived through it.

We're in the 1982 memorial wood,

pretty much in the centre of Stanley

and in some ways this represents a kind of spiritual heart

for the Falkland Islands, because in this wood

there is a separate tree or shrub

planted for every single service person

who died in the 1982 war

and the three civilians who died as well.

I've met people who tell me that they still dream about

the time of the occupation

under the Argentines in '82 on a weekly basis.

It's very live.

You don't understand a Falkland islander or Falkland Islands

unless you've got some sort of appreciation

of the effects of the 1982 war.

There are 255 individual servicemen remembered in this garden,

all of whom gave their lives

so that the Falkland Islands could remain British.

One regiment that sustained particularly heavy losses

was the Welsh Guards,

who were involved in one of the worst single incidents

suffered by British forces during the whole campaign.

On June the 8th at Fitzroy Bay, 20 miles from Stanley,

men from the Welsh Guards were on board the troop ship,

the Sir Galahad, when Argentine planes attacked it

and the Sir Tristram as they lay at anchor.

The bombing left 54 men dead and 46 injured.

In the centre of Stanley is a cafe run by Michelle Evans.

In June 1982, Michelle was 16

and living with her father Ron on a farm at Fitzroy.

On that fateful day,

the first thing she remembers was a telephone call bringing good news.

I can't remember, the phone rang anyway and, um...

..I went and answered it and the guy said, "It's the British Army."

So I went to get Dad and he wouldn't believe me, cos I told so many lies!

So I just had to jump up and down until he believed me

and went and answered the telephone.

Yeah, that was a really exciting moment, that was.

They said, "Oh, well, we'll see you later on."

And I said, "Well, where were they?"

And he said, "Well, that doesn't matter."

But I knew they could only be two places,

as there's only two phones between us, here and Goose Green, so...

But excitement at the prospect of liberation soon turned to horror

when they heard about what had happened in the bay.

They bombed both ships at about 12 o'clock,

and we saw all the wounded that came out around the community centre

that had been turned into a hospital.

I always remember seeing the guys with the bags on their hands,

it was horrible.

There were so many of them injured, and it was awful.

It's still very clear, you know. Everything's very clear.

I never had any doubt in my mind that they would come and free us, yeah.

But lucky we had Maggie Thatcher, I guess, at the time.

The gratitude that the islanders feel towards their liberators

is as strong today as it was all those ago.

On the extreme eastern edge of Stanley stands Liberty Lodge,

a guest house set up by veterans and islanders

where returning service personnel and their families can stay for free

whenever they visit the islands.

KNOCK AT DOOR

Hello! Welcome to Liberty Lodge! How are you?

Tony Davis is an ex-regimental sergeant major in the Welsh Guards

who witnessed the terrible events at Fitzroy.

He was one of the co-founders of Liberty Lodge

and he's come all the way from the UK

to attend a barbecue celebrating its fifth anniversary.

Friends.

Pardon me for interrupting proceedings this afternoon,

but we'd just like to say a thank-you, in the hope that

you'll continue to help us to keep it going!

I mean, we've had hundreds of people through these doors, and to date,

not one single person has been charged a penny to stay here.

Smoke and I were sat on the veranda the other night talking

and I remember the first day we come here after it was built,

He jumped out the Land-Rover, and cried.

And I said to him the night before last, "You know what?

"The place looks as good now

"as it did when we opened it four years ago."

Thank you very much indeed.

APPLAUSE

More and more people, especially after the ten, 15-year mark,

started coming forward and admitting they were having psychological

problems dealing with it, themselves, and of course,

a whole part of the cure, and I have to say

it's been extremely successful, not totally for everybody,

but it's been extremely successful,

has been the fact that people have come down here, visited the places

where they had their nightmares, and put their ghosts to rest.

As part of his visit, Tony will return to Fitzroy

for a special service to honour his fallen comrades.

As often as I go back to Fitzroy...

..I still have a mega-problem dealing with it.

I know I'll have a difficult day.

The climate in the Falklands is similar to that in the UK,

cool and temperate.

But they do have a lot of wind to contend with

which makes growing anything extremely difficult.

Step forward the polytunnel,

a common sight in back gardens all over the islands

and the saving grace of many an enthusiastic gardener,

including Richard's wife, Jen,

whose passion for horticulture stems from her childhood.

From a very early age, I was the person who went out and cut

the grass at home. There's something about neatness that I like.

The polytunnel is my domain. It's lovely in here.

I would never have considered a polytunnel in England,

but here, it's been an absolute boon.

The one thing I'm most proud of are the strawberries.

If I get enough at any time, then I'll make jam.

Jen's jam is not just for spreading on toast and scones.

It's also the key ingredient in her jam tarts

and, this year, she's taking the bold step of entering them

into the Stanley horticultural show, pitting herself against

the islands' best bakers.

I haven't got as many as I started with because the first ones

come out broke, so Richard helped me out by eating them.

So, I don't have as many as I did have to begin with.

I'm not ever-so competitive, but I like to think I'm in with a chance,

and I always thought the standard here would be really high.

This time I thought I would have a go, because I made some jam tarts

recently and somebody said they were really nice,

so I thought, well, I'll put some in and see if they like them.

But jam tarts aren't Jen's only hope.

She's got several other contenders lined up

to compete in different categories.

I've got my white bread, my blackcurrant jam.

The blackcurrants I grew in the polytunnel.

The gooseberries grew outside

and then I've got a couple of house plants and some marigolds.

Three stems - they asked for three stems.

I'm going to bring the bread home because that's my freshest loaf, but

everything else I will leave down there and it'll be auctioned off

at the end of the show, and people will buy it, hopefully,

and enjoy it.

Over at the radio station in Stanley, Richard is settling in

with producer Monica, in preparation for this week's Simply Classical.

It's the first time they've seen each other

since Richard got back from South Georgia.

So how was your trip?

I've brought some pictures to show you.

Mm. Oh, yes.

So is it really, really cold?

Actually, no. Well, it's sort of like summer time, so it's better,

but you'll see a lot of ice in a minute.

It wasn't all work, so I was able to read my novel

and drink my Coca-Cola and have the occasional alcoholic beverage!

Looks like cocktails to me!

I don't really get too nervous now.

Any nerves that I have, when I walk in that door

they seem to evaporate, because Monica puts me completely...

I'm like putty in her hands. I'm completely at ease.

We're getting ready.

Good evening and welcome to Simply Classical.

My name is Richard Hines.

Let's spend the next hour together with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

Richard's planned an hour-long programme

based around a selection of his favourite Tchaikovsky pieces,

starting with a lively carnival number

to get the show off to a good start.

Tchaikovsky's Capriccio Italien.

SHE GASPS

(There's an error!)

Nothing! It's stopped playing.

We'll have to put the other one on.

It's not playing. Your disc's not working.

What can I put up?

SHE LAUGHS

With his carefully-laid plans in disarray,

Richard has to use a piece of music that was meant for later on,

which means he's now a track short.

Time for a swift exit.

I'm going to run!

Luckily, his home music collection isn't far away.

What would be good in place of Tchaikovsky?

I'll go for some Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Mozart.

Now he just needs to get back before the music finishes.

Right, get ready.

From orchestra and piano, we turn now to the orchestra with violin -

a ravishingly beautiful canzonetta

which is the andante, the second movement,

of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto.

(Yes!)

MUSIC STARTS

Well done.

-It doesn't make sense.

-Oh, we've stopped!

What is it...?

(What's happened?)

We can go to Mo...

(Just talk.)

Well, our music from Tchaikovsky there has faded out for some reason,

and so we're going to move on to close our evening,

again with music from Tchaikovsky, but we turn to

a selection the composer himself made. Enjoy the music now.

Thankfully, the technology gremlins have had their fun for the day

and Richard's final selection plays out without a hitch.

We have fully recovered now from our technical challenges.

It's a bit like going into a simulator, a pilot.

They throw all sorts of strange circumstances at you

and we've been tested together and we've come through, Monica.

Back on the Pedro river,

it's been a long day for the governor, Nigel Hayward.

This could be his last-ever opportunity to fish for sea trout

in the Falkland Islands, and it looks like he's going to be

going home empty-handed.

I think my record is 13 trips without a fish in the UK,

so you can keep going on that, but you'll eventually catch something

and frankly it's just nice being out by the waterside.

Any day spent out fishing has got to be better than a day

spent behind a desk, anyway.

Right, this'll get them.

What is it? Insanity - that's repeating the same thing

while expecting a different outcome.

Ah! Got one!

The odd thing about it is, you quite often know

when you're going to get a fish.

Everything goes quiet and then a few seconds later,

you might just get a fish on the end.

Told you we'd do it!

And there we are - one Falklands sea trout.

She's a lovely fish, really beautiful.

A gleam to it, absolutely silver, fresh in from the sea.

And that'll be, I don't know, a couple of pounds,

something like that.

Excellent.

Six o'clock. Bang on!

Over at the parish hall, the horticultural show has attracted

quite a crowd, with everyone eager to find out who's done well.

There's one of Jen's.

I'm really pleased with that, to get a first prize for the lavender!

Look, George! Jen got first prize for her plants.

Jen's entries have all been judged

and she's delighted with the results.

There's a lovely bread. Mine was a highly commended.

So I got a highly commended on the blackcurrant.

And the jam tarts are down here.

The first prize don't look any better than those,

but there we are!

But when you look at the cakes, that's why I didn't enter any cakes

because they are just mouth-wateringly good.

Everywhere you look, the islands' creativity is on display.

This year for gardeners...

The president of the horticultural society, Tim Miller,

is handing out the silverware to those who've done especially well.

Right, so the first one is Gary Clements and Linda McGreg.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

For the most points in the pot plants, section A,

and the winner here, Jen Hines.

APPLAUSE

I am just...I was just saying yesterday I'm not competitive.

I'm not competitive,

but it is very gratifying.

Well, I mean, all my entries either got a highly commended

or a first prize, so that's good.

There were no also-rans.

It's the day of the Fitzroy memorial service.

And on a windy promontory overlooking the bay,

Tony Davis and the other Welsh Guard veterans are gathering

to remember that day in June, 1982, when the ships were bombed

and so many of their comrades were lost.

They've brought with them a flag, signed by fellow Guardsmen

to honour their dead brothers-in-arms.

The Sir Galahad was about 250 yards over there,

and she was burning and lots of explosions.

The Tristram had also been bombed,

and she was burning on the back end,

and she'd run aground just over there.

In the meantime, there were helicopters hovering in the bay

looking for anybody that was in the water.

I mean the one...

..good thing, if I could call it that, that I take away from

that particular day was watching...

..our young men...

..treating their mates.

Every time I come back it just makes it a little bit stronger I think,

and it makes me glad that I do keep coming back...

to remember these guys.

They were fantastic guys, every one of them. Bless them.

Good morning to you all.

-I've got some orders of service here...

-Yeah, why not.

..but you'll have to just hang on to them if they get torn to

shreds in the wind, now you know why I laminate mine!

Thank you.

A word of welcome to you all.

It's always windy when we gather here at Fitzroy,

but that doesn't deter us.

We meet here today to recall

the events of the 8th of June 1982.

Especially the bombing of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Sir Galahad

and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Sir Tristram.

"They shall grow not old as we that are left grow old,

"Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

"At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them."

We will remember them.

CHOIR SINGS

MUSIC: Myfanwy by Joseph Parry

Next time - the vet Steve Pointing has a new patient.

What have we called him?

Cedric?

Cedric's lapping up the luxury treatment.

Nice... In the wild, they'll eat as much as they can, when they can,

and then they may go several days without eating anything at all.

A bit of a spoilt penguin, definitely.

And Reverend Richard and Jen

head out for a day in the fresh air, hunting for the famous

Falkland Island diddle-dee berries.

# We plough the fields and scatter... #

Not every clergyman gets to spend his day off picking

berries in the Falkland Islands.