0:00:02 > 0:00:06This programme contains some strong language.
0:00:06 > 0:00:10For generations, travelling people have been part of Scottish life,
0:00:10 > 0:00:15living in caravans and tents, constantly on the move.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22But as each year passes, it's a way of life that's more difficult to sustain
0:00:22 > 0:00:25alongside those they refer to as settled people.
0:00:25 > 0:00:30Travellers rarely talk to anyone outside their own community.
0:00:30 > 0:00:36However, two Traveller families agreed to be filmed over a period of nine months.
0:00:36 > 0:00:39Are you ready to get washed now? Joshua, stop your carry-on.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41Joshua, he is not a horse.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43Their lives have been documented in detail.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47It takes me half of the day and it usually doesn't even look like it's done.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Come on, Tommy!
0:00:49 > 0:00:55- Good times...- Yes! - ..and not so good times.- We're not allowed in Montrose at all?
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Are you the occupier of this caravan?
0:00:57 > 0:01:00They share highly personal moments.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03Go and tell Morag that Jeremiah's started stepping.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07They feel that their culture is under threat as never before...
0:01:07 > 0:01:10James! Go on! Nothing gets away from that bitch.
0:01:10 > 0:01:17..and believe passionately in their right to travel and to maintain their traditional way of life.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20Donald, one hand to the tent! It's going to hop and come off.
0:01:20 > 0:01:26This is the story of a season on the road with two of Scotland's travelling families.
0:01:26 > 0:01:29Welcome to the Travellers' world.
0:01:39 > 0:01:43It sunny day at Clinterty on the outskirts of Aberdeen,
0:01:43 > 0:01:47one of Scotland's permanent Travellers' sites.
0:01:49 > 0:01:55- Come on.- Sammy Stewart, his wife Christine and their six children
0:01:55 > 0:01:58live here on this council-run site during the winter months.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00- Daddy!- Yeah, sit down.
0:02:00 > 0:02:05Now the better weather has arrived, they're packing up, eager to get on the road.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08- Freedom! - HE LAUGHS
0:02:08 > 0:02:12It's like... What do you call it? Craving for a fag.
0:02:12 > 0:02:15At a certain time of the year, it just hits you.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18You want to be on the road again.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20Mama, where are we going?
0:02:20 > 0:02:22Edinburgh.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26- Edinburgh. Edinburgh.- Me, myself - my family, we've got six.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30Including me and my wife, that's...
0:02:33 > 0:02:35..eight. Eight altogether.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38I need a help, Chris, or we won't get out of here today.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41And my brother-in-law's family up there, he's got seven.
0:02:41 > 0:02:43Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
0:02:43 > 0:02:48- Right, hurry up. Get it hooked on. - The hassle of getting ready.
0:02:48 > 0:02:53- And his wife - seven, eight, nine... He's got nine in the family.- Mummy!
0:02:53 > 0:02:55And he's got one, two, three dogs.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59Four dogs. Is this door locked?
0:02:59 > 0:03:03Sammy likes to travel with his brother-in-law Donald.
0:03:03 > 0:03:05Hold on - what car is Buddy going in?
0:03:05 > 0:03:08We do keep up our old traditions.
0:03:08 > 0:03:12We are a rolling stone. We gather no moss. An old saying.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16So we'll just land wherever the wind blows us.
0:03:16 > 0:03:17Watch till I get my satellite.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20See, us Travellers, we're not silly.
0:03:20 > 0:03:21We know how to get Sky TV, the lot.
0:03:21 > 0:03:23DONALD LAUGHS
0:03:24 > 0:03:27Five-year-old Joshua is first in the van.
0:03:27 > 0:03:33We're all looking forward to getting away and doing what we usually do.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37# Cos I don't want to love you
0:03:37 > 0:03:39# But I have to love you
0:03:39 > 0:03:42# But I just said I love you... #
0:03:42 > 0:03:46But as usual with the Travellers, you usually sometimes meet the wrong type of people
0:03:46 > 0:03:50who'll give us hassle, probably - same old usual story.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52# ..I have to! #
0:03:53 > 0:03:56Make sure your cupboards are closed, so nothing falls out and breaks.
0:04:01 > 0:04:04Oh, there's nothing so good as to get back on the road, honestly.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06This is the way.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14It's time to leave Clinterty behind and head for the open road.
0:04:20 > 0:04:22We love the road.
0:04:22 > 0:04:23We love it.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29Sammy and Donald are Travellers.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36They're not Romany Gypsies, or Roma,
0:04:36 > 0:04:39and they haven't come from Romania, India, or Ireland.
0:04:43 > 0:04:48They are Scottish - and they're Scots who have a distinct culture,
0:04:48 > 0:04:50one that they are committed to preserve
0:04:50 > 0:04:56and the most important part of their way of life is to travel.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06We're looking forward to getting to Edinburgh so as...I'll be free.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09See what takes us on from there.
0:05:13 > 0:05:18Today they're pitching up in Prestonpans, just south of Edinburgh.
0:05:19 > 0:05:25They are camping on what they believe is common ground, next to Cockenzie Power Station.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31It's like heaven, landing, just to get a break!
0:05:31 > 0:05:33Pass me the grey one.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37Aye, it was a really good drive.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40Now we'll get to run free.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46It's another two weeks before the schools break up,
0:05:46 > 0:05:49so the holidays have started early for these Traveller children.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51Oh, they love it.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55Plenty of freedom for them and it's so open.
0:05:55 > 0:05:57Plenty of space for them to play.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59It's big to run about in and that.
0:05:59 > 0:06:03Ow! My hand!
0:06:04 > 0:06:11Once the camp is established, Sammy goes in search of one important thing that's missing - water.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17We need the water for making tea.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19We need the water for washing the children.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Without water we would be...
0:06:23 > 0:06:24Well, we'd have had it.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28This is us just coming to the garage.
0:06:31 > 0:06:33I'd better ask.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36You don't know what's people's reactions.
0:06:39 > 0:06:40I'll ask him.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47Excuse me?
0:06:47 > 0:06:54Sorry for bothering you. The lassie told me at the front that I could maybe get some water off you.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56She said there's an outside tap or something.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59- No, there's no tap. - No outside tap? Thanks anyway.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02I'll test the other garage. Thanks very much.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08He was quite nice enough, but he said there's no water tap.
0:07:08 > 0:07:15And everybody knows there's always a water tap in a garage.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19They need to have a water tap in the garage when they're putting cars through MOTs.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21It's an MOT garage.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24It says it there, on the sign.
0:07:26 > 0:07:32While Sammy looks for water, his wife Christine looks after the children in the camp.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34Well, I've been born a Traveller.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37I come off a Traveller family.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39Grandfather, great-grandfather
0:07:39 > 0:07:40mother, father...
0:07:40 > 0:07:43So it's something we have done as long as I can remember, going back.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46It's a culture we've been brought up in and we want to
0:07:46 > 0:07:49keep it going amongst the children so it doesn't die out.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53Obviously, we've got to stay at home and watch the kids.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56There are six in the family, so most of us can't get out together,
0:07:56 > 0:07:58so he'll go out and I'll watch the kids.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03Sammy is still looking for water.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08Especially if you come home and you're tired,
0:08:08 > 0:08:11and then you have to go away looking about for water.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14It is stressful, yes.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18- He's heading for the harbour at Port Seton.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22There was a wee tap. I'm sure it was down here.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25We used to get water at the pier.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29There's a water tap there, but it's an awkward water tap.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32Excuse me, is there a water tap there?
0:08:32 > 0:08:35I can get some water? A water tap?
0:08:35 > 0:08:37There's a water tap there, aye.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41- Is it OK if I get some water, yeah? - Aye.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44Hold on the now, darling, I want to speak to this man here.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48- See that net drum?- Yeah. - Don't take it if you're dealing the scrap or anything.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53- Oh, no, no.- Not dealing the scrap, like, eh? Don't touch it.
0:08:53 > 0:08:55That's one thing we don't do, anyway.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57We don't take stuff without asking people.
0:08:57 > 0:09:00No, no - OK. It's just that I was told that there was folk about
0:09:00 > 0:09:04that were coming down and just lifting the stuff off the pier.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08- Oh, no - it's not us. We've just been here for one day. - Right, man. No problem.
0:09:13 > 0:09:19A nice enough guy. He gave us water, but it just showed you the small things that he...
0:09:19 > 0:09:23Just because you're a Traveller, he jumped to that conclusion straightaway.
0:09:23 > 0:09:27When you don't feel treated equal it's not very nice at all.
0:09:35 > 0:09:36Is the gas on?
0:09:36 > 0:09:38Aye, the gas is on.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42It's just getting organised after landing. It's been a long day.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45Christine and Bella are sisters.
0:09:45 > 0:09:50They are MacDonalds, a large family, well respected in the travelling community,
0:09:50 > 0:09:56and they are keen for their children to continue their traditional way of life.
0:09:56 > 0:10:01This is me and Donald and four of the wee children,
0:10:01 > 0:10:04and the other caravan is for my two oldest daughters
0:10:04 > 0:10:06and my oldest son.
0:10:06 > 0:10:10When people's used to big areas, houses, things like that, they think it's small.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14But when you actually live in it you find you've got plenty of room.
0:10:14 > 0:10:15Joshua!
0:10:17 > 0:10:22Cousins Donnie and Colin are putting in a bit of boxing practice.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24That's it. Speeding up the punches, boys.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29Girls walks by, they ask me my name
0:10:29 > 0:10:31and ask, "Are you the professional boxer?"
0:10:31 > 0:10:33I am kind of getting fed up of it.
0:10:33 > 0:10:39Donald's coming up for the Scottish in a couple of weeks.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43He trains all the time, everywhere we go, when we move about and that.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47He's got to keep himself fit, and that's what we're doing this morning,
0:10:47 > 0:10:50just giving him a wee, what do you call it, fittening up.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56All my life I can remember my Uncle Sammy. I used to call him Boom-Booms.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00Do what do you call it, one-two, one-two, uppercut.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04I fight for myself because it's what I do,
0:11:04 > 0:11:07but also I do it to keep my family proud of me too.
0:11:07 > 0:11:12It's mainly I do it because I want to do it, that's what I want to do.
0:11:19 > 0:11:24Like a lot of Travellers, Sammy and Donald pick up work as they go.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28We do a wee bit of gardens and stuff,
0:11:28 > 0:11:33we also gather a wee bit of scrap metal, just keeping ourselves going.
0:11:34 > 0:11:38And then we just move from one place to the next place.
0:11:38 > 0:11:44Travellers used to follow seasonal work - daffodils, berries and potatoes.
0:11:44 > 0:11:49Nowadays it's more likely to be landscaping, roofing or tarmacking.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00Today Sammy and Donald are taking the boys to look for scrap...
0:12:00 > 0:12:04Back to daily work, have to do something for daily work.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07..or anything else that might be recycled.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09We're doing a clean-up job anyway because we take
0:12:09 > 0:12:12all the bits of metal and that away and throw it in.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17As the community would say, recycling.
0:12:17 > 0:12:22That's the thing about being a Traveller - you have always got to have eyes in the back of your head.
0:12:22 > 0:12:27When there's something lying about, and you are not doing any harm, you're just cleaning away,
0:12:27 > 0:12:29well, take it, make use of it.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33When you think about it, the Travellers get the blame for making a mess.
0:12:33 > 0:12:37Look at this, a big business place, and look at the mess they've left.
0:12:37 > 0:12:41- It'll go up like powder, this stuff. - Yeah, it'll be a good heat.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47My wee boy there and my wee nephew were brought up in a community -
0:12:47 > 0:12:51cold, wind, rain, snow, we are always doing something.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53We're brought up rough and ready.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00We're showing them something of the old tradition.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04It's not drugs, it's not drink, so they are not doing damage to their bodies.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07What the boys find, they get to keep.
0:13:07 > 0:13:12That's what the children do, they save up these wee bits of things to buy stuff for themselves.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16The most I ever made was £200. Yeah.
0:13:19 > 0:13:24This gets to the fingers, there's no fingers left. It'll cut them.
0:13:24 > 0:13:26Have you left your battery?
0:13:27 > 0:13:32It learns them when they get older that they can't lean on their parents
0:13:32 > 0:13:36because they might not have their parents, so it shows them a way of life
0:13:36 > 0:13:40and they know how to make money, so they'll never go stuck, they'll never go hungry.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48Come on, big man. We're going now.
0:13:53 > 0:13:54On you go, on you go.
0:13:59 > 0:14:06It's a crisp March evening, minus two degrees, as the Travellers bed down for the night.
0:14:20 > 0:14:25150 miles away on the West Coast overlooking Loch Linnhe
0:14:25 > 0:14:30are Bella and Christine's parents, Colin and Clementina MacDonald.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34The grass that comes in here when it's wet!
0:14:36 > 0:14:37Last year there was
0:14:37 > 0:14:43Donald, Bella and Frankie... They're not coming this year.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46Donnie used to be a joker, I don't know what like he is now.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51Family is all-important to them.
0:14:51 > 0:14:57They have 7 children and 25 grandchildren, who they love to spend time with.
0:14:59 > 0:15:02Well, it means a lot to everyone, like.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04I just think you look for it in every day.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10This is how, really, I've got to come out in the caravan in the summertime,
0:15:10 > 0:15:12is to get meeting up with some of them.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16Then you don't see them again for months.
0:15:18 > 0:15:20You always liked talking to kids.
0:15:20 > 0:15:26I quite like the noise, but then when I get tired myself and I want a bit of peace and quiet, then I just...
0:15:28 > 0:15:31Out with them. Out to play then!
0:15:34 > 0:15:36You're away? Right, then.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38See you later.
0:15:38 > 0:15:43They have travelled all their lives and even though they are now in their 60s,
0:15:43 > 0:15:45they don't intend to stop.
0:15:45 > 0:15:52They know every bit of Scotland like the back of their hands, from the Borders to the Outer Isles.
0:15:52 > 0:15:53Yeah, I love it.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56I've loved it all my life.
0:15:56 > 0:15:58While it was lasting good for me.
0:15:58 > 0:16:03But it's not lasting so good now for me because I can't do it the same.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06I'm annoyed that I can't get on with what I should be doing properly.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13Well, like I said, we're only here for a short while anyways,
0:16:13 > 0:16:15so you have to make the most of it.
0:16:17 > 0:16:19I can't even get a good smoke.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23What are you going to do, huh?
0:16:23 > 0:16:28- I did stop a couple of times, but landed back on them.- And you weighed about five stone or something.
0:16:28 > 0:16:33I was 52 years smoking when I stopped. No bother.
0:16:37 > 0:16:43Colin and Clementina are planning a trip to Tiree off the West Coast,
0:16:43 > 0:16:47a place for which they both have happy childhood memories.
0:16:55 > 0:17:00It's the day of the big boxing competition that Donnie has been training for,
0:17:00 > 0:17:03the Scottish Schoolboys Championship,
0:17:03 > 0:17:07and the Travellers have come to Coatbridge to support him.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11'I know my mum's Uncle Sandy, Sandy MacDonald, was a boxer.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13'He was quite good at it.'
0:17:13 > 0:17:17So we're just trying to... make a story for us,
0:17:17 > 0:17:19so we'll have a story when we get older, hopefully.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21Dragged myself out of bed for this!
0:17:21 > 0:17:25Donnie's father Donald is keen for him to do well.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28'Aye, he is going to do fine.'
0:17:28 > 0:17:29He is going to do fine.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33It's all in the name of sport anyway, yeah?
0:17:33 > 0:17:36Win or lose, you've got to take it and accept it.
0:17:36 > 0:17:38That's all you can do.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41Just do their best.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43But we are confident he is going to win.
0:17:45 > 0:17:47I'm excited!
0:17:48 > 0:17:54Ladies and gentlemen, ring number two, bout number four, Scottish Schoolboys Championship.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59Three one-and-a-half minute rounds.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01- Come on, Donald!- Come on, Donald!
0:18:01 > 0:18:03WHISTLE BLOWS
0:18:06 > 0:18:08Come on, Donnie!
0:18:10 > 0:18:11Oh, that was a good one!
0:18:17 > 0:18:20A lot of Travellers like boxing.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24In the old days it was bare-knuckle fighting in the camps.
0:18:24 > 0:18:30Today young boys like Donnie get proper training and compete in organised competitions.
0:18:36 > 0:18:38BELL RINGS
0:18:38 > 0:18:40APPLAUSE
0:18:40 > 0:18:45Through to the next round in the red corner...
0:18:45 > 0:18:50Donnie has made it through to the final and Donald is delighted.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53I just have to wait for my next one now.
0:18:53 > 0:18:55BACKGROUND NOISE DROWNS SPEECH
0:18:56 > 0:19:01One of them boys is the boy I'll be fighting in the final, it's one of them.
0:19:01 > 0:19:08Donnie's watching the other semifinal to see who he'll be boxing next.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12I've fought the one in blue and I've beaten him twice, so chances are I can beat him again.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15BACKGROUND NOISE DROWNS SPEECH
0:19:15 > 0:19:17- In the blue corner...- Yes!
0:19:19 > 0:19:22This will decide the Scottish Schoolboys...
0:19:22 > 0:19:24Good luck, Donnie.
0:19:27 > 0:19:32Boxing for the Kelty ABC in Fife, Donald Stewart!
0:19:32 > 0:19:34CHEERS AND APPLAUSE
0:19:34 > 0:19:38And opposing him across the ring in the blue corner,
0:19:38 > 0:19:41please welcome Davie Burrel.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43CHEERS AND APPLAUSE
0:19:43 > 0:19:49Donnie is fighting for the Scottish Schoolboys title, but the match is no walkover.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51Both boys are desperate to win.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57Come on, he's got the... Punch him out.
0:19:58 > 0:19:59Come on! Come on!
0:20:03 > 0:20:05- Straight jab, Donnie! - That's it, Donnie!
0:20:05 > 0:20:07- That's it!- Hold him out!
0:20:09 > 0:20:11- Come on, Donnie!- Punch him out!
0:20:13 > 0:20:14That's it!
0:20:16 > 0:20:21The match is scrappy and no-one has the upper hand.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29You'll need to decide. You'll need to decide.
0:20:29 > 0:20:34It's a draw, and the referee demands the judges' individual scores.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36APPLAUSE
0:20:36 > 0:20:40Ladies and gentlemen, at the end of the contest the computer reading was two points to two
0:20:40 > 0:20:44and we therefore go to count back, which also reads two points to two.
0:20:44 > 0:20:50We therefore go to double count back and the judges' individual scoring.
0:20:50 > 0:20:55And so by a majority, a 2-1 majority, the winner,
0:20:55 > 0:21:00Scottish Schoolboys 1996, 36 kilo champion,
0:21:00 > 0:21:04in the blue corner, Davie Burrel!
0:21:05 > 0:21:10Shite! Fucking shite! That was fucking shite!
0:21:12 > 0:21:16No fucking way! That was a daylight robbery if ever I've seen it.
0:21:17 > 0:21:23'When you have won a few fights and you really think to yourself, "That's it, I'm going in there and winning,"
0:21:23 > 0:21:27'which I do all the time, and then you just get beat.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29'It just makes you feel... I don't know,'
0:21:29 > 0:21:31I just get upset with myself
0:21:31 > 0:21:35and think I'm no good and stuff like that,
0:21:35 > 0:21:37but then you've just got to keep going
0:21:37 > 0:21:39and the more you go on, the better you get.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41The more you get beat, the better you get,
0:21:41 > 0:21:44because everybody's got to lose to get better.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47Donald is bitterly disappointed.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50- Aw, f...- Do you want to get something to eat?
0:21:50 > 0:21:52I might do.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54My wee boy tried to box.
0:21:54 > 0:21:59He was throwing punches, the other one kept grabbing on and bending down and never throwed one punch,
0:21:59 > 0:22:02and the judging was wrong. He got robbed.
0:22:02 > 0:22:08He was conned out of his fight. He won. Basically, there's nothing you can do about it, so that's that.
0:22:08 > 0:22:13At the end of the day, I'm not going to... He's better than him anyway. He's beat him twice before.
0:22:13 > 0:22:15That boy never knew how to box.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20He will prove later on who's the better boxer.
0:22:20 > 0:22:21How's wee Donald, the boy...?
0:22:21 > 0:22:23I don't know, I haven't seen him.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27I don't understand...
0:22:27 > 0:22:30Donnie may well get another chance to fight his opponent.
0:22:30 > 0:22:36As gold and silver medallists, they've both qualified for the British Championships.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40Well, you just take it and that's it. You lost and that's it.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42You will get him next time.
0:23:06 > 0:23:12It's now May and the Travellers have headed north to Dyce on the outskirts of Aberdeen.
0:23:13 > 0:23:19It's a peaceful spot by the river with plenty of space for the children to play.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23Even baby Jeremiah is out enjoying the fresh air.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30It's Aberdeen, and this is a nice place.
0:23:30 > 0:23:35I like it. It's where I was born, actually, Aberdeen.
0:23:41 > 0:23:46There are around 23,000 Travellers living in Scotland today.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49Most now live in houses.
0:23:49 > 0:23:55Officially, only 2,000 regularly travel on the road like Sammy and Donald.
0:23:55 > 0:24:02However, many think this is an underestimate, especially over the summer months.
0:24:02 > 0:24:06You can see there's quite a lot of Travellers here, about 20 caravans.
0:24:08 > 0:24:15Although it is not an official campsite, the local authority has provided them with bins and toilets.
0:24:15 > 0:24:21Maybe it would cost them a wee bit, but in the long run if you've got nowhere to put your rubbish
0:24:21 > 0:24:24and you've got nowhere to do the toilet, you're saving and all,
0:24:24 > 0:24:26and we can keep it clean and tidy,
0:24:26 > 0:24:31just to show the public that we are not animals.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34DOG BARKS
0:24:40 > 0:24:45Sammy and Donald are off to nearby Clinterty to collect their camping gear.
0:24:47 > 0:24:52Before they had caravans, Scottish Travellers lived in tents.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57I'm just getting my poles of my tent, you know?
0:24:57 > 0:25:00I keep this shed for putting my tents and all that,
0:25:00 > 0:25:05because at the end of the day, for a Traveller, we came from the tents.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08Sammy was born in a tent.
0:25:08 > 0:25:15By taking the children camping, he is passing on an important part of his Traveller culture.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19That's all our camping stuff.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21- Thank you, my lassie, for doing that.- Hey, Daddy!
0:25:21 > 0:25:25Camping's usually more funner and exciting.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27This is the beginning of the camping.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31The good old days.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33Where the proper Traveller comes out.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40They are catching a ferry at Kennacraig on West Loch Tarbert,
0:25:40 > 0:25:42over to the island of Islay.
0:25:46 > 0:25:53The Travellers have been coming to the islands for years. They are looking forward to it.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56When you're in places like Islay and that, you're feeling home,
0:25:56 > 0:26:01you feel as you're a part of the community, you feel as you're a part of the people.
0:26:08 > 0:26:14The change of scene feels like a holiday. The camping gets them closer to the land.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19Pick your own pitch. That's what it's about!
0:26:22 > 0:26:25Come on, give him a hand.
0:26:25 > 0:26:30It's been a long drive and Sammy is finding it all a bit stressful.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33It's almost 8.00 at night
0:26:33 > 0:26:36and this is us just setting up camp.
0:26:36 > 0:26:42I'm having more hassle because the tents is a wee bit soaking. Hey!
0:26:42 > 0:26:44DOGS SNARL
0:26:44 > 0:26:48I'm not going to tell you again to get your hands out of your pockets!
0:26:48 > 0:26:50Give me the pole.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52That's a half a pole.
0:26:53 > 0:26:54- DOG YELPS - Shut up!
0:26:56 > 0:26:59Take your dog and put it away, miles away from me.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01- Hey!- What?!
0:27:03 > 0:27:09- Very stressful. Er... - SAMMY CHUCKLES
0:27:09 > 0:27:14We wouldn't have - what do you call it - came a round journey and that.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17It's just like anything else, to get it organised...
0:27:17 > 0:27:19Give me a pin and a thingy.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23You're getting a slap in a minute.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26Go and sort this stuff, you've just loaded it in a bundle.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28Go and sort all that.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31It's too big, this case.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44Finally the tents are up and everyone can relax.
0:28:10 > 0:28:15Colin and Clementina are also out camping.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19They have headed north to Moray with their youngest daughters Morag and Clementine.
0:28:21 > 0:28:25I feel sorry for some of the poor people that's stuck in offices,
0:28:25 > 0:28:28stuck in cities, sometimes, you know?
0:28:28 > 0:28:31How they get frustrated, it's...
0:28:31 > 0:28:35It's good to get out and free for yourself, you need time for yourself almost, eh?
0:28:35 > 0:28:43Clementina would like to see more cooperation between Travellers and the settled community.
0:28:43 > 0:28:47When they go to a place that's near a community of settled people,
0:28:47 > 0:28:54just to try to keep it as clean and tidy as possible
0:28:54 > 0:28:57and not to be hostile towards the people.
0:28:57 > 0:29:01Sorry, I've got to bite then cos she's not getting her answer across. It's...
0:29:01 > 0:29:04When you go to a place, don't hide away.
0:29:04 > 0:29:07Because if you keep in the dark,
0:29:07 > 0:29:10they don't know who you are, they don't know what you're up to
0:29:10 > 0:29:13and they don't know what you'll get up to.
0:29:13 > 0:29:14And that's not what goes on.
0:29:14 > 0:29:16And it's the same in my own life.
0:29:16 > 0:29:21I'm afraid at the same time, cos if I see people and I see cars coming in,
0:29:21 > 0:29:23I wonder what he's doing, I wonder what he's up to.
0:29:36 > 0:29:40On Islay, Sammy is taking the children to look for whelks.
0:29:41 > 0:29:45The children are away down just to see if there's any whelks.
0:29:45 > 0:29:47And I don't think there are whelks.
0:29:47 > 0:29:51We'll maybe go back. Are there any down there?
0:29:51 > 0:29:53A tiny one and that was it.
0:29:53 > 0:29:55There's not a whelk to be seen.
0:29:55 > 0:30:01The children are keen to fill their buckets and earn a bit of pocket money.
0:30:03 > 0:30:05They are also learning about their Traveller culture,
0:30:05 > 0:30:11how even today you can live off the land if you know where to look.
0:30:11 > 0:30:13This bit's crap.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16This bit is no better than that bit over there. This bit's crap.
0:30:18 > 0:30:21The last time we were here, there were hundreds lying everywhere
0:30:21 > 0:30:24and we came away with seven bags, and they came away with six bags.
0:30:24 > 0:30:27We're coming away with none this time.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29I think the tide was too rough. It took them all out.
0:30:32 > 0:30:36In Scotland, whelks are mostly used as fishing bait,
0:30:36 > 0:30:42but in France and Spain, they are considered a delicacy, served in seafood restaurants.
0:30:42 > 0:30:45I just save every penny I get. Everything goes to the bank.
0:30:47 > 0:30:49Sometimes you go down and you get nothing.
0:30:49 > 0:30:53Sometimes you go down and you fill three bags, two bags.
0:30:53 > 0:30:56I'm going to do this until the end of this tide and that's it.
0:30:58 > 0:31:00Then that's me, I'm retired!
0:31:00 > 0:31:03Excuse me, little man. That's my nest, not yours.
0:31:03 > 0:31:04There's a nest over there for you.
0:31:05 > 0:31:10It's our own fault. We should have been here early.
0:31:10 > 0:31:11Don't pick them out of my bucket.
0:31:11 > 0:31:14I said don't pick out my bucket!
0:31:18 > 0:31:22You stole my whelks! Put my whelks back in there.
0:31:22 > 0:31:27Despite everyone's hard work, there are not a lot of whelks to be found,
0:31:27 > 0:31:31and the children will be lucky to make a couple of pounds each.
0:31:36 > 0:31:38It's dirty work down by the shore,
0:31:38 > 0:31:43and Christine has a bath ready for the children when they get back.
0:31:43 > 0:31:46It's a nightmare with her hair being so curly and that.
0:31:46 > 0:31:48Ah! Don't put my head up!
0:31:48 > 0:31:52You can't leave it much more than two days or it gets all knotty.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59I don't know about him yet, but all five of my children
0:31:59 > 0:32:01had curly hair when they were little. I'm used to it!
0:32:05 > 0:32:07What's that in my ear?
0:32:07 > 0:32:08Ow!
0:32:10 > 0:32:12Sammy, are you ready to get washed now?
0:32:15 > 0:32:19Sandy. You've got to grab them sometimes and just wrap a towel around them,
0:32:19 > 0:32:21stick their head in and get it washed.
0:32:21 > 0:32:23HE WAILS Almost finished!
0:32:25 > 0:32:28That's it all over, now. You get your clothes on and you can play.
0:32:28 > 0:32:30Sure, you're only wee.
0:32:44 > 0:32:50All Travellers keep dogs as pets and also as working animals.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55A favourite pastime for Sammy is hare-coursing.
0:32:56 > 0:33:00Since I was five, I was going hare-coursing with my dad. My father.
0:33:00 > 0:33:06And Travellers have been doing it for generation after generation,
0:33:06 > 0:33:08they have been doing the dogs with hare-coursing.
0:33:08 > 0:33:11Although it is illegal to hunt with dogs,
0:33:11 > 0:33:14Sammy defends it as part of his culture.
0:33:15 > 0:33:18There are some good fields up here.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21There's not a house, nothing. See up there? The people doesn't bother us.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24That's what the gamekeeper said. He doesn't bother you up there.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34Sammy and Donald are prepared to break the law
0:33:34 > 0:33:38to preserve this aspect of their traditional way of life.
0:33:39 > 0:33:42We might get nothing, we might get something.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48If the dog kills six, I won't be disappointed.
0:33:50 > 0:33:54It's rare for Sammy and Donald to mix with the settled community,
0:33:54 > 0:33:59but they have gone to meet the local farmer to ask for permission to hunt on his land.
0:33:59 > 0:34:04- He caught a salmon... - Oh, a lovely salmon. - So did he give it to you?
0:34:04 > 0:34:08Yeah. So, we'll go for a walk in your field for the hare-coursing!
0:34:08 > 0:34:11- Aye, no bother.- See if we can get a rabbit or something for the pot.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14Aye, there's too many rabbits about here.
0:34:14 > 0:34:18- Where is the wee ones tonight?- They went away.- Away for a bit of fishing.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20Fishing. They're away fishing.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22Poaching or fishing?!
0:34:25 > 0:34:28A lot of people, anyway, with Travellers, they say,
0:34:28 > 0:34:32we want to chase them out of the way because they're this and that,
0:34:32 > 0:34:35but I've never found that. They are decent enough people.
0:34:35 > 0:34:39Maybe a little decenter than some of the ones that are chasing them!
0:34:42 > 0:34:47Permission granted, and it's not long before they spot their first hare.
0:34:54 > 0:34:59Donald is off, following Bess and Blackie, who are trained for the job.
0:34:59 > 0:35:00Blackie's away.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03Oh! Oh, he's on it. He's on it now.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05Sammy stays with the van.
0:35:05 > 0:35:07Oh, what a dangerous field.
0:35:07 > 0:35:10Gaps and bank ends...
0:35:10 > 0:35:13Very dangerous field. The dog could break its leg.
0:35:13 > 0:35:15WHISTLES
0:35:16 > 0:35:19Bess returns. But there's no sign of Blackie...
0:35:19 > 0:35:21We never got to see that chase.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24..who happens to be brown.
0:35:24 > 0:35:26He came back that way! She never seen it.
0:35:26 > 0:35:30We never even got to find it. If the dog's lucky, it's not got a broken leg.
0:35:33 > 0:35:40With the uneven ground, Sammy is concerned that the missing dog may be lying injured in the field.
0:35:40 > 0:35:42WHISTLES
0:35:42 > 0:35:44There he is!
0:35:47 > 0:35:48Blackie returns unhurt,
0:35:48 > 0:35:52and before long, he and Bess are on the scent of another hare.
0:35:52 > 0:35:53Here, Blackie!
0:35:58 > 0:36:00Donald is following in hot pursuit.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07There was a hare sitting there, but it just got up and ran away.
0:36:10 > 0:36:13It went away in amongst the cattle.
0:36:13 > 0:36:15But just when it looks like the hare has got away...
0:36:15 > 0:36:18- There they are.- ..the dogs and the hair come into view.
0:36:18 > 0:36:20Go on, lass! Go on, lass!
0:36:20 > 0:36:24Go on! She's on it, look!
0:36:24 > 0:36:26Go on, lass! Yes!
0:36:26 > 0:36:29Nothing gets away from that bitch!
0:36:29 > 0:36:31She's a good dog, a good bitch.
0:36:31 > 0:36:35It went down, hare got back up and run again!
0:36:35 > 0:36:37- Over the top?- Aye.
0:36:37 > 0:36:38We never seen it.
0:36:40 > 0:36:43Oh! It's the freshest food you can get.
0:36:43 > 0:36:46It's healthy, it's good feeding for the kids.
0:36:46 > 0:36:51What more could a Traveller man ask for? Eh?
0:36:51 > 0:36:56We are well happy. Most of what we had tonight, we put the dogs on.
0:36:56 > 0:36:58The dogs killed them.
0:36:58 > 0:37:00So now we've got three for the pot.
0:37:10 > 0:37:14The men return home, pleased with their catch of three hares.
0:37:19 > 0:37:24We use it, because we believe it's a shame to kill an animal if you're not going to use it.
0:37:27 > 0:37:31You know what we can say? We'll have hare stew tomorrow.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34That's why if you're hungry, it's handy to have an old greyhound.
0:37:34 > 0:37:38If you've got no money, you'll have a pot for something to eat.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43The Travellers are enjoying their time on Islay,
0:37:43 > 0:37:45able, to an extent, to live off the land.
0:37:48 > 0:37:54Although there are settled people nearby, they are living peacefully alongside each other.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06However, that's not the case in Forres.
0:38:08 > 0:38:11The MacDonalds have had a frightening experience.
0:38:11 > 0:38:15Nails have been scattered all around their caravans and tents.
0:38:19 > 0:38:21It was seven o'clock.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23We got up and looked out.
0:38:27 > 0:38:33All the way from down yonder right up to here was nails on either side.
0:38:34 > 0:38:38Bags and bags of them. Big nails.
0:38:39 > 0:38:42All the way on both set of tracks.
0:38:45 > 0:38:47There could have been a lot of damage done.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50To the children, even with their bare feet.
0:38:50 > 0:38:52For the animals, the dogs, could have got it.
0:38:52 > 0:38:55The tyres and the cars could have got it.
0:39:01 > 0:39:03They must have went to a lot of bother to go and do it.
0:39:03 > 0:39:06- It was quite a lot. - It was more a warning to us.
0:39:06 > 0:39:09There is some there that the wee boy kept in a bag,
0:39:09 > 0:39:14- but there was double the amount of that.- Oh, there was a lot. A lot more that we never even got.
0:39:14 > 0:39:16To do a cowardly thing like that...
0:39:16 > 0:39:19- It's just a bad thing. - It gives you a bad feeling.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22Bad... What next? You don't know.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36There is people frightened on both sides. You know?
0:39:36 > 0:39:38What you are and who you are.
0:39:38 > 0:39:42And you've got to really get to the bottom of that.
0:39:42 > 0:39:44Till that stops,
0:39:44 > 0:39:47I don't think you'll get the answer.
0:39:47 > 0:39:49And that will always be there.
0:40:00 > 0:40:02On Islay, there are chores to be done,
0:40:02 > 0:40:05whether it's chopping wood, getting the meal ready
0:40:05 > 0:40:07or looking after the little ones.
0:40:07 > 0:40:09Samuel.
0:40:11 > 0:40:13What?
0:40:13 > 0:40:15Joshua, be good. Stop it.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18- Joshua, mind he's not a horse. - Joshua, stop the carry-on.
0:40:18 > 0:40:24It's always just more-or-less getting tidy and organised,
0:40:24 > 0:40:27and getting the wee ones always ready,
0:40:27 > 0:40:31and there's getting the food and that ready at the right time,
0:40:31 > 0:40:33make sure they're out of harm's way.
0:40:33 > 0:40:36It's definitely strained.
0:40:36 > 0:40:40Bella and Donald have been together for 19 years.
0:40:40 > 0:40:43'We were just like teenagers.
0:40:43 > 0:40:47'Well, I was a teenager, but he was 21.'
0:40:47 > 0:40:51So then we did eventually like each other and I did turn 16
0:40:51 > 0:40:57and I just carried it on, and then we just went from that to, basically, we did run away.
0:40:57 > 0:41:00A wee bit. Come on.
0:41:00 > 0:41:02No! I hate that!
0:41:02 > 0:41:04How can you hate it when you haven't even touched it?
0:41:04 > 0:41:06No, I hate it!
0:41:06 > 0:41:09'First time I've seen hers
0:41:09 > 0:41:14'was in Chanonry Road in Elgin, Travellers' site.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16'That's where I first met her.'
0:41:18 > 0:41:24She sneaked out the caravan, she jumped into the van, but the thing is, the comical bit about it was
0:41:24 > 0:41:27when she jumped into the van and the starter went "click, click, click".
0:41:27 > 0:41:29So she had to get back out and push it to start.
0:41:32 > 0:41:38Bella's parents, Colin and Clementina, did not approve of Donald at first.
0:41:39 > 0:41:41In my teenage years,
0:41:41 > 0:41:44I was a bit of a bad boy.
0:41:44 > 0:41:46I'm not going to say I was innocent.
0:41:47 > 0:41:51I did foolish things, I got myself into trouble.
0:41:51 > 0:41:55I've seen a bit of prison, but it's nothing to be proud of,
0:41:55 > 0:41:59cos the wise man stays on the outside.
0:41:59 > 0:42:01And that's what I try and teach my family now.
0:42:01 > 0:42:05I'm trying to bring them up in a way that will keep them away from all that things I done.
0:42:11 > 0:42:16It's like everything else. I've got a good woman behind me, and in a lot of ways, Bella keeps me straight.
0:42:16 > 0:42:18She keeps me straight.
0:42:19 > 0:42:23Just before me and her were together, that was my last prison sentence.
0:42:23 > 0:42:25I did 60 days in Porterfield.
0:42:25 > 0:42:28And then when I came out, me and Bella run away together,
0:42:28 > 0:42:32and I've never been in trouble ever since.
0:42:32 > 0:42:34And that's coming 19 year.
0:42:39 > 0:42:43The rain has started, and the Travellers are battening down their tents.
0:42:46 > 0:42:50One of our guy ropes has burst this morning with the wet, so we've got to fix it tomorrow.
0:42:50 > 0:42:53It'll be all right if it's not a windy night.
0:42:53 > 0:42:56If it's not a windy night I'll patch it up tonight.
0:42:56 > 0:42:58Going to have to fix it.
0:43:01 > 0:43:03I suppose nothing ever comes which isn't bad.
0:43:06 > 0:43:11So if there's no ups, there'll be no downs, so you've got to just take all your good and then you
0:43:11 > 0:43:13level it out with your bad.
0:43:25 > 0:43:30A gale is blowing through, and two of the Travellers' tents have taken off in the wind.
0:43:30 > 0:43:33The families are trying to hold on to those still standing.
0:43:35 > 0:43:37Get out the way!
0:43:37 > 0:43:39What are you doing?
0:43:42 > 0:43:43Tina, hold the pole.
0:43:43 > 0:43:46Aye, that's right, that's it up now.
0:43:46 > 0:43:49I'm going to double-line the dry ropes.
0:43:49 > 0:43:51Next time, I'm going to cut them again.
0:43:55 > 0:44:00As Donald tries to save the bedding, the remaining tents are almost blown away.
0:44:02 > 0:44:07Maria, could you get in out of the rain, Maria, because you've got a chest infection, Maria?
0:44:07 > 0:44:12It's a race against time to get the tents tied down and secure.
0:44:16 > 0:44:18You can see. They've got it right at the side.
0:44:20 > 0:44:23All of their belongings are open to the elements.
0:44:30 > 0:44:36Yeah, Donald's tent's down. This one's still up.
0:44:37 > 0:44:41But if the gale force gets any worse, then it may be down and all.
0:44:41 > 0:44:45I don't know. Hold on to the tent, man! This!
0:44:45 > 0:44:47Ah, it's no use, it's no use.
0:44:48 > 0:44:50Puts too much pressure to the tent.
0:44:50 > 0:44:53The size of this tent is the one to get underneath. It's like a parachute.
0:44:57 > 0:44:59See, when the canvas is soaking,
0:44:59 > 0:45:02you can't tighten it.
0:45:02 > 0:45:06Just put it up, wait till it dries, then tighten it.
0:45:06 > 0:45:07See, yous are not helping.
0:45:13 > 0:45:17The children head for the only bit of shelter left.
0:45:17 > 0:45:19I wouldn't take a house for all the money in the world.
0:45:19 > 0:45:24You've got to have a wee bit of roughness in your life to harden you up.
0:45:24 > 0:45:27I've got no time to think about myself.
0:45:28 > 0:45:30The children comes first.
0:45:35 > 0:45:39If you look up my what-d'you-call-it, I was born to have a hard life.
0:45:39 > 0:45:41That's what it tells you.
0:45:41 > 0:45:44You have to have the Travellers' blood in you now.
0:45:44 > 0:45:47This is where it shows the most.
0:45:47 > 0:45:51If not, you would be parking up, heading over the boat.
0:45:53 > 0:45:55We were born to be wild.
0:46:03 > 0:46:06When you come camping, you choose to leave your comforts behind.
0:46:06 > 0:46:10So you're going to have rough times as well as good times.
0:46:12 > 0:46:15Everybody's OK, but some of them got...
0:46:18 > 0:46:22Some of them got soaked in the middle of the night.
0:46:44 > 0:46:47A new day dawns.
0:46:47 > 0:46:48On the nearby island of Tiree,
0:46:48 > 0:46:52Colin and Clementina are camping by the shore.
0:46:55 > 0:46:58They have come here with a special purpose in mind -
0:46:58 > 0:47:00to visit their childhood haunts.
0:47:02 > 0:47:09In particular, the remains of an old wooden boat on the shore.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13- The breeze has kind of died down. It's nicer.- It's calmer now.
0:47:13 > 0:47:15A lot calmer and beautiful.
0:47:20 > 0:47:25It's many years since their last visit, but the wreck is still there in the sand.
0:47:31 > 0:47:34It brings back rich memories.
0:47:38 > 0:47:42All of my generation played in this.
0:47:43 > 0:47:46My own father, and they did.
0:47:48 > 0:47:50She's a good lump of sail boat, that.
0:47:50 > 0:47:55I used to play in the nose, but that bit's away.|
0:47:55 > 0:47:56Funny how it's lasted so long.
0:47:56 > 0:48:00It's lasted now three, four generations, probably lasted long before that.
0:48:03 > 0:48:04It means a lot of good memories to me.
0:48:04 > 0:48:10It brung me back to remember things that I forgot about in life, you know.
0:48:10 > 0:48:12And I'm glad I did come back.
0:48:12 > 0:48:17My health is not very good for a start, and I may not ever have a chance again.
0:48:17 > 0:48:19Because I'm, what... I've been here when I was...
0:48:19 > 0:48:24I'll tell you exactly my first memories of being a child. I'm 65.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27'45, I was born.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31My first memory here, I be at five year old.
0:48:31 > 0:48:35Our oldest, Billy, used to take me by the hand round this island.
0:48:38 > 0:48:42The memories that I've got are in this island mostly.
0:48:44 > 0:48:47In those days, Travellers provided a service to the community,
0:48:47 > 0:48:51hawking household goods and seasonal farm work.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56Used to go with my mother, roundabout when she used to be going out,
0:48:56 > 0:48:58selling her tin.
0:48:58 > 0:49:03She used to go down, she had all her own customers and she used to go around here on the island.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06They used to wait every year for it.
0:49:06 > 0:49:11Always for the farm. Everything was done for them.
0:49:11 > 0:49:14Everything for them.
0:49:14 > 0:49:17I'm feeling lost myself, you know, when there's nobody older
0:49:17 > 0:49:21than me now, not much left of them, and that's what I get annoyed with.
0:49:21 > 0:49:25That's when you realise that it's all gone from around you.
0:49:25 > 0:49:28You don't think about it at first.
0:49:28 > 0:49:31But we are the last of the older of that race.
0:49:33 > 0:49:35That's how is goes.
0:49:41 > 0:49:44Everything's changed. There's no...
0:49:44 > 0:49:48- We used to travel. We used to have work waiting on us. - There's nothing now whatsoever.
0:50:04 > 0:50:10The Stewarts are leaving Islay, crossing the country and heading back east to Aberdeen.
0:50:26 > 0:50:31They're back at Dyce, but it seems they're not welcome on Riverview Drive.
0:50:31 > 0:50:35In fact, they've made the front page of the local paper.
0:50:39 > 0:50:42The Evening Express, I've got it here in my hand.
0:50:42 > 0:50:44I'm not happy about it.
0:50:44 > 0:50:49They've speaking about rubbish, they've speaking about, they're getting their rubbish picked up
0:50:49 > 0:50:55every fortnight, and we're getting it, because we're staying here, every week.
0:50:55 > 0:51:01The council has provided the camp with a weekly bin collection and portable toilets.
0:51:02 > 0:51:06Now the Evening Express has put in a lot of accusations in it.
0:51:06 > 0:51:11This was a while back, and all they're going to get, they're going to get a Traveller killed.
0:51:11 > 0:51:16Because they won't stop putting things in the newspaper. It's not true.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19They're still putting it in the newspaper.
0:51:19 > 0:51:25Sammy believes the way the story has been reported could cause friction with local residents.
0:51:25 > 0:51:29Teenagers are reading the newspaper, "Oh, yeah, Travellers again."
0:51:29 > 0:51:33They're coming down and they're going to burn us out one of these times.
0:51:33 > 0:51:36They're going to do something, and what's the law going to say then?
0:51:38 > 0:51:44Donald knows what it feels like to be on the receiving end of mob violence.
0:51:44 > 0:51:47It was a long time ago, long before I met Bella and
0:51:47 > 0:51:50the whole of Torry came down and talked with us in Aberdeen.
0:51:50 > 0:51:55Butchers' cleavers, spades, machetes, everything.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59They came down on top of the caravans and tried to wreck us.
0:51:59 > 0:52:05So, it leaves you with a bit of a phobia, because I know how far they can go, they can go the limit.
0:52:11 > 0:52:14There is Travellers doing wrong things, but there are
0:52:14 > 0:52:16also settled communities does wrong things too.
0:52:16 > 0:52:18How many houses have I seen...
0:52:18 > 0:52:21it wasn't fit for an animal to live in?
0:52:21 > 0:52:23You don't see it written all over the papers.
0:52:27 > 0:52:31When the public is picking up our paper and reading it, that's not the true story.
0:52:31 > 0:52:33The public is getting feared of what the Traveller is.
0:52:33 > 0:52:37They're getting feared of us and thinking that we're some kind of wild animals.
0:52:37 > 0:52:39But we're not. We shouldn't be fit to live,
0:52:39 > 0:52:44because what the local paper has written is made us like we're violent
0:52:44 > 0:52:48people and messy people, and when the public read that,
0:52:48 > 0:52:51they're not going to want people like us. I know I wouldn't.
0:52:51 > 0:52:54I would say, "I don't what people like that, I want rid of them."
0:52:56 > 0:53:00To add to their concerns, all the Travellers on Riverview Drive
0:53:00 > 0:53:04have been presented with an eviction notice from the local council.
0:53:08 > 0:53:11We're getting evicted out of that camp place we were staying.
0:53:11 > 0:53:14We have to get out of there. If not, they're taking us to court.
0:53:17 > 0:53:20We're not out to take over what other people's got.
0:53:20 > 0:53:22We're not out there to take over other people's land.
0:53:22 > 0:53:25We're just out there to be what we are.
0:53:27 > 0:53:32Who knows? We'll be somewhere else, maybe next week and the week after. That's just life.
0:53:35 > 0:53:38But there's more trouble coming their way.
0:53:53 > 0:53:57A group of local teenagers has visited this site.
0:53:57 > 0:54:02The Travellers claim that the youths shouted racist abuse.
0:54:02 > 0:54:05And now Donald has been arrested.
0:54:07 > 0:54:10We were standing out here last night, this is where it happened.
0:54:10 > 0:54:12It was over here...
0:54:12 > 0:54:16And we'd seen all the teenagers coming down,
0:54:16 > 0:54:18just in between the wood there.
0:54:18 > 0:54:21I was making the youngsters' beds about the back of eight.
0:54:21 > 0:54:24Donald and Sammy saw them coming across.
0:54:24 > 0:54:26We knew they had a little bit of an attitude.
0:54:26 > 0:54:29And they were screaming and shouting.
0:54:29 > 0:54:33They had drink, there must have been about ten of them.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38I do know they gave a lot of abuse, black minks, gypsies.
0:54:38 > 0:54:41"Gypsies' coaches are going to be burned out here tonight."
0:54:43 > 0:54:47Donald, he come out and he was standing over there.
0:54:47 > 0:54:52They obviously assumed that he properly shouted back, "You bastards."
0:54:52 > 0:54:54Technically, he probably did.
0:54:54 > 0:54:57- I know he put up his arm to them.- He gave them a couple of hollers back.
0:54:58 > 0:55:03He actually never got within about 20ft near them anyway, because they all run.
0:55:03 > 0:55:06Half past 12 in the middle of the night last night, we were in the bed
0:55:06 > 0:55:10in the caravan, when a policeman came shooting over this hill.
0:55:11 > 0:55:14We didn't know what it was. There were one here.
0:55:14 > 0:55:17There were one over there, just over in the middle there.
0:55:17 > 0:55:21Another police car up there and they kept a police car out on the wood side.
0:55:21 > 0:55:25Terrifying, we had lights going and they almost broke my caravan when
0:55:25 > 0:55:28they came to the door, "Come out, come out."
0:55:28 > 0:55:32And when I popped my head around they said, "No, that's not the guy.
0:55:32 > 0:55:36"That's not him." This time, Donald, he came in out of his caravan over there.
0:55:36 > 0:55:38He likes to play.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42- "What's happening here?" - They told him, "You're the guy we're looking for."
0:55:42 > 0:55:46And he gave two screams out to me, "I'm away! I'm being arrested."
0:55:46 > 0:55:49Donald's in the back of the police car and they just drove away.
0:55:55 > 0:56:00Donald has been charged with breach of the peace and possession of an offensive weapon.
0:56:06 > 0:56:10Bella doesn't know when she'll next see Donald.
0:56:10 > 0:56:14And she feels they have been treated unfairly.
0:56:15 > 0:56:18I don't think they're even interested in hearing our side.
0:56:18 > 0:56:22Why did they arrest him? What was the reason for him being arrested?
0:56:22 > 0:56:24There are always two sides to a story.
0:56:27 > 0:56:32Now, they never came to me and asked me for any statement, they never came to my wife.
0:56:32 > 0:56:34They never came to Donald's wife.
0:56:34 > 0:56:37We're going to be tarred, we're the cause of it, we're Travellers,
0:56:37 > 0:56:42we've no right to be here and we're the ones that probably stirred it up in their eyes.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46At the end of the day, we feel lower than sometimes the dogs.
0:56:52 > 0:56:59It is now late afternoon, and Donald has finally been released from custody.
0:56:59 > 0:57:01I've been locked up in the cells.
0:57:01 > 0:57:03No food, no nothing.
0:57:03 > 0:57:04Alone in a cell.
0:57:04 > 0:57:09Then I had to wait two hours for a bail condition paper before I even got out of it.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12And in the cell, vomits, everything over it,
0:57:12 > 0:57:16you had no privacy for the toilet, because you've got glass windows on the toilets.
0:57:16 > 0:57:19You can't even go in and use the toilet, but there's
0:57:19 > 0:57:22linesmen standing, watching you inside the toilet.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25I had to suffer that, because we're getting the racist abuse,
0:57:25 > 0:57:30abuse. "Black gypsy minks tinks, you black bastards.
0:57:30 > 0:57:32"You'll be burned out tonight."
0:57:32 > 0:57:34Does any human being have to take that?
0:57:34 > 0:57:36Is it because I chased them?
0:57:36 > 0:57:38I'm the bad one, I'm guilty?
0:57:38 > 0:57:42I'm going to have a previous in my record over that.
0:57:42 > 0:57:45And they're still laughing and smoking drugs
0:57:45 > 0:57:47and drinking.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49So, there's no justice.
0:57:49 > 0:57:51No justice whatsoever.
0:57:51 > 0:57:54Certain communities should realise what they've got.
0:57:54 > 0:57:58They've created monsters, cos they've taught them no manners.
0:57:58 > 0:58:03Maybe if they come and stay with Travellers for a while, they might learn how to have manners.
0:58:03 > 0:58:06We would teach them manners, because they are ignorant.
0:58:13 > 0:58:15Next time on Travellers -
0:58:15 > 0:58:19- We have been warned. We can understand that.- We're not allowed in Montrose at all.
0:58:19 > 0:58:21Are you the occupier of this caravan?
0:58:21 > 0:58:27He told me, he says, "If it doesn't go the right way, you're going down. Prison."
0:58:46 > 0:58:49Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:49 > 0:58:53E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk