The Rugged Islands: Shetland - Eriskay - Orkney

Film Description

Four rare films from the 1930s and 1950s depicting all aspects of island life in some of Scotland's most remote communities.

Features The Rugged Island - A Shetland Lyric (Jenny Brown, 1934): A documentary/drama about a young couple torn between the choice of emigration to Australia or remaining to work on their croft in Shetland. The film tells how their dilemma is finally resolved for them.

Eriskay - A Poem of Remote Lives (Dr Werner Kissling,1935): A study of the lives of Eriskay's crofter families. Shot as a silent film during the summer of 1934 by a visitor to the islands, Werner Kissling. A soundtrack, with snatches of Gaelic dialogue, and music were added in a London studio. The film was premiered in April 1935.

Life in the Orkneys (Campbell Harper Films, 1957): Life on the Orkney Islands seen through the eyes of a mail boat skipper, a farmer and a civil air-service pilot. The film includes a brief scene of the German fleet in Scapa Flow prior to the scuttling in 1919.

Handba' at Kirkwall, Orkney (1939): Scenes from the Handba' festival on New Year's day in Kirkwall 1939. This was the last Ba' to be held until after the end of the Second World War.

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Related Genres

• Classic Movies / British
• Documentaries / Natural World
• Documentaries / Other