Episode 5 Landward

The Scottish countryside is a great place to visit and explore,

but it can also be a tough place to live.

I'm on the path of some hardy souls.

Hello, and a very warm welcome to the programme.

This week, I'm in Glenelg -

just one of the stunning locations we'll be visiting

in the next 30 minutes.

We're in Moray to meet one of the Scots farmers struggling to

cope with a cash crisis...

It's been tough. Very tough.

It's been disastrous.

Worst year in 20 years, I think.

..Sarah finds out why Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail

are all really Scottish...

Perthshire is sometimes overlooked when it comes to Beatrix Potter.

Is that frustrating?

Without a doubt, because this is where it all started.

WHISTLE TOOTS

..and Euan's on the footplate

as the flying Scotsman steams over the border.

And I think it's the first celebrity loco.

WHISTLE TOOTS

But first, as we discovered last week,

Knoydart is off the beaten track,

and its out-of-the-way location

means the locals aren't part of the national power grid.

So some bright spark has come up with a way of making sure

the residents always know when electricity is available.

There's nothing better than a nice cuppa.

And the electricity required to make this tea

comes from a community-owned hydro scheme three miles away.

But it also powers 80 homes and businesses

in and around the village of Inverie.

So now and again, it does run a little low.

Cath, tell me, what's it like living off the grid?

Um, most of the time you don't really notice, actually.

'Cath Curd is one of the local residents who

'rely on the capacity of the hydro scheme.'

Do you have any power cuts?

-Occasionally we do.

-Yeah?

But because it's locally managed,

it's usually back up and running within a day,

within a 12-hour day, if it's a minor problem.

Do you think that you are more aware of your usage

because this is locally generated electricity?

Um...

I...I am, and I know there are the people...

I guess most locals are.

Visitors, on the other hand, a lot of them will be

blissfully unaware that we're even on hydro.

We did have to monitor use during peak periods,

and we did used to have to warn visitors to try

and cooperate with us to keep the load down.

And not have the cooker on while you were doing other things,

like blow-drying your hair or whatever, while you were visiting,

just to try and keep the usage down

so it didn't hit capacity.

'So with a potentially sketchy supply,

'how CAN the residents find out

'if there's a risk of a power cut,

'and if there's anything they can do about it?'

Well, that's where the Knoydart light bulb comes in.

Green means go ahead, make dinner, tea, coffee, whatever.

Amber means warning.

And red means there's

a serious danger of power cuts.

There is a drawback - there's only one light bulb,

and it's in the community information centre window.

Fortunately, so the locals don't have to traipse down there

every time they want to know if they can put the tatties on,

there's a website that gives them the same information.

So this as part of a project exploring how people

live of the great in three different global locations.

'One of the inventors is Jamie Cross from Edinburgh University.'

'Jamie's team have invented a system that allows a colour-coded

'LED light bulb to show electricity capacity at the hydro scheme.'

So this website shows the people of Knoydart

how much electricity they're using.

And I'm told if you make a cup of tea, wait ten minutes,

then you can see a spike in the graph.

Here we go.

-There is little spike there, isn't there?

-There you go.

-Would that be my cup of tea?

-I think it probably is.

One kettle, and you can see that detail there? Wow.

Jamie, do you hope that people in the rest of Knoydart,

and potentially across Scotland, will embrace

this type of technology?

We just want to show that this kind of system could be

useful across the Highlands and Small Isles as a way of getting

communities involved and invested and their energy systems.

'Seeing the spike from turning on the kettle to make my tea

'concentrates the mind wonderfully.

'And I'll certainly pay more attention'

to how long I spend in the B&B's electric shower.

-So not green yet?

-Not yet.

Takes a couple of seconds to connect to the data feeds,

-and then eventually it should turn green.

-Oh, wow, already green?

Giving everyone not on the National Grid

one of Jamie's light bulbs isn't realistic.

'But as a simple tool to encourage off-grid users

'to monitor their usage, it's unbeatable.'

We've seen all kinds of different systems

that are designed for people to use in their homes - smart meters,

all kinds of technical displays that you can fit

onto the wall of your home. Our idea was that sometimes

they're quite technically complicated.

They require all kinds of different, um...

All kinds of buttons and things you press -

it's not really visually striking.

This is a way of signalling at a glance how much energy

you're consuming - not just individually, but collectively,

and helping you to manage and moderate your power accordingly.

As the residents of Knoydart carefully manage their electricity,

farmers across Scotland's have had a year

of having to carefully manage their finances.

Delays in distributing European farm subsidies cash

are causing real hardship across Scottish agriculture,

as Euan has been finding out.

This year has been a difficult one for the Scottish farming community.

A failure of the Scottish Government's

new computer system has led to a hold-up in distribution

of the European farm subsidies money

on which many farmers rely.

Over 18,000 have been affected.

Payments normally received in December

have still not been paid in full.

This week, Audit Scotland delivered

a damning report on the system.

I've come to Moray to meet Sarah and Bill Beaton and their family,

to find out how the delay has affected them,

and to discover the long-term impact on farmers who're having

to bear the brunt of what's being described

as a "technological glitch".

SHEEP BLEATS

For the Beatons, the European cash

is crucial in keeping their business afloat.

-Sarah?

-Hi.

-I'm Euan.

-Hi, Euan.

-So, bottles?

-Yeah.

-Lambs?

-Yes.

-Hello.

-Hi.

-So who have got here?

-Dopey and Dot.

Dopey and Dot?

So this is the good time, Sarah - the pleasant bit -

but presumably it's been a bit difficult recently?

Yeah, it's been pretty stressful,

just with the cash-flow crisis within the industry.

Most people have been pushed to their limits.

So have you had any payment at all?

We have now received a percentage of our payment, which is

still not the full amount of what we need.

There's been several sleepless nights over the situation.

We're working harder,

we're trying to get...the jobs done at the end of the day.

Bill's working a lot, and he's not often here at the minute,

so, yeah.

Have you seen it affecting him?

Well, yeah, he's quite stressed about the whole situation.

'In addition to their own farm, Bill and Sarah

'have a contracting business, working for other farmers...'

-Bill?

-BOTH:

-How you doing?

-I'm Euan.

-Pleased to meet you.

How's your beasts doing?

Oh, well - if life was better, it'd be better, eh?

'..that source of income is also under threat

'because of the delayed payments.'

-It's been a bad year?

-It's been tough.

Very tough. It's been disastrous.

Worst year in 20 years, I think.

COW MOOS

It must be a really hard decision

for you guys, as contractors,

to go and do the job...

that potentially you might not get paid for?

Well, potentially we might not get paid for it, or we'll have to wait

12 months to get our money, like last year.

No business can survive that.

It's a pride thing - they don't want to admit

that there're not able to pay their bills, some of them,

and it's, um...

we try and help best we can,

but we're obviously in the same boat.

In March, the Beatons joined over 200

other farmers as they marched

on Holyrood to highlight the growing problems.

Despite £200 million of emergency funding

from the Scottish Government, discontent rumbles on.

What's the impact... I suppose, what's going to be

the impact on the wider rural community,

if farms, your neighbours, are going out of business?

Well, machinery dealers, one,

for contractors, livestock feed producers.

They must start thinking they'll have less customers.

So they're going to be struggling. It's just a nightmare.

Whole industry, whole local community...

will just be like the Clearances again.

It's been a rocky start to the year for the Beatons

and for thousands of families just like them.

They have had payment of some of the subsidies,

but the late arrival of that cheque

has caused chaos that will reverberate throughout

farming communities for months, if not years to come.

Will the Beatons survive? Will they stay in business?

Well, let's hope so.

Only time will tell.

An unexpected drop in income like that faced by the Beatons

can hit any time, anywhere.

And the emergence of food banks in rural areas

is stark evidence of that.

I've been to find out how communities are pulling together,

to ensure no-one goes hungry.

For most people, the idea of life in the country

suggests change of pace -

a simpler, easier lifestyle.

But for many, the reality can be quite different.

A lack of local jobs, unaffordable housing and high transport costs

can leave people struggling to pay for the basics.

'An increasing number are turning to food banks.'

Mum-of-three Vicky Harper found herself in need

when her partner was made redundant twice in the space of a year.

Describe to me what you felt like as a mother,

not really knowing you know if you were able to feed your children.

That must have been a horrific thing to deal with.

It's absolutely desperate. You never expect, when you have children,

that you're going to struggle to feed them, not in this day and age,

-not living somewhere in a country like this.

-Uh-huh.

So, it was a shock.

And by the time you've got to the point where you need to be

referred to a food bank,

you've usually exhausted, you know, friends and family help.

There literally is nowhere to turn.

What did it feel like when you were given that first parcel?

It was just relief.

And gratitude.

And the kindness that came with it as well.

When you're at your lowest ebb,

people come and... just making sure that you're OK.

It was a huge, big deal.

Massive.

Vicky no longer needs help from the food bank,

but she's not forgotten her experience.

She now organises local food collections.

A number of groups run food banks

and one of the biggest is the Trussell Trust.

They've seen an increase of demand for their services

in Scotland's rural council areas of 16%,

which is above the national average.

In some places, the rises are astonishing.

In the Western Isles, demand is up by 68%.

In Dumfries and Galloway, it's 290%.

Now, this looks unbelievably organised.

That's what we try to aim for, anyway.

'Jeannie Price manages three food banks across rural Aberdeenshire.'

She only deals with people who have been referred by an agency,

like Citizens Advice, or social services.

She's also seen an increase in demand.

-In 2014, we fed just over 1,100 people...

-Uh-huh.

..in our area, and then last year that had gone up to 1,700.

-So, quite an increase.

-Quite an increase.

And without us, those are people who would have gone hungry.

What do you put that down to, specifically here?

Three main reasons that people are referred to our food bank.

Yeah.

Generally, it's to do with changes in the welfare system.

So, people have had a delay in getting the benefits

that they're entitled to.

There are benefit sanctions,

people who've maybe missed an appointment

and had their benefits cut again for whatever reason.

And low income.

So, often, it's people who are working,

but not earning terribly much.

The downturn in the oil industry as well up here,

has that has an impact as well, do you think?

I would say for us...not yet.

I suspect that it might be a longer, slower impact.

-Yeah.

-People who've been able to afford, say, a cleaner,

or somebody to do their ironing, somebody to do their gardening.

I think it's that sort of...

You know, the extras are cut back on.

But, of course, the knock-on effect

means those gardeners and cleaners may feel the pinch too,

and end up needing Jeannie's boxes.

Now, one thing about living in rural communities...

I've lived in wee villages for a long time.

Everyone knows your business.

Is there not a real sense of stigma attached

to going along to a food bank?

I think you're right.

That's why we work really hard when people do take the step of coming

to the food bank to make it as welcoming

and as warm an experience.

So, when they come in they'll be offered a cup of tea.

Our volunteers are a wonderful couthy bunch.

And, you know, if they want to talk

and they want to tell their story, then they can.

They'll be met with a listening ear and just a bit of empathy, really.

Do you hope for the day that food banks

and an operation like this aren't required any more?

It would be amazing.

These statistics are all people.

And it's horrible to think that these are people on my doorstep

who are hungry.

So, yeah. It would be great if there was a point at which, you know,

we could close the doors and we're not needed any more.

But in the meantime, I think it's great that there is such

a response in the local community to do their bit.

And if you want to do your bit,

you can donate by giving directly to your local food bank,

or by leaving items at a supermarket collection point.

Please feel free to let us know what you think of rural food banks,

or anything else you see on the programme,

by getting in touch via our Facebook page or e-mail...

On the programme, we often travel to remote, out of the way places.

There's always somewhere for a quick pit stop.

Today, I am in Corran, on the shores of Loch Hourn.

And at the end of the village,

there's this rather quirky place for something to eat.

You're Lorraine, so who is Sheena?

Sheena was my mother.

She started this place up about 20 years ago.

And it was just a garden shed

and she just put a bit of a hatch onto it.

And it's become well-known as Sheena's Tea Hut.

Most of my customers are people that used to know my mother.

So, they've always come back.

So, you actually have regulars that come back here?

Mm-hm. They just come back because they love the place.

-So...

-Mmm. It is a beautiful part of the world, isn't it?

And who's this... There's a stag here.

-A picture of the stags everywhere.

-His name was Bin Laden,

my mother sort of adopted.

He arrived when Bin Laden was on the run.

So, they called him... All the locals called him Bin Laden.

And he used to come in and he used to stand at the hatch

and eat all our bacon.

-Now, I noticed you brought some clootie dumpling here.

-Mm-hm.

Is this place known for its clootie dumpling?

Yeah. It was known.

-My mother used to make clootie dumpling.

-Right.

So, yeah, I thought I'd try and keep that tradition going.

And have you made this?

Do I lie, or...?

No, my friend made it for me.

I've tried to make it, but I didn't get it quite right.

-No.

-No, that's pretty good, though.

Yep. Hats off to my pal. She did quite well.

-That's brilliant.

-Mm-hm.

Now for something a bit less sedate.

Last weekend, the Age of Steam's most famous engine

made her long-awaited return to Scotland.

The Flying Scotsman made the journey back

after more than a decade spent being restored.

And Euan went along to fulfil a lifetime's dream.

Perhaps the most famous locomotive in the world -

the Flying Scotsman.

A masterpiece of British engineering,

she entered service in 1923 -

the epitome of luxury and style.

Providing the first nonstop, express service

between London and Edinburgh, she smashed the speed record,

becoming the first locomotive in the world to travel at 100mph.

I'm visiting the National Railway Museum in York

where the Flying Scotsman is being prepared to make the journey

to Edinburgh later today.

The Flying Scotsman arrived here in 2004.

And some £4.2 million later, has now been restored to her former glory.

And I cannot wait to see what she looks like now.

-How good is this? Hello, I'm Euan.

-Nice to meet you.

-And this is your train.

-It certainly is.

This is the Flying Scotsman.

Shovelling coal on the footplate of the Flying Scotsman

is a boyhood dream.

And Noel Hartley, one of the many people who have restored this

magnificent engine, is letting me do it.

Presumably, there's a bit of an art to this.

-There is. You've got to do it in one swing.

-Yeah.

-Right into the middle of the fire.

-Right into the middle.

So, what kind of state was she in when she arrived?

The engine was kind of a bit run-down, really,

but it had done a lot of miles.

Over the past few years and it needed a significant

amount of work doing to it - a big overhaul.

And we wanted to bring it back to life

and get it back to how it was when it was built, really,

which was the best of the best.

Well, here we go - at York station, heading for Edinburgh.

Masses of people. There's almost hysteria in the air.

And I'm part of it as well.

This has been fully booked for months,

but I've got high hopes there's

at least one little gap for a small passenger.

It'll take six hours to get to Waverley.

Plenty of time to relax and enjoy the experience.

Marcus Robertson is the director of Steam Dreams,

who operate the Flying Scotsman tours.

What is the magic?

I have a theory about it. The Flying Scotsman was always a big name.

Always probably did better than most other locomotives.

But since it was last on the rails 15 years ago,

the age of celebrity, social media has been created.

And I think it's the first celebrity loco.

THE FLYING SCOTSMAN WHISTLES

On, through Newcastle,

over the Tyne and up the East Coast, towards Scotland.

The Flying Scotsman may have been the first locomotive

to break the 100mph barrier,

but today's safety regulations for heritage trains

mean that the old girl is limited to 75mph.

But you know what? So what?

That simply gives myself and the rest of the passengers

more time to enjoy the golden age of steam.

Thousands of people lined the route to catch a glimpse

of the Flying Scotsman

as we cross the Royal Border Bridge

that spans the river at Berwick-upon-Tweed.

The Flying Scotsman is coming to Scotland

for the first time in 16 years.

For the passengers, it's an exhilarating experience.

What have you enjoyed about it so far?

I've enjoyed the whole historical concept

of being in a Pullman carriage,

in exactly the same way as they did 100 years ago.

And you're waving to everybody as well.

And I'm waving, just like the Queen.

The train coming in was like...

Erm, it was...

It was just too emotional. It brought tears to my eyes.

It's absolutely amazing. I mean, just look around.

All the fabrics are wonderful, the chairs are comfortable.

It's absolutely superb.

Edinburgh, and journey's end.

As we arrive at Waverley,

the crowds are out in force as they have been throughout the trip

to welcome back the Flying Scotsman.

What a trip.

It started on a real high this morning,

getting on the footplate of the flying Scotsman.

It just got better and better.

Brilliant weather,

hundreds of people having an absolutely fantastic time,

but the brilliant thing was really the tens of thousands

of people that came to watch this iconic locomotive

thunder through the English and the Scottish countryside.

It just felt part of something really special.

Really special.

It's been nearly 100 years

since the Flying Scotsman first rode the rails

and children in her carriages were probably reading books

by Beatrix Potter as the world sped by.

It's the 150th anniversary of her birth

and her tales of small animals with big personalities

are just as popular as they ever were.

What you may not know,

is that Beatrix spent much of her young life in rural Perthshire,

and many of her most-famous characters sprang to life there.

Sarah is in Birnam to find out more.

The stories of Peter Rabbit and his friends are known across the world,

translated into more than 35 languages

and over 100 million copies sold.

It was here it all started on the banks of the River Tay.

This was where 27-year-old Beatrix Potter sat down to write

an illustrated letter to the son of a former governess.

It told the tale of four rabbits -

Flopsy, Mopsy, Cottontail and Peter.

Those little rabbits may have brought Beatrix fame and fortune,

but she'd been drawing wildlife for quite some time.

From the age of five, she'd been sketching and painting

the animals and plants around Perthshire

during the family's three-month-long summer break from London.

-Where we heading?

-It's a gorgeous morning.

-I think we'll head this direction, Sarah.

-Right.

'Author Lynne McGeachie joins me at Dalguise,

'the Potters' first holiday home in the area.'

Well, she first saw Dalguise House when she was five years of age,

and they came here in 1871 for the first time,

and they were here for 11 consecutive summers.

So, she's very much here for her formative years.

She was indeed. She actually called Dalguise home.

That's how much it meant to her.

And what about the relationships she made up here?

I mean, she met lots of fascinating people as well, didn't she?

She did. One of them was Kitty MacDonald,

who came up to the Big Hoose as it would be known,

to take care of the laundry.

And Kitty was the inspiration for what turned out to be later

Potter's tale of Mrs Tiggy Winkle.

Because she was watching Kitty in action in the laundry,

you know, mixing the starch for the collars and damask napkins,

and putting the iron up to the fire to warm for the ironing.

We haven't seen many today and I'm sure there's lots around,

but she loved rabbits,

as we all know.

She did.

In fact, once she had a collar and lead made for one of them

because in one of...

where they were staying she was a bit afraid that the local cat

would eat her beloved Benjamin Bouncer,

and she just couldn't have that.

So, she had the rabbit on the lead.

Yes, just one of the reasons that Beatrix is regarded

as a bit eccentric.

Beatrix spent her later years in the Lake District,

where she became a successful sheep farmer.

And that's why she's more associated

with Cumbria than Perthshire.

But here in Birnam they like to celebrate their connections

with this amazing lady.

Beatrix would come to the Birnam Institute to borrow books

and read newspapers during her holidays.

Dave Amos is the exhibition manager at Birnam Arts

where they have a Beatrix Potter display.

Pride of place goes to the old institute's visitors book.

-Helen Potter.

-That's her.

-That was Beatrix's real name.

Perthshire is sometimes overlooked when it comes to Beatrix Potter.

-Is that frustrating?

-Without a doubt.

Cos this is where it all started.

She got her influence from the environment here.

And that's very much what we try and do here.

We try and get children to be influenced by their environment.

It's very much hands-on.

We don't want them pushing computer buttons or anything.

We just want them to get back to a Victorian-type childhood.

Do you think her writing is still relevant to the younger generation?

Without a doubt.

And of course the grandparents love it, the parents love it,

so the children love it.

Events to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Beatrix' birth

will be taking place all over Perthshire this summer.

And as Peter Rabbit makes his way home,

we only have enough time left to tell you what's coming up

on next week's Landward.

Fishermen in conflict off the East Coast...

They feel aggrieved that we're actually there.

I mean, it's fishermen destroying other fishermen.

I can't understand why.

..the plan to reintroduce long extinct species, such as the wolf...

..and I travel to North Ronaldsay

to discover some of the most sought-after lamb in the world.

It has to be cooked very slowly indeed.

If you want to save your teeth for the future.

So, please join us for that on BBC One Scotland

at a different time next week -

Friday at 8.30.

In the meantime, from all the team here in Glenelg,

thanks for your company. Bye for now.