Wild orchid hunting

Oil on the lens
Tom Kidd’s breathtaking
pictures of Shetland in
the 1970s
On the trail of
craftiness
A dream home
Elizabeth Atia enjoys the
creative skills of the isles
Mike Finnie advises
on building a house
in Shetland
Connecting Creativity
Issue No 13 | Summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
Wild orchid
hunting
Jon Dunn goes looking for the rarest
of rarities - the Small White
8
Contents
On the trail of craftiness
4
Elizabeth Atia enjoys the creative
skills of the isles
Oil on the lens 8
Tom Kidd’s astonishingly powerful
photographs of Shetland in the 1970s
Building a house
in Shetland
14
Beyond all the construction heartaches a
dream home may lie, says Mike Finnie
Making a difference by design
17
Alastair Hamilton looks at the work
of Redman Sutherland Architects
A prominent posterior and proportionally –
tipped pelvis
20
Mona McAlpine on midwifery in
Shetland, past and present
Hoolie in Hackney 26
Kerstin Rogers attends
Shetland Night in London
Mackerel — healthy
and delicious
30
Both catching and eating can be a real
pleasure, writes Marian Armitage
Restoration Diary 33
Aaron Pottinger continues telling
LaurieGoodlad about restoring
the Skidbladnir
Wild orchid hunting 30
33
36
Jon Dunn goes looking for the rarest of
rarities — the Small White
Noss —
­ The perfect day out 40
There’s much more to Bressay’s neighbouring
island than just gannets, says Kevin Briggs
Putting your mind to it
42
Helen Smith finds inspiration in
Jim Thomason’s Levenwick garden
Summer in My Shetland Garden
4
42
Shedding light on the
Shetland Nature Festival
Misa Hay shares some recipes for
the versatile rhubarb
48
2015 is the UNESCO International Year of Light
Degree Show inspirations Final year students on the Contemporary
Textiles course at Shetland College UHI are
busy getting ready for their degree show
2
60 North | summer 2015
48
Shetland’s Summer Calendar 54
Alastair Hamilton looks at the endless
summer days and what they offer us
www.SHETLAND.org
20
Editor’s
Note
Misa Hay, Promote Shetland
S
36
hetland’s summer is really special and the light nights
are one of the islands’ most appealing features. It doesn’t
get completely dark between mid May and early August.
Instead, we have a kind of unfinished northern sunset.
We call this time the ‘simmer dim’ and on the longest day, the sun is
above the horizon for almost 19 hours.
Since summer is the perfect time to explore our beautiful isles
in this issue we are setting off on to the Shetland Craft Trail to
meet some of our accomplished local makers and artists. Trough a
selection of Tom Kidd’s photos we will travel back in time by a few
decades. Tom spent 10 months in Shetland between 1975 and 1979
and photographed the place and its people during the first oil boom.
In the larder two things are an essence Shetland summer –
mackerel and rhubarb. But what to do with these lovely ingredients
in abundant quantities? Marian Armitage reveals some of her
favourite mackerel recipes and I’m going to preserve rhubarb for
the winter in various ways. And for those who couldn’t attend The
Shetland Night in London earlier this year we’re bringing a short
report of the event that took place in Hackney.
Are you thinking to relocate to Shetland? Or perhaps get a new
home? One of the most popular ways to get a house in Shetland is
to build your own or get someone to build it for you. Mike Finnie
and Alastair Hamilton bring some useful information on how to go
about getting your dream home.
Summer in Shetland also brings some fantastic events. I can’t
wait for this year’s Shetland Nature Festival and put my name down
for a few workshops already. 2015 is the UNESCO International Year
of Light and this theme will be central to this year’s festival. And
then there are the traditional favourites – the annual Noss National
Nature Reserve and Sumburgh Head Open Days…
It’s shaping up to be a busy summer and that’s great.
Editor: Misa Hay
Design: Left, www.weareleft.com
Cover image: Jon Dunn
Contributions and suggestions are more than welcome. Submissions can be
made directly to the Editor by email to [email protected]
Disclaimer: Although Promote Shetland has taken reasonable steps to confirm
the information contained in the magazine at the time of publishing, it cannot
guarantee that the information published is and remains accurate. The views
expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Promote Shetland. Events
can be subject to change, we recommend you check details before travelling.
/promoteshetland @promoteshetland /promoteshetland
A Promote Shetland initiative
www.SHETLAND.org
60 North | SUMMER 2015
3
S
hetland, famous for its puffins,
ponies and sheepdogs, also
breeds a unique and wonderful
creative lifestyle. A wide range
of artists call these wild, rugged
and remote islands home, whether they
were born and bred here, inspired from
generations of Shetland craftspeople or
were drawn here by some unseen but
distinctly felt call, not unlike a homing
pigeon coming home. Many of these artists
are part of the Shetland Arts and Crafts
Association, a group founded in 1995 with
an aim to support and encourage artists and
craftspeople living in Shetland.
In 2011, select members of the Shetland
Arts and Crafts Association opened the
doors of their studios and workshops to
form the Shetland Craft Trail, making their
creative spaces available for exploration by
Shetlanders and visitors to the isles alike.
Following the signs nestled in nooks and
crannies throughout the islands, I recently
spent several weeks visiting as many of the
Craft Trail members as I could.
My adventures began in Vidlin, on the
east side of Shetland, with husband and wife
team John Porter and Jane Porter Jacobs.
John, originally from America, is retired
ceramics professor. He was on sabbatical
in Greece when he met, and subsequently
married Jane, a native Shetlander who was
painting and exhibiting in Athens. Jane
works with watercolour, acrylic, paper and
collage while John produces unique wheel
thrown stoneware and porcelain ceramics
with glazes reflecting the colours he sees
from the surrounding landscapes. Shetland
peat ash and talc from the island of Unst
both often find their way into John’s glazes.
Jane’s studio and John’s workshop, with their
stunning views, are both open to visitors.
In Scalloway, Cecil Tait of Paparwark
Furniture reveals the art hidden inside
locally grown sycamore and ash. He sees
beauty in a piece of wood and makes bespoke
Nordic inspired items using traditional
techniques, enjoying the designing process
as much as the creating. His sawdust-filled
workshop (is it just me or does sawdust
smell amazing!) is open for visitors during
weekdays.
In Weisdale, a team of creative individuals
work with molten metal using the ancient
lost wax casting process used by the Saxons
and Vikings. Established by Jack Rae in
1953, Shetland Jewellery is renowned for
its stunning contemporary and traditional
On the trail of
Shetland
Craftiness
Elizabeth Atia enjoys the creative skills of the isles
4
60 North | summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
Top left: Ninian in
Lerwick, here they
make all their own
modern and fun
Shetland knitwear;
Left: Jane Porter
Jacobs at Vidlin;
Right: Shona Skinner
runs Britain’s most
northerly art gallery,
The Shetland Gallery.
designs in gold, silver, platinum, brass
and bronze, inspired by Scandinavian
mythology, local wildlife, and traditional
Celtic designs. Visitors are more than
welcome to visit and view the workshop in
action.
On the remote island of Fair Isle, just a
short plane ride away, textile artist Mati
Ventrillon, originally from Venezuela,
creates her own unique garments based
on the traditional knitwear the island is
so famous for. Mati, of Fair Isle Knitwear,
believes that every garment, lovingly created
by an artist, carries a piece of the knitter’s
soul in it. You are not just buying an item
of clothing when you purchase a Fair Isle
sweater, you are buying a work of art with a
long history, a story, woven into its threads.
You’ll also find Kathy Coull on Fair Isle,
and although I didn’t get a chance to catch
up with her, she runs workshops and offers
www.SHETLAND.org
tuition in traditional and contemporary
textile crafts including hand-spinning,
knitting, weaving and felt making at her Fair
Isle Textile Workshop.
On the far west side of Shetland, in
Sandness, Jo Tonkinson of Journeyman
Leather works with English bridle leather
and traditional saddlery skills to create belts
(including the popular traditional Shetland
knitting belts), bags and tack. While I visited
Jo put the final touches onto some dog leads,
demonstrating the different stitches which
could be used.
Also in Sandness, and new to the Shetland
Arts and Crafts Association this year, is
Morwenna Garrick Textile Designs. Look
out for the bright purple door, the entrance
to her studio, where Morwenna weaves
vibrantly coloured mercerised cotton and
traditional Shetland wool into various
items. She loves to play with colour, and
will often combine colours you normally
might not find together. When I visited she
was weaving a vibrant, pink baby blanket.
Visitors are more than welcome to have a go
on the loom themselves.
In Lerwick you will find Joanna Hunter at
Ninian, who make all of their own modern
and fun Shetland knitwear in the studio
behind their shop on the street. Visitors
are more than welcome to visit the studio
and see the design process from start to
finish, but be warned it is a working studio
so it might be a bit chaotic! Alternatively
you could sign up for one of their colour
workshops during the Shetland Wool Week
in September.
Just down the street from Ninian you will
find Dawn Seigal at N-graved, busy machine
and hand-engraving just about everything
she can! Dawn is also new on the Craft Trail
this year, and visitors are welcome to come
into her studio and view metal, wood, glass,
leather and slate engraving. While I was
visiting I watched the hypnotic machine
engrave a stainless steel piece of art.
Moving up north to the island of Unst,
fused-glass artist Cheryl Jamieson of Glansin
Glass works magic with broken pieces of
glass, transforming them in her studio into
stunning pieces of artwork inspired from
the heritage, history, archaeology, knitwear
and geology of our islands. Making fused
glass is addictive, Cheryl says, when you open
the kiln you never know what you’ll find! It’s
a thrill every time! u
60 North | SUMMER 2015
5
Left: Jo Tonkinson
of Journeyman
Leather works
Below left: New
on the Craft Trail is
N–Graved using
metal, wood, glass,
leather and slate
engraving
Below right: Cheryl
Jamieson of Glansin
Glass works
The Craft Trail
has something for
every personality
and every taste
I
n Yell, Shona Skinner runs Britain’s
most northerly art gallery, The
Shetland Gallery, showcasing the high
end of Shetland arts and crafts. An
artist herself with a background in drawing,
painting and textiles, Shona now works
primarily with free machine embroidery.
She was working on a stunning Shetland
landscape piece while I visited. Her studio
in the gallery, is open to visitors from Easter
until September. Also in Yell you’ll find
Andy Ross at Global Yell, who was in the
process of setting up a weaving studio next
to The Shetland Gallery when I visited. He
was away at the time of writing, but I hope to
catch up with him once the studio is up and
running.
On the south mainland, in Scousburgh,
Elizabeth Johnston at Shetland Handspun
spins, knits and weaves pure, naturally dyed
Shetland wool into various garments from
shawls to fingerless gloves. Her studio, filled
with beautiful spinning wheels, is open
to visitors, and Elizabeth runs workshops
throughout the year. Visitors, individually
or in groups, are welcome to come in and
spend an hour, or a week, to learn whatever
they want about wool. If she’s in she’s open
and she’s happy to answer any questions. Just
a hop, skip and a jump up the road and you
will find Julia and Stephen Downing of JuSt
Shetland, both with an infectious passion for
weaving. During my visit I had a tour of their
home, containing an extraordinary number
of looms and spinning wheels, and watched
Julia card the softest cashmere and weave
the finest silk into a stunning shawl. Julia
and Stephen work with baby camel, silk,
cashmere, alpaca, linen, mohair and locally
sourced Shetland fleece to create beautifully
crafted garments. Visitors are encouraged to
have a go at carding, spinning and weaving
themselves.
Further on down the road, in Quendale,
you’ll find Hannah Nelson at Quendale
Designs. Hannah is also new to the Craft
Trail this year, and she works with knitwear
traditionally stretched on wooden frames.
She also uses modern techniques to achieve
6
60 North | summer 2015
silk printing (not to be confused with screen
printing!), transferring digital imagery she
has designed onto silk scarves. She is also
experimenting with other fabrics and soft
furnishings. Depending on the day visitors
are welcome to view the samples she is
working on, maybe see a print run on the go
or admire knitwear being stretched.
Travelling further north again to
Sandwick, you’ll find Ruth Brownlee busy
painting away in her studio overlooking
the sea. Ruth paints stunning seascapes in
mixed media blues and textures, capturing
the weather, the light, and the sense of space
and openness which is Shetland. Visitors
are always welcome to have a look around
the studio and view her work on display.
Next on my travels - the alternative Shetland
Knitwear, Neilanell. Expat Canadian Neila
has a fantastic little design studio nestled
on the outskirts of Sandwick, filled with
colour, texture and inspiration. She brightly
www.SHETLAND.org
Above: Elizabeth Johnston at Shetland Handspun spins,
knits and weaves pure, naturally dyed Shetland wool
Left: Wendy Inkster, the creator of Burra Bears.
dyes and then spins Shetland wool, using the
tradition of knitting to create contemporary
designs instead of redoing traditional
knitting. Shetland is about innovation, Neila
says, it’s about freedom and integrity and all
these strengths are worked into her unusual,
stylish garments.
In Levenwick, a chance phone call to James
B. Thomason transported me from reality
to a world of energy, paint, carpets and
colour. James is an award winning artist who
doesn’t like to limit himself to one genre.
If he fancies painting it, he’ll paint it - from
landscapes, abstracts, imaginative, portraits,
collage and Australian themes. He’s also a
keen gardener, and visitors are welcome to
browse his studio and gardens which have
recently been featured on television.
In Burra you will find Wendy Inkster,
the creator of Burra Bears. Upcycling old
www.SHETLAND.org
Fair Isle jumpers into quirky bears full of
personality, Wendy has made quite a name
for herself, world over. Members of the public
are welcome to visit for a tour of the studio,
or even bring their own old jumper to have
it made into a bear. Just down the road from
Burra Bears you’ll find Mike Finnie at Red
Houss. I was unable to catch up with Mike
during my tour, but Mike works with silver
jewellery featuring Fair Isle patterns as well
as watercolour paintings and hand-printed
cards.
Also on the trail, but I didn’t get the
opportunity to visit, are the newly added
Shetland Tannery, where husband and
wife team Tom and Natalie Ratter in
Northmavine tan local sheepskins, goatskins
and work with Shetland cow horns. They
finish cowhides and hand finish sheepskin
slippers, cushions and rugs and are currently
extending their range to accessories. They
are also currently developing salmon skin
leather. Visitors are welcome to browse their
workshop.
The Craft Trail has something for every
personality and every taste. To get a sneaky
peek into people’s creative spaces is an
experience unto itself. Getting to know the
people behind an object, be it a jumper, a
pillow or a glass dish, is really something
special and it adds to the story of that piece of
art. What I noticed while on the Craft Trail
was how infectious their collective creative
passion was. There are so many different
people working with different mediums,
with different opinions and ideas, but one
thing links them all: their passion. Everyone
was more than happy to answer my million
and one questions, sharing their knowledge
with obvious enthusiasm. When I returned
home I wanted to start making something
myself (I did, actually, I made an awful lot
of sawdust!), and I now want to learn how to
spin, and weave and work with fused glass.
Most places on the Craft Trail are open
daily during the summer months, but do
phone ahead first to avoid disappointment.
Their contact details are listed in the
Shetland Craft Trail leaflet which you can
pick up in the tourist office on the street in
Lerwick.
When shopping for crafts in Shetland look
out for the Shetland Arts and Crafts logo.
www.shetlandartsandcrafts.co.uk
60 North | SUMMER 2015
7
OIL ON THE LENS
Tom Kidd & Shetland
in the 1970 s
“He makes Shetland look
like war-torn Poland’
wrote one aggrieved
islander when Tom Kidd’s
book of photographs, Life
in Shetland, was first
published. And yet it’s the
joy and humanity I always
see. Tom’s eye for people, and
the ability to catch the exact,
intimate moment that best
expresses their personalities,
is extraordinary.
8
60 North | summer 2015
by tom morton
Photographers looking at these images should remember
two things: they were shot on Kodak Tri-x film with a
couple of Nikons and mostly using a 35mm lens (though
with occasional use of 24mm and 135mm lenses). That
means there was none of the incessant image-capture of
the digital age; with film (Especially as an impoverished
youngster straight out of Napier College and existing on
a Kodak bursary) you husband your resources, choose
the shot as the action is happening. And that 35mm lens
meant Tom worked up close and personal. He met, talked
with, befriended his subjects. It really isn’t about the gear.
Especially, it’s not about that expensive long lens, the
thing that keeps you distant. Tom’s pictures are not about
distance. They’re about closeness.
60 North | SUMMER 2015
9
Tom Kidd’s memories of Shetland
Fellow Napier photography student Charlie
Robertson was the first person to point me in the
direction of Shetland. Charlie was from North
Roe, and saw the changes happening.
When I arrived on the St Claire with a small
case strapped to the back of my tired Suzuki 50,
he helped find me a place to stay in Hillswick,
took me to meet his wonderful parents, Jimmie
and Annie, and introduced me to his cousin
Mary Blance at the BBC.
My time in Hillswick was a fine introduction
to Shetland, but the Kodak bursary money soon
ran out. Stewart Pollock, who was building
council houses at Voe, took pity and gave me a
labourer job, working alongside joiner “Big”
Robbie Cummings and a motley crew of other
trades. Fun times followed. One of the “perks”
was living in Voe Hall during the week. Robbie
took me under his wing, and was good company,
apart from his guitar playing and Babs Dickson
stories… just kidding, Robbie.
After a year or so away from Shetland, I
returned to continue my project. This time I
stayed at a fine B&B in Scalloway, and then with
10
60 North | summer 2015
Bertha Mouat and family in North Nesting.
Bertha was a great help. She introduced me to
friends and neighbours like Bertie, John and
Jeanie, all of whom I photographed on many
occasions. I think the pictures all started coming
together during that time.
The longer I spent on Shetland, the more I
warmed to the people and the place. Sadly, my
headlong charge to further my photography
meant that I lost touch with some of the friends
who had been such a help.
More recently, The Bonhoga gallery showed
some of the photographs and Tom Morton put
together Black Gold Tide and has been the key
element in the images appearing again.
All the pictures will, I hope, become part of
an online archive, where visitors can comment
with names, places, activities and caption the
photographs - never my strong point as any
journalists I have worked with will agree.
In the meantime, many of the
photos can be seen at
www.tomkiddphotography.co.uk
and www.blackgoldtide.co.uk
The best press photographers I have worked with over
the decades have been the ones with highly-developed
social skills, sometimes essential because they had
to be able to talk themselves out of serious trouble.
Tom likes to interract with those he photographs,
and to produce Life in Shetland, he spent 10 months
in the isles between 1975 and 1979, at first in a
remote Northmavine cottage, then mostly in Bed and
Breakfast establishments where he met all sorts of characters. And
that really was a time of characters.
As the North Sea began to give up its riches, Shetland was the
klondyke, the motherlode for anyone connected with the oil
industry, and thousands flocked to Sullom Voe in search of the
incredible rates of pay on offer. Over £1000 a week in 1977 was a
vast fortune, though that included punishing overtime and often
dreadful working and living conditions.
But at the same time, Shetland was still full of fascinating - and
fascinated - local folk who had come through two world wars and
for whom the advent of oil was an object, an interlude, of interest
and amusement. Given the vast numbers of service personnel who
had garrisoned Shetland in both wars, the swaggering, moneyed
‘bears’ were no real burden. The traditional crofting and fishing
life of Shetland was still very much in evidence, and the (mostly
good natured) interface between the two communities (with the
occasional crunching collision) is another aspect of Tom’s work.
Where did the incoming, 6-7000-strong workforce stay? Yes,
there were the ‘camps’, at Firth and Toft, not-so-small towns with
every modern convenience, including sports halls, bars, dancehall
and cinemas. There was the infamous redundant cruise ship
Rangatira. But there were the caravans, the cottages, the guest
houses and huts, too. There was the presence at hall dances of
‘travelling men’, and the inevitable jealousies and confrontations.
Relationships, marriages, births, abandonments. There was the
discrepancy between what an unskilled cleaner could earn at say
Firth Camp and what that person’s father had been earning after
a lifetime of experience. Sometimes a daughter might earn double
her father’s income. It was a strange, topsy-turvy, tense, exciting
time. Shetland would never be the same again.
And always the shadow cast by money. Cash. On an individual,
corporate, national, international level. The contract to build
Sullom Voe was a so-called ‘cost plus’ one, without the penalty
clauses which have cost Petrofac so dearly in the Laggan-Tormore
project. North Sea Oil was crucial to the British Government of
the day for political reasons and the giant oil terminal in Shetland
had to be built, regardless of cost. The UK’s self sufficiency
in energy was the aim, without the traditional dependence
on coal. Anything that got in the way wasn’t scrapped. It was
dumped. Buried. There are all kinds of stories of what lies in the
now-landfilled Orka Voe, between the new Total gas plant and
the oil terminal. There’s a very good reason nothing has been
built there. Buses, lorries, Land Rovers, vast quantities of heavy
machinery, some it unused - are all reputed to be down among the
peat, dispensed with when their usefulness was at an end, or when
someone realised they’d been unnecessary from the start. Money,
in the making of the Sullom Voe Terminal, truly was no object.
And as the thousands of men who came to build it worked,
played, drank, partied and left their mark on Shetland, or indeed
stayed and settled, Tom Kidd was there to capture, with an
incredible sense of ease, care, craft and insight, their lives, their
hopes, their dreams, their liveliness and their exhaustion. Life in
Shetland.
In 2015 of course, with eight cruise ships or accommodation
barges moored up in various parts of the isles, not to mention
a packed hotels and hostels, Shetland is in the midst of a ‘new
klondike’, even as oil prices tumble and energy firms look to save
money. Looking back to the 1970s through Tom Kidd’s eye, it does
seem harsh, hard, everything in stark black and white.
But is it really that different?
60 North | SUMMER 2015
11
12
60 North | summer 2015
60 North | SUMMER 2015
13
Tom Kidd and 60 North would love your comments on the pictures, and especially information on the people and places shown. Please email [email protected]
The complete archive of Tom’s Shetland pictures is online at www.tomkiddphotography.co.uk where prints can be ordered. We will be featuring more of these stunning pictures in future magazines
Building
a house
in Shetland
Beyond all the
construction heartaches
lies a dream home, says
Mike Finnie. Hopefully.
O
ne of the most popular ways
to get a new house in Shetland
is to build your own, or
get someone to build it for
you. Affordable land prices, frequent family
connections to available sites, and the lack
of a sizeable commercial housebuilding
industry have meant that for many people
building their own house is an attractive
option. But if you are new to Shetland or you’ve
never been involved in building yourself a
house where do you start? Firstly, before
you start to look for a piece of land, you need
to spend time deciding what you need. You need a house – for how many
people? How long will you need the
house for? What happens when your
circumstances change or your family all
leave home? Will your house be a stepping
stone to something else or will it be your
long-term home? Think about how your
house can change to meet your needs as your
family changes or you get older. You can
design something which would suit your
family now but could, for instance, be split
later to give you a smaller home and a selfcatering unit to let out. Or you build a small
house now and design a future extension,
perhaps putting in the site services as part of
the first stage. Where would you like your house to
be? Think about what public services you
need access to: schools, shops, doctor, public
transport or to be near to a main road if you
will be commuting to work. And think how
your needs might change in the medium or
longer term. As your children grow up you
might find yourself providing a constant
14
60 North | summer 2015
Once you have a potential site
in mind you need to start thinking of
a design for your house
taxi service to access out of school activities
or to get into Lerwick. A remote site can be
idyllic in the summer but become a struggle
in the winter battling against wind and rain
to get to a shop or doctors surgery. Many
side roads will not get priority gritting or
snow clearing so if driving to your work
is a priority you’ll need to consider that.
Although the land for a remote house site
can be cheaper you’ll need to think about
the time you’ll spend travelling and also the
fuel costs. You’ll always need a reliable car if
you are not on a bus route. Once you have decided what you need
and have an idea where you would like your
house to be you then need to start doing
some serious donkey work. You can check
the local press and the solicitors’ websites
www.SHETLAND.org
where there are sometimes plots of land for
sale. You can put an advert in The Shetland
Times. It’s more likely that you’ll have to
spend time looking around the areas you’d
like to live in and start asking questions
about land availability with local people. If you can find the Clerk to the Common
Grazings (each area will have one) they
might be able to assist by pointing you
towards people who might consider selling a
piece of land. At the same time as looking for land you
need to do some research into the planning
policies which will apply to you. The
starting point is Shetland Islands Council’s
Planning website. By appointment, the
Planning Service can provide advice. Before that it’s well worth looking up the
www.SHETLAND.org
Council’s Local Development Plan. This is a
substantial document which covers a huge
range of considerations when selecting a
site. Helpfully the document does identify
sites where development is likely to be
looked on favourably and which can be
serviced by existing infrastructure. It
also includes maps which show specific
designations such as conservation areas,
sites of special scientific interest and
national scenic areas all of which may
impact on where you can build a house. On
the planning website you’ll also find ‘The
Shetland House’, a housing design guide
which includes useful information and
guidelines to help your planning application
gain approval. You’ll need services on your site and it’s
worth asking the service providers if and
how they would be able to provide these
to your site. You’ll need to think about an
electricity supply, phone, drainage and
water. Increasingly you’ll need internet and
mobile phone access which may not be good
in rural areas. As well as asking the service
providers it’s worth asking people in the
area how good or bad these services are. You’ll need to consider the cost of providing
these services. If you are a distance from
these supplies the cost of servicing a site
can be substantial. Some rural settlements
have drainage schemes but for much
of rural Shetland you’ll be looking at a
sustainable drainage solution to serve your
site. You’ll need advice from SEPA (Scottish
Environment Protection Agency) and an
engineer to design your proposals. There are
classifications for the different qualities of
agricultural land and you’ll need to avoid
building on the best land. When you’ve spent time and found
what could be a suitable site it’s worth
arranging a meeting with a planning officer
to discuss what you’d like to do. You can
discuss potential problems before you start
incurring the expense of getting plans
drawn up. You’ll also need to start making
enquiries about buying the land. Much of
Shetland is crofting land and each croft may
be owner occupied or subject to a crofting
tenancy. You’ll need to employ the services
of a solicitor experienced in crofting law
to advice you of the procedures you need to
go through. A solicitor can tell you about
decrofting land and the timescales involved. Once you have a potential house site in
mind you need to start thinking of a design
for your house. If you have a good brief – a
list of what you need your house to do for
you (rather than just a list of rooms) this
will get the design off to a good start. Don’t
design your ‘ideal’ house before you have a
site for it – you need to know were the best
views are, where sunlight will come from
and will you approach the front or back of
the house from the road. You don’t want to
be in the situation where you end up with
your living space facing north, or into a hill
or never getting any sunlight. Think about the weather – yes it can be
bad anywhere in Shetland but if you have
a west facing site with a great open view it
might be a struggle in a severe south u
60 North | SUMMER 2015
15
Settlement at West Sandwick,Yell
If you’re not
daunted by
a complex
and lengthy
process
you could
consider a
restoration
project
16
60 North | summer 2015
u westerly getting from your car to the
house if your main door is facing into the
wind. For your own security you need to
consider if someone else will be able to
build in front of you remembering that in
planning you have no right to a view. What
size should your site be? Most house sites
are around 1000 square metres, which is
adequate for a family house, two or three
parking spaces and a garage. A bigger house
site might sound ideal but unless you are in
a sheltered location or are willing to invest
time and money in building dykes, shelter
fences and establishing shelter belts of
trees it’s likely that you’ll have to spend the
summer cutting large areas of grass. When you know what you want you
can start designing. Local architects have a
lot of experience in designing houses that
are suitable for Shetland. If you are new
here you might find that what would work
on a site much farther south wouldn’t be
suitable for an exposed site in Shetland. The majority of new houses in Shetland
are based on a timber construction, with
external cladding of timber or blockwork
with some sort of rendered finish. Timber
offers a faster construction period, ideally
avoiding the worst of the winter weather. You have a wide range of roofing options
including natural slate, tiles or metal
sheeting. Windows and door should be
suitable for very high exposure. You can
maximise solar gain by facing your house
towards the sun and perhaps having an
internal sun space which will transfer heat
into the rest of your house. Wind chill has
a big impact on heating your house, simple
things like reducing window sizes on a
north facing wall can help. Having one door
to the house can reduce draughts. Once you have a design you’ll need to
submit an application for planning consent. A pre-application meeting with a planning
officer should highlight any concerns they
may have and can save you time and expense
in amending final drawings. You’ll need to
submit your drainage proposals along with
the planning drawings and also information
on vehicular access from the public road and
on site parking and turning. Once you are fairly certain that what
you propose is feasible in terms of cost and is
likely to receive planning consent you may
want to start the process to purchase the
site. If the site needs to be de-crofted this
procedure takes time. Any offer you make
to buy the site should be conditional on
receiving planning and any other consents
required. As well as needing drawings to submit
for planning consent you need drawings
to submit to Building Control. These are
a much more detailed set of drawings
with specifications for the materials you
are using as well as structural design
information and heat loss calculations. You
need to receive Building warrant before you
can start any work on site. Now you have to decide who is building
your house; are you doing much of the
work yourself? Do you need contractors in
to do some work for you? Who will do the
plumbing, electrical and heating work? If
you plan to do some of the work yourself
and bring in other tradesmen as required
you’ll need some project management
to ensure that work progresses as fast as
possible without delays waiting for key
people or materials to arrive. The good
thing is that self-build is a normal way
to have a house built in Shetland. You’ll
find that the required skills, knowledge
and advice is readily available in the local
construction industry. If you’re not daunted by a complex
and lengthy process you could consider a
restoration project. Shetland has many
old buildings suitable for restoration if the
owner is willing to sell. There are a number
of Shetland buildings on the Buildings
at Risk register, some in remote and
spectacular locations. Whatever you do, don’t underestimate
the time and effort you’ll need to put
into any building project. Your reward
will be getting a house that fits all your
requirements. www.SHETLAND.org
C
reating buildings – be they houses, offices, shops,
However, that is changing. Jim, Suzanne and Iain agree that people
public halls or health facilities – entails spending
are much more inclined to use an architect nowadays and that
a significant amount of money; often, they’re the
television programmes such as Grand Designs have had an influence.
largest investment that an individual or a business
As Iain says, “People have seen what is possible. When I was growing
makes. It makes sense to gain maximum benefit
up, I didn’t know what was available, even although I was really
from the expenditure and that’s where architects like Redman
Sutherland come in, because they believe that they can
interested in design.”
Suzanne is in no doubt that “people’s
expectations of what they will have and how they will live
have been changed.”
make a real difference.
Based in the village of Scalloway, they undertake
work of all kinds throughout Shetland. Jim
Sutherland had previously worked for
Shetland Islands Council and Richard
Gibson Architects before branching out
on his own in 1994. Suzanne Malcolmson
and Iain Malcolmson joined in 2006.
Alastair
Hamilton looks
at the work of
Redman Sutherland
Architects
As interesting, thoughtfully-
designed houses appear in greater numbers
all over Shetland, she says that more and
more people realise that they, too, could
have something really good, instead of
something that’s just ‘all right’.
Suzanne emphasises that getting to the
root of the client’s needs is at the core of
Bernard Redman, now retired, worked
what they do. “I think we try our best to
with the firm from 2000 until 2010.
make sure they get as good a job as they
Jim,
Suzanne
and
architecture
in
worked
Croydon
in
Iain
all
Edinburgh.
and
studied
Jim
has
Aberdeen,
Suzanne in Cambridge and New York
and Iain on Tayside. The trio are ably
supported
by
Architectural
Andrew
Hunter,
Technician,
and
their
Janice
Making a
difference
by design
can - and to challenge, sometimes, what
they want.”
What’s more, good design
may not, in the end, cost any more.
As
Iain
explains:
“We
have
an
appreciation of how things work in
design terms. Although they pay a fee
for the design service, at the end of the
day they will have a building that suits
Hamer, who’s in charge of all the
their needs.
administrative tasks.
We spend a lot of time at
Although Shetland’s architectural practices have always designed
the beginning trying to get at what they really want out of a building.
buildings for the Council, local housing associations and businesses,
Sometimes, at the start, they can be looking for something bigger or
it used to be the case that few individual homes emerged from their
more complicated than they actually need. Eventually, we distil it
studios.
With little speculative housing activity by developers in
down and give them exactly what they want. It’s not necessarily any
Shetland, the solution for many lay in a ‘kit house’, either locally-
more expensive at the end of the day, in fact we can probably save
fabricated or imported from mainland Scotland or Scandinavia.
them money on the actual building.
Henderson House
An interesting design that suits
its surroundings. This house is
at Sound in Lerwick
www.SHETLAND.org
60 North | SUMMER 2015
17
Right:
The before and after
shots of the restoration of
Anderson Buildings. It has
transformed Scalloway’s
Main Street
Below:
Redman and Sutherland’s
software allows the client
to walk through an
extraordinarily realistic
virtual home
Bottom:
Suzanne worked with
Historic Scotland to find a
satisfactory lime harl for
this historic Shetland house
We spend the money wisely on the parts
that money needs to be spent on, thinking
about how the building is going to work
over the long term.” Suzanne adds that one
of the things she’s said to people is that the
architect’s fee is “often less than the price
of a kitchen – and people will change their
kitchen, over a ten-year period, at the drop of
a hat”.
Jim says that they can add substantially to
the value of larger schemes, too. Sometimes,
that involves challenging the received
wisdom about a site or a project. There may be
a belief that only so many units can work on a
site, but as he says, good design can overcome
the constraints and maximise the site’s
potential and viability.
It’s all about opening up possibilities.
Clients often find it useful to see examples
of past work, but a particularly useful tool
is a state-of-the-art computer-aided design
program with 3D capability. As Suzanne says,
it means that the client can go on a virtual
walk through their new house and see it
before they commit themselves. “That does
18
60 North | summer 2015
help a lot”.
The service doesn’t end with design.
The practice applies for all the necessary
permissions and certificates; manages the
tendering process; inspects the work in
progress and makes final checks when it’s
finished. As Iain says, “Any building work now
involves so many processes, so many consents
you have to go through, that you would really
be struggling to do it yourself.” Once upon a
time, the only things required were planning
permission and a building warrant; these
days, all kinds of other requirements, from
percolation tests to energy performance
certificates, need to be dealt with. “We can
bring in expertise on heating, ventilation,
lighting and acoustics”, he continues. “Folk
have become more sophisticated and that’s
good for us, it’s also good for the built
environment. Standards have risen a lot”.
All three emphasise their role in making
the most of any given space. They particularly
admire the work of Glenn Murcutt, an
architect born in London who has practised in
Australia, for his “classic modernism, usually
open-plan. He often has long, thin kitchens,
then a dining space and a living space.” Iain
adds that Murcutt also gets to know his clients
really well, and the end result is something
which is “beautiful but very simple.”
However, all three say that architecture in
Scotland is in good health, too, reeling off the
names of a number of practices whose work
they admire; and they all pay tribute to the
late Isi Metstein, their “absolutely fantastic”
professor at Edinburgh. They all mention
Scandinavian influences, too; and Suzanne
has always been “a bit of a Le Corbusier fan.
It’s his design philosophy, cutting to the
chase”, she says. She feels that buildings need
“to look really simple and effortless. If it looks
complicated, then you’ve not got it right”.
Redman Sutherland’s workload is wideranging. As well as large and small housing
developments and a variety of commercial
and industrial work, they undertake
feasibility studies and have been involved in
a number of conservation and regeneration
projects, several of them within a stone’s
throw of their Scalloway office. Jim says:
“Scalloway’s become quite important to the
practice over the years. In this block, we’ve
www.SHETLAND.org
Main image:
A spacious extension to a
house in the Lerwick Lanes
Conservation Area succeeds
through simplicity of form
Below:
Redman and Sutherland
undertake work for public
and private clients all over
Shetland; this example is in
Cullivoe on the island of Yell.
worked on every building from one end to the
other apart from this one”.
In fact, conservation work is an important
part of the practice portfolio. Suzanne is
accredited for it by the Royal Incorporation
of Architects in Scotland and she emphasises
that in conservation, as in every other
aspect of practice, the key is keeping
abreast of developments. The use of lime
in construction is one example, where the
preferred techniques have changed a lot in
recent years. She has undertaken a research
case study with Historic Scotland at a large old
‘haa’ house – a Shetland laird’s mansion – in
the west mainland. There had been a problem
with water penetration through the external
walls and Historic Scotland was interested in
finding a solution, so “we stripped it back and
repointed it using a hot lime mix.”
Such jobs aren’t necessarily commercially
driven, because Suzanne feels a
responsibility to help care for these buildings
that are part of the community fabric. For
example, she has been involved in regular
surveys of church property and was able to
www.SHETLAND.org
identify a possible source of grant aid and
help them with an application.
An architect’s training is long but, as Jim
says, what they do is “a craft”, a set of skills
that they’ve honed. It takes a long time to
qualify as an architect, but that reflects the
need to absorb so much knowledge. Much of
it isn’t about grand designs; it can often be
about managing space in existing buildings.
But, as he also points out, it’s about “having
a vision for the project, and knowing what’s
possible.”
It’s by creating that blend of vision and
practicality, supported by the best technology
and training, that Redman Sutherland believe
they can make a difference.
www.redmansutherland.co.uk
60 North | SUMMER 2015
19
‘A prominent
posterior &
proportionally
– tipped pelvis’
Mona McAlpine
on midwifery
in Shetland,
past and present
20
In ancient times and primitive societies midwives
had knowledge and skills in an area of life that was
a mystery to most people, it was assumed that they
had supernatural powers from supernatural sources.
Midwifery had and still does have both a science as
well as an art aspect - manual as well as magical and
mystical. Hence the midwife was often revered, often
feared, sometimes accepted and sometimes tortured.
During the 15th and 16th century inquisition, midwives
were often burned at the stake for being ‘the early
companions of the devil’ (The Witch Hammer 1487).
Barbara Tulloch and her daughter Ellen, the last witches
to be burned in Shetland, were executed on the Gallow
Hill above Scalloway. I have never been able to find out
why they were thought to be witches ...could it be they
may have been midwives?
Until well into the 19th century many Shetlanders
believed in the powers of witches and trows and new
mothers and newborn infants were supposed to be
especially vulnerable to the influence of trows exchanging
their sickly and ill babies for human babies.
These facts were certainly known to my Grandmother
Midwives. They were brave to take on such
responsibilities and were clear in their Christian beliefs
dismissing the trows and witches stories as being nothing
more than superstitious nonsense.
21
of institutions, the NHS. All nurses and
midwives who practise in the UK must
be on the Nursing and Midwifery (NMC)
register.
The midwife
nyone born in the middle of the last
century and caught up in the speed of
the rapidly changing 21st must wonder:
“has it gone about as far as it will go?”
What with the constant evolution of
technology, medical science and so on,
for better or worse, we will undoubtedly
change as the world around us
continues to change.
Midwifery does not escape this. As a
midwife, trained in the days portrayed
in the TV show ‘Call the Midwife’, I have
personally seen tremendous changes in
the profession. I can also say that by and
large these have been decidedly positive.
Who would have thought back in the
day that parents could one day be told
the sex of their unborn, could access
‘a window into the womb’ through
scanning the uterus? That babies could
be conceived outside of the womb
and sometimes carried by a surrogate
mother, or that genetic engineering
and manipulation could be applied to
make sure their unborn infants would
not suffer from a devastating genetic
condition? Who knows, perhaps one day
we will be able to order a designer baby
complete with the preferred colour of
eyes! These facts can of course lead us to
a minefield of ethical and moral debate.
But that is another story.
Midwifery in the UK
By and large the service in Shetland
mirrors that of the midwifery service in
the UK. After all Shetland is one of The
British Isles, so all health services enjoy
being governed by that most wonderful
Training to become a qualified
registered midwife is a three year direct
entry course.
All midwives are employed by the
NHS except those who decide to opt out
and become self-employed Independent
Midwives. Alongside the steep rise in
insurance premiums, coinciding with
the rise in a culture of litigation has
made the self- employment route less
attractive. There are no Independent
Midwives practicing in Shetland.
Midwifery Service
in Shetland
Recently midwifery has moved away
from the medical model to become
midwifery led, meaning that midwives
are truly autonomous and are supported
in this by The Royal College of Midwives.
Certainly in Shetland where there is
an integrated maternity service this is
the case. The childbirth experience is
woman centred with freedom of choice
and for all low-risk mums it is midwives
who are in charge and doctors are not
involved unless their input is required.
A midwife
should have
a hawk’s eye
a ladies hand
and a lions
heart
This 16th Century quote says it all
and still does stand the test of time
22
From the outset of pregnancy when
most mums will have done a home
pregnancy test, contact with The Gilbert
Bain Maternity Unit in Lerwick will be
made and a midwife will then complete
a first referral form. Mothers who live
in Lerwick will be looked after during
the antenatal and postnatal period by
midwives at Gilbert Bain Maternity
Unit. Mums who reside in the rural
areas will be looked after by midwives
attached to her GP Practice. All low-risk
mums will be booked to deliver their
babies in the Maternity Unit unless they
opt for a home delivery.
Because of Shetland’s geographical
position some compromises do have to
be made.
The Gilbert Bain Maternity Unit is
part of the main Gilbert Bain Hospital.
It has an atmosphere of joy with highly
experienced, kind and competent
staff. It is ‘Baby Friendly’ meaning that
the staff are trained in the promotion
of breastfeeding. Midwifery skills
are constantly monitored, improved
and upgraded; these include medical
examination of the new-born baby and
prescription of medication. Fertility
services are offered and are linked
with services to women who have
recurrent miscarriage. The midwives
are also involved in hypnotherapy
and childbirth education as well as
parenting advice and sexual health
services. Promotion of breastfeeding
is high on the agenda due to the Baby
Friendly status.
The Unit has a birthing pool where
mum can ease her discomfort in a lovely
warm bath, and can, if all is going well,
deliver her baby under-water. Along
with five beds, two labour wards and a
team of midwives and GP’s on call, who
could ask for more?
The main hospital has two theatres,
three general surgeons and three
anaesthetists so if the low risk labour
suddenly turns high risk, emergency
services are available.
At the moment there is no resident
full-time obstetrician, although
A midwife’s tale ...
The office of a midwife is an ancient calling and much of its history
has been lost in the annals of time, but true to say, labouring women
the world over have an innate need for an understanding, kind and
competent person to be with them during one of the most momentous
milestones in their lives. From this need we get the name midwife, derived
from the old English, mid meaning with and wif meaning woman.
Midwifery has been part of my family since time immemorial, so it’s
not surprising that from early childhood my ambition was to follow in
the footsteps of my maternal forebears.
With a population of only 23,000, the Shetland Islands lie in the rich
oil fields half-way between Scotland and Norway, roughly 200 miles off
each coast and splits the North Sea and The Atlantic Ocean.
I was born and brought in these remote Islands during the World
War Two years, life was incredibly tough going for the inhabitants,
who had lost many of their men folk, the highest loss of life per capita of
any county or shire in Britain. This was due to the fact that in addition
to men fighting in the armed forces, many Shetland men, including
members of my own family served in the Merchant Navy.
As a happy secure little girl this meant nothing to me as I spent most of
my time, when not in school, running free with my siblings and friends.
In those far off days communication was difficult. Television,
computers and mobile phones did not exist and telephones and radios
were primitive affairs compared to all the fancy smart phones, internet
and apps we enjoy today. Messages, even urgent messages were brought
by telegram boys on bicycles. Reading was encouraged and even to this
day I am an avid reader. But by far the best was the storytelling and the
oral history handed down through the generations that appealed to my
curiosity and imagination.
Up until the turn of the 20th Century the world was still relying on
untrained midwives to deliver the majority of the world’s babies. Many
of these women were highly skilled and were mentored and trained with
older women before taking on deliveries themselves.
From the stories I heard around the peat fire with the Tilley lamp
hissing in the background my grandmothers belonged to the line of
women who practised their art and their skills and passed this on from
mother to daughter.
Although I can trace my ancestors back to the 1700, it was my great
grandmother Margaret Abernethy, known in the community as ‘Baa
Mam’ who’s history and stories fascinated me. Baa Mam then passed on
her knowledge to my Grandmother Christina Nicolson (Teenie) known
to us all as ‘Midder’ who willingly took the baton. However times were
a-changing. By the time it came to my own mother Mary Helen Sinclair’s
turn, the Scottish Midwifery Act of 1915 was passed (although in
Shetland it did take some years before this was implemented). This turn
of events effectively prevented my mother continuing her involvement.
Even so, mother continued to attend confinements along with Midder
and had many an interesting story to tell.
After leaving the Pre Nursing College (The Haugh) in Elgin and on
completion of my General Nurse training at Stirling Royal Infirmary I
finally was able to follow my heart and embark on my midwifery career.
This took me to Queen Charlotte’s Maternity Hospital in London and
then onto Glasgow where I practised mainly Home Deliveries, often
Above: Christina Nicolson (Sinclair)
Carried on the tradition, born in 1869 .
Below: Margaret Abernethy (Nicolson) The Matriarch,
seen here with nine of her grand children. Daughter Teenie
is holding the baby of the family William, who grew up to
become Captain William Sinclair
23
attempts are being made to employ a
gynaecologist with obstetric input. GP’s
continue to input the service.
Because the Shetland Isles has a
population of around 23,000 people the
unit does not warrant a Neonatal ICU or
Epidural facilities, so the next step is:
Aberdeen Royal
Maternity Hospital
As the name implies all modern
medical facilities and technology is
available here.
The city of Aberdeen lies 180 miles
south of Shetland, an hour away by
‘plane or a 12 hour ferry journey. All
high-risk mums are encouraged to
deliver their babies at ARMH courtesy
of the NHS. There is dedicated ‘Island
Accommodation’ attached to the
hospital where the lady in waiting and
her partner can be housed until delivery
day. Accommodation is on a first come
basis, women/couples from Orkney and
rural Aberdeenshire can also use this
accommodation.
Points to Note
Shetland midwives and Aberdeen
obstetricians can communicate by
video link.
If a mum opts to have an epidural
anaesthetic as her preferred pain relief
option she will have to deliver her baby
in ARMH. It is interesting to note that
since the ‘evolution’ of midwifery,
whereby the labouring mother is
empowered and encouraged to use the
birthing pool and to adopt a position,
both during labour and delivery, that is
most comfortable for her, the need for
pain relief medication has been greatly
reduced. All women who are booked to
deliver at ARMH are transferred out of
Shetland at 38 weeks plus six days.
Neonatal emergencies are managed
initially in the Gilbert Bain Maternity
Unit until the Scottish Neonatal
Retrieval team arrives in a fully
equipped ‘plane. The team will include a
neonatologist, a neonatal ICU nurse and
a paramedic.
Da Annexe
In conclusion I cannot possibly finish
off without saying something about a
famous institution known the length
and breadth of Shetland.
Despite the maternity unit now being
incorporated into the main building of
the Gilbert Bain Hospital, many folk,
especially those of an older generation
still refer to this section as… Da Annexe.
Until the first Gilbert Bain Hospital
was opened in 1902, there was no
general hospital, let alone a maternity
hospital in the islands. People in need
of surgical treatment had either to rely
on the services of a limited number
of General Practitioners, or take a
hazardous sea voyage to the Royal
Infirmary, Edinburgh.
In 1850 The Royal College of
Physicians of Edinburgh appointed
a Committee to inquire into the
suspected deficiency in Medical and
Surgical services that existed in the
Highlands and Islands. It was found
that in Shetland the lack of a qualified
doctor was compensated, in many
parishes, by ministers of religion
giving advice and medicine. In some
remote areas, the midwife was the only
person who undertook the treatment
of disease. It must be remembered that
these midwives or Howdies as they
were sometimes called were mostly
untrained women. However there is
evidence that those in contact with
a doctor received a certain degree of
training to assist at confinements. In
Hillswick the Parish raised a collection
to send a woman to train as a midwifery
nurse.
In 1912 a further inquiry was carried
out to gather evidence about the
medical and nursing services, there
was by now a doctor available in most
parishes. In Lerwick two maternity
nurses were employed, one trained in
Edinburgh and the other in Glasgow. In
addition there was a District Nurse.
The Queen’s Institute of District
Nursing was formed in Queen Victoria’s
Jubilee Year 1887. The Institute
pioneered District Nurse training and
in some areas of Shetland, District
nurses were employed, but this was
somewhat sporadic. Frequently still,
mainly in country districts, women
depended on untrained midwives
to attend to their needs during
pregnancy and childbirth. Doctors
were not contacted unless something
went wrong. By this time obstetric
forceps had been invented and many a
Shetland baby would have been saved
by an experienced General Practitioner
adept in their use.
Over the next twenty years under
the direction of The Medical Officer of
Health for Shetland, funding was made
available for Nursing Associations to
be set up all over the Islands. By 1932
there were 15 associations with 20
district nurses employed. Complicated
cases of confinement and suitable
antenatal cases were sent to the Gilbert
Bain Hospital. Cases of puerperal fever
and pyrexia were looked after at the
County Isolation Hospital.
During the Second World War the
Tingwall Manse and adjacent huts
were used as an emergency hospital
with maternity provision. When peace
was declared the Manse was handed
back to The Church of Scotland and the
campaign for a suitable maternity unit
began.
On Tuesday 21 October 1947 in a
group of huts at Midgarth, which
had served as part of Lerwick’s naval
base known officially as HMS Fox,
the Midgarth Maternity Annexe was
opened. The newspapers at the time,
somewhat with tongue in cheek,
referred to the annexe as HMS Stork!
And on Thursday 23 October 1947
the first baby was delivered. As an
annexe of the Gilbert Bain Hospital the
unit shared the facilities of the main
hospital.
On 15 June 1962, mother’s babies and
the staff of the Midgarth Maternity
Annexe were transferred to the Gilbert
Bain Maternity Unit at the New Gilbert
Bain Hospital.
I would like to acknowledge and thank my cousin Douglas Sinclair and Margaret Mouat Senior Midwife at
The Gilbert Bain Maternity Unit for their help and input in the compilation of this article.
24
in the City’s Slums. Then it was on to Edinburgh where I completed my
District Nurse training at The Queen’s Institute of District Nursing and
finally my Health Visitor training at Queen Margaret’s College, also in
Edinburgh.
Then it was back to Shetland where I was employed as ‘A Triple Duty
Nurse’ (Nurse Midwife and Health Visitor). My first appointment was on
Fair Isle, famous for its beautiful knitwear and also the fact that it is the
most remote inhabited island of the British Isles.
Fair Isle has no resident GP, the nearest doctor being a four hour sea
crossing away and in my day we didn’t have the luxury of a ‘plane or
helicopter. Looking back I know that this was quite a responsibility for
a young nurse. But then I was young with all the confidence of youth. I
loved my sojourn on Fair Isle and will never forget the kindness of the
Islanders who took me to their hearts. The stunning beauty of the Isle
and the many walks and bird watching still lives on in my memory.
After my two years’ Triple Duty experience in Lerwick, where I met and
married my husband Iain, it was time for another adventure. This time it
was off to South Africa where we spent the next 30 years!
In conclusion
The midwifery stories handed down to me were by and large positive
ones. I often wondered about the reality of maternal and infant
mortality.
My mother and grandmother were two very positive ladies and I used
to think that perhaps they made light of their experiences. There were
of course stories of obstructed labour, childbed fever and babies that did
not make it, but these stories were few and far between.
Then I came across documentation of studies into bone structure that
supported 100-year-old research on the ease by which Shetland women
gave birth prior to the First World War. In May 1871 Doctor Robert
Cowie published the first edition of his history of Shetland and its people.
Dr Cowie had this to say. ‘Among island women complications in the
process of parturition are extremely rare, the great majority of labours
being natural and speedy.’
He attributed this to the fact that island women were involved in heavy
manual labour carrying straw baskets called kishies of either fish or peat
on their backs (a matriarchal society at that time because the menfolk
were either away at the fishing grounds or in the Merchant Navy).
These kishies averaged 56 kilos in weight and were used day in, day out
and often carried four miles a day. This resulted in ‘prominent posteriors
causing the brim of the pelvis being proportionally tipped forward, and
the regular carrying of heavy loads producing a strong pelvic girdle. The
larger, forward angled pelvic bones means more space between the pelvic
blades. More - space easier births.’
Dr Cowie’s studies have not been followed up but today’s Shetland
woman is physically different from her 100 year old ancestor. Poor
posture and dilution of the Shetland genes have meant that ‘child
bearing hips’ are slowly becoming a thing of the past.
Be that as it may, I am living proof of the child bearing hips! They
certainly stood me in good stead during my two labours. However there
is anecdotal evidence to prove that sitting at computers is not good for
pelvis posterior or posture. So I’d best get up and go carry in a kishie of
peats for the fire.
Above: Mona Smith (McAlpine) born in 1942.
Below: Mary Helen Sinclair (Smith) Legislation on
the way but she attended many a home birth
25
By Kerstin Rodgers
aka MsMarmitelover
Shetland
Night
in
London
A Hoolie in Hackney
26
60 North | summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
ou enter a warm fuggy
dimly-lit room at the top
of a building in urban
Hackney, an unlikely place
to recreate the atmosphere
of the far north Shetland Isles. The
points of candlelight cast an amber glow,
reflecting the free shots of whisky on entry
and the excited faces of people attending
the annual pop up dinner known as
Shetland Night.
Bowls of potted salmon, seawater
biscuits from Oceanic Oatcakes, beetroot
and golden Shetland butter are passed
around. I am given a ‘bramble’ cocktail
to follow on from the whisky shot, purple
berry syrup jingling amongst the ice and
Y
www.SHETLAND.org
vodka from Blackwoods Gin. A trio of
fiddlers, including Jenna and Bethany Reid,
take us on a journey far away from the East
End of London. Pots of heather decorate the
tables.
Filmmaker Shona Main presents her
30 minute documentary ‘Clavel’ about a
Shetland sheep farmer. The crowd laugh,
at the ram’s amorous butt-butting antics
and the fact that the farmer, James Robert,
admits he cannot understand the livestock
auctioneer either. Mind, us Londoners need
subtitles to understand his queer growl,
seemingly travelling from yon back in the
mists of time, a native crofter’s speech.
The organ at Bigton church inspires the
soundtrack. u
60 North | SUMMER 2015
27
hona then presents an
extraordinary 1932 b/w
short from a pioneer of
the documentary form, Shetland
granny Jennie Gilbertson who
recorded Shetlanders shorning,
carding, spinning wool from
sheep. This film is made more
immediate, experimental
and atmospheric with a live
soundtrack by Shetland violinist
Barry Nisbet, composed by him
also. Barry is the brother of
Helen Nisbet who founded these
annual celebrations of Shetland
food and culture. She is waiting
tables while wearing some
cheeky tights with a winking eye
painted on the back. Talented
family.
The dinner begins with the
freshest seafood soup; a pretty
plate of mussels and smoked
haddock then a table groaning
with giant flakey mutton pies,
bowls of buttery bashed neeps,
nests of dark kale. There are a
S
28
60 North | summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
I miss the community,
the safety, the fact
that as kids you have
so much freedom
in Shetland
mix of native Shetlanders here
and Londoners; the crowd is
young and metropolitan.
Amy Gibson, 39, has lived in
Bethnal Green for 16 years, but
originally hails from Lerwick.
“I’ve come here because I’m a
Shetlander, my parents are still
there. I like the anonymity of
London and I prefer the weather
here. I remember how tough the
winters were in Shetland, you
went to school in pitch black and
came home in pitch black. But I
miss the community, the safety,
the fact that as kids you have so
much freedom in Shetland.”
The meal ends with an
alcoholic trifle then tables are
pushed back, the musicians start
up and the crowd links arms and
start to dance.
I visited Shetland in the
simmer dim of 2013, this night
made me want to return.
Follow @Shetlandnight on Twitter
www.SHETLAND.org
About Kerstin
Kerstin Rodgers aka MsMarmitelover
launched the supper club/pop up/
underground restaurant movement in
the UK in 2009 with her eponymous
supper club The Underground
Restaurant. Since then, hundreds of
supper clubs have started in London
and around the UK. Her site Find
a supper club is the central online
resource for supper clubs to advertise
their dates and locations. According
to Cision, the msmarmitelover.com
blog is 29th on the list of top UK blogs
on any subject.
She is part of a new generation of
writers and chefs who use social
media to promote food via blogging,
facebook & twitter.
The Books List
Supper Club: recipes and notes from the
underground restaurant. Harper Collins, 2011
MsMarmitelover's Secret Tea Party.
Square Peg, November 2014
V is for Vegan. Quadrille, April 2015
Get started in food writing.
Hodder Staughton, June 2015
60 North | SUMMER 2015
29
Both catching and eating can be
a real pleasure by Marian Armitage
M
ackerel fishing in
Shetland can be – to coin
a phrase – a small–scale
pleasure, or it can be a
useful supplement to
a summer’s income or part of a business
worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.
And yet there was a time when mackerel
was considered by some to be barely worth
eating – good for bait, though.
Mackerel is caught by the ‘Big Boats’ after
the herring in October and November. At
the height of a good season 1000 tonnes can
be landed in a day at the Shetland Catch
Plant in Lerwick (www.shetlandcatch.com)
from Shetland Boats as well as those from
Scotland and Europe. The fish is frozen
ungutted and round and is exported to
Africa, principally Nigeria and Egypt; the
Far East: Japan, China and Korea and some
Eastern European countries – especially
Poland where much of it is smoked. At
the moment there is no market in Russia
because of the export ban but this excellent
fish caught off Shetland is in high demand
around the world because of its high quality
– due to the much higher fat content and a
dryer flesh than mackerel caught elsewhere.
The operation at the Shetland Catch is
extremely slick. Boats land their catch right
outside the factory and the fish is pumped
ashore from refrigerated tanks on the boats
and within 15 minutes it is in boxes in
the blast freezers. The fish may only have
travelled a few miles from behind Bressay,
Yell Sound or just east of Whalsay.
Smaller inshore boats typically 15–30 foot
in length catch mackerel in the summer
– usually from June to October. These are
line caught and landed in the ‘country’
areas such as Cunningsburgh, Dunrossness,
Scalloway and Brae. These are often the parttime crofter/fishermen whose boats may
also look to creels for lobsters and crabs. The
fishermen have a quota which is divided
and agreed between themselves and which
matches fish stocks. These catches are then
sold at the fish markets in either Scalloway
or Lerwick for both the local market as well
going ‘sooth’ for consumption all over
the UK.
Going ‘aff’ (off to the fishing) on a fine
day, in early morning or in the evening is
one of the greatest pleasures of a Shetland
summer. The long hours of daylight and
often full sunshine and the company of
friends – or maybe just the selkies and
scorries (seals and seagulls) provides an
opportunity to put the world to rights or to
contemplate the beauty of Shetland’s varied
landscape from a different viewpoint.
Mackerel is an extremely healthy fish to
eat. It is rich in the omega 3 fatty acids which
are associated with brain development;
smooth functioning of joints, healthy
skin and eyes and better mental health. In
addition it is a good source of the fat-soluble
vitamins A and D which are essential for
bairns and adults for eyesight and strong
bones.
Catching the fish is of course only stage
one. Often the fish comes in a glut – so it is
useful to have several ideas of things to do
with such a quantity.
Without doubt mackerel is at its best
eaten very fresh and cooking them on
the boat or on the beach with the sun
going down and the waves lapping over
the rocks and sand is about as good as it
gets. Barbecued mackerel is a staple at the
Shetland country shows in the summer
and in my view beats a beefburger any day!
Otherwise – place the mackerel on a foil
lined grill pan with nothing more than
a grind of black pepper and if you like – a
touch of mustard. They will only need 3-4
minutes on each side and the lightly charred
skin will be easy to remove.
Lightly salting mackerel, vacuum-packing
then freezing (much better than just
freezing) or poaching in equal quantities
of vinegar and water are all methods of
extending its useable life.
The other excellent treatment for
mackerel is in the smoker: smoked mackerel
either plain or with flavours if you prefer, is
quite delicious either eaten as it is or made
into a pâté with an equal weight of ricotta or
half- fat cream cheese, lemon juice and black
pepper.
Mackerel coated in oatmeal then fried
is another favourite, although I find this
quite heavy so tried using a light coating
of Beremeal which gives a lovely result and
makes it possible to eat even more mackerel
at one sitting!
Mackerel can be salted by simply placing
them in a dish and sprinkling with ‘coorse
saat’ then leaving them for 24 hours. This is
a good way of quickly dealing with a glut of
round, gutted and trimmed fish. Another
method is to place fillets in a dish and cover
with brine (50g salt to 300ml water and a
couple of slices of lemon) for 24 hours. In
both cases they need to be well rinsed under
running cold water before use. If you would
like to be more adventurous you will find a
very good recipe for baked mackerel with
a stuffing using rhubarb in ‘Shetland Food
and Cooking’ and here are three more ideas.
Mackerel with Tomato
Serves 4
This is very easy and straightforward
and I like to make it in a pan which
can be brought straight to the table
1 onion – chopped
1 clove garlic – finely chopped
2 tablespoons sunflower or rapeseed oil
400g tin chopped tomatoes
Plenty of chopped fresh parsley
4 large mackerel fillets
1. Soften the onion and garlic in the
oil without browning for a good 5
minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes, mix well, season
with pepper and a little salt. Cook for
2-3 minutes.
3. Lay the mackerel fillets on top and
simmer on a low heat for 5 minutes
turning once.
4. Eat hot with potatoes or bannocks.
This is also good served cold the next
day but do refrigerate overnight.
Run Down
This is a Jamaican recipe with
a really exciting combination
of flavours and textures. The
recipe asks for Scotch Bonnet
peppers which are seriously hot
and are grown in Shetland at
Transition Turriefield in Sandness.
(turriefieldveg.co.uk) I have
used a medium red chilli. It is
traditionally served with boiled
green bananas and dumplings
but is equally good with boiled or
steamed potatoes.
400ml tin coconut milk
2 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 onion – chopped
1 clove garlic – finely chopped
8 cherry tomatoes
1 red or orange pepper
1 chilli – deseeded and
finely chopped
Salt mackerel – cut into large
pieces: 4 small round fish, boned
or 4 large fillets– well rinsed
Small bunch fresh thyme to
garnish
1. Soften the onion and garlic in the
oil without browning for 5 minutes.
2. Add the peppers, spring onions,
chilli, spring onions and cook f or
another 5 minutes.
3. Pour in the coconut milk and bring
slowly to the boil stirring very well.
4. Finally add the salt mackerel
and cook on a medium heat for 10
minutes.
5. Garnish with chopped fresh
thyme and serve with plenty of
taaties or rice.
Mackerel Salad
Use plain grilled, barbecued or
poached mackerel when cold.
4 mackerel fillets
1 tablespoon Mayonnaise
I tablespoon plain yogurt
1 red skinned apple – thinly sliced
4 spring onions – thinly sliced,
diagonally
8 medium sized small salad
potatoes steamed till just done
and cut into chunks.
2 teaspoon chopped gherkins or
capers (optional)
Chopped parsley – for garnish.
Mix everything together – and
that’s it!
RESTORATION DIARY
Skidbladnir
Aaron Pottinger
tells Laurie Goodlad
about restoring the
Skidbladnir
In the last issue of
60 North we looked
at the history of
the Duncan firm
of boat builders.
Since then, work
on the Skidbladnir
has continued to
gather pace and with
summer around the
corner, we can get
things moving in the
right direction!
Photography
David Gifford
www.SHETLAND.org
W
ith its roots firmly
embedded in
Scandinavian tradition,
the history of the
‘Shetland Model’ can be traced from
Norwegian ancestry and the arrival
of Norse colonisers around AD 900.
Renowned for being incredibly strong,
the boats that developed and which are a
familiar sight in voes and marinas today
are capable of bearing up to the often rough
conditions in and around Shetland waters.
One of the reasons they are so strong is due
to the way in which they are built. They can
be categorised into three distinct groups
– the yoal (of which there is a Ness and
Fair Isle type); the fourern (fourareen) and
the sixern (sixareen) – meaning four and
six-oared. Collectively known as ‘Shetland
models’ these boats are clinker, rather
than carvel built. The Skidbladnir is an
example of a Shetland Model, of ‘haddock
boat’ design, a descendant of the fourern,
and all the boats built by the Duncans of
Hamnavoe were crafted using this clinker
technique – Walter Duncan, developing
a distinguishable style which is easily
recognisable, even today.
Clinker boatbuilding methods were
developed in Northern Europe and
favoured by the Vikings and Norsemen
who came to colonise our shores, with
the famous Viking Oseberg and Gokstad
ships being of clinker construction and
dating to c. AD 800 and 890. The Gokstad
ship carried three small boats, of which
two survive, one færing (four-oared) and
one seksæring (six-oared); these are very
similar in design to the Shetland fourern
and sixerns . The earliest example however,
is the Nydam ship, built around AD 325
and excavated from a bog in Schleswig,
Northern Germany. These early boat
building techniques were introduced and
are still used today as a preferred method
for building.
Due to the scarcity of trees in Shetland,
timber (and often completed boats) was
imported from Norway (Stuart Bruce
1914: 296). Boat building skills developed
through time to suit the changing needs
of fishermen. A style that was unique to
Shetland began to emerge with regional
variations throughout the isles. This
makes the ‘Shetland Model’ a difficult
breed to define, however, locality and boat
building traditions, passed down in shed’s
such as the Duncans of Hamnavoe have
created a collection of stylistically similar
boats which are uniquely recognisable
today and known collectively as the
‘Shetland Model’. u
60 North | SUMMER 2015
33
Methods
The method of lapstrake or clinker
building uses overlapping planks during
hull construction, these planks are firmly
secured to the stems. This differs from
carvel built boats which employ a method
of securing planks edge to edge. Clinker
built boats from Shetland are all built
from the ‘bottom up’ and the hull takes its
shape from the relatively few broad boards,
clenched together over their overlapping
edges. They are then, retrospectively
reinforced with baands (ribs). This
produces a lighter, more flexible hull
compared to the other main traditional
carvel style, where a ‘skeleton’ is first
constructed and then skinned with planks.
The Skidbladnir has retained much of
her Norwegian style with a double-ended
shape. However, her design is less
‘symmetrical’ than her cousins
(yoal, fourern and sixern). The
Skidbladnir, like all Walter
Duncan boats, sits with the
appearance of a ‘bird on the water’,
with a broader bow and gradually
tapering stern. She is a ‘modern’
variation, built for use with an inboard
engine, rather than the traditional four
or six-oars. Tom Henderson described
this type of boat as ‘the maid-of-all-work
around the Shetland coast’ . Owing much
to the traditional fourern, this style of
boat is extremely versatile and adaptable.
The design enables use for a multitude of
purposes, such as fishing, carrying large
loads (peats for example), or simply as a
means of inshore transport for ferrying
people and livestock.
34
60 North | summer 2015
In an advert from Shetland Marine
Limited in 1964 it was possible to
buy a 19ft. Shetland Model for the
following prices: bare hull with
rudder fitted, £220; Complete
boat (no engine/stern gear), £380
or a complete boat with 4 horse
power Stuart Turner engine, £520.
The accompanying pamphlet states that
‘there are no more seaworthy boats than
those built on the windswept shores of
the Shetland Islands’ . Today you would
struggle to buy such a boat new, the craft
has been in steady decline as people
replace wooden, high maintenance boats
with ‘tupperware’, low maintenance
pleasure boats. For those who are willing
to put in the endless hours scraping and
painting every year, there is nothing more
rewarding than a long summer day spent
at ‘da haddocks’ in a small wooden boat.
Progress
The pace of work over the winter, despite
good intentions, has been slow. My
optimistic ambition to launch in summer
2015 has fallen by the wayside and it is
looking more and more like summer 2016
(or beyond!) before she will be ready to
grace the waters around Hamnavoe once
more. However, work has continued and
now as spring emerges the Skidbladnir is
beginning to take shape again.
The Skidbladnir is made from larch
which has traditionally been the wood
of choice as it is strong and hardwearing.
Not easy to get hold of, larch used in boat
building comes from trees up to one
hundred years old, which have been well
maintained to ensure knot free wood.
Boards with knots are weaker and don’t
bend easily, tending to split or snap under
pressure. The durability of larch has
made it a popular wood for use in boat
building. I enquired about buying a larch
tree; however, the cost both of the tree
and shipping to the ‘foreign nation of
Shetland’ made it a very expensive prospect!
Thankfully, the Duncans were to come up
trumps again. A number of planks were
stored in their shed, untouched, since
building ceased in the 1970s.
A new section of the aft stem has been
made to replace rot in the existing one. The
new part was carefully cut and shaped from
a solid piece of larch; providing the main
support to the keel – the boat’s backbone.
New planks to create the top boards and
gunwales have been made, using the
old boards as templates. A new gunwale
was ripped to size in order to replace the
existing one which was rotten. Once cut,
the for’ard end was planed down to size to
allow it to slip into the existing hinny-spot
www.SHETLAND.org
Photography by David Gifford
(three-cornered piece of wood in the bow
of the boat which connects the gunwales to
the stem).
We decided after much deliberation not
to remove the baands as this would have
affected the overall structure and shape
of the boat. Traditionally the baands were
fitted last, finely crafted to create a tight
fit over each board. In this case we fitted
the gunwale around the existing baands
to preserve as much of the original boat as
possible. The gunwale was then steamed for
an hour (wood is steamed for approximately
one hour per inch of thickness); this
softens it so it can be curved to the shape
of the boat. The gunwale was then quickly
removed, whilst piping hot and gently
bent and clamped before being left to
cool overnight. It was later test fitted and
final adjustments were made, tapering it
www.SHETLAND.org
towards the forward stem to allow a tight fit
between the hinny-spot and the new plank
(to be fitted later).
The top boards were roughly traced
on the raw larch, much of the originals
were missing areas due to rot. They were
then planed into shape and run through
a planer thicknesser (to 16mm). Using a
home-made wooden clamp which Arnold
replicated from one made by Davie Bruce of
Skaw, Whalsay (now in Shetland Museum
collection) we were able to test fit the new
gunwale and planks. This clever design
of Bruce’s is used to set the angle of boats
boards in relation to the stem and holds
them in place, allowing one man to work
alone if necessary.
However, we discovered whilst trying
to bend the top board that without the
support of the side-decks there was too
much flex within the boat’s structure and
we ran the risk of ‘misshaping’ her. After
discussion with shipwright Gordon Smith,
who served his time under the watchful eye
of boat builder Jack Duncan, we decided to
change tactics and measure up and fit new
keel bolts before securing the top boards
and gunwale. The plan now is to fit internal
supports across the beam, securing every
second band, ensuring her shape is retained
before rolling the boat onto the port side
to remove the old keel strap. Once this is
removed we can drill through the keel and
fit new bolts and a strap. She can then be
shoarded with wooden blocks to stop the
keel moving and the stems can be plumbed
into line and braced up to the workshop.
Extra supports will then be added to the
central baands to provide extra support
before attaching the new planks, gunwales
and baand heads.
Further Reading
Henderson, T. (1978) Shetland boats and their
Origins in Baldwin, J. R. (ed.), Scandinavian
Shetland, An Ongoing Tradition, Scottish
Society for Northern Studies.
March, E. J. (1970) Inshore Craft of Great
Britain in the Days of Sail and Oar (Vol. 1),
London: Chatham Publishing.
Morrison, I. A. (1978) Aspects of Viking
Small Craft in the Light of Shetland
Practice in Baldwin, Munro, A. (2012)
Small boats of Shetland, Lerwick: UHI and
Unst Heritage Trust
60 North | SUMMER 2015
35
hunting in Shetland
Jon Dunn goes looking for the rarest
of rarities — the Small White
36
60 North | summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
What makes an
orchid different?
There are many variations between
orchids, but the single feature above
all others which defines a plant as an
orchid is the fusion of the stamen,
the male section of the flower, with
the pistil, the female piece, into just
one structure called the column.
This is often visible protruding from
the centre of the bloom. An orchid is
a hermaphrodite, requiring no bird
or bee to transfer pollen from plant
to plant. It fertilises itself.
www.SHETLAND.org
O
rchids are probably not the
first thing that springs to
mind when you think of
Shetland in summer. The
ubiquitous cliff-top Puffins amidst Sea
Pinks, certainly; perhaps Otters coming
up through the kelp to eat a fish on shore;
maybe even Killer Whales hunting seals
close enough to land that one can hear the
snort as they exhale. But orchids?
You’d be forgiven for thinking they’re
the preserve of the tropics. There are over
20,000 species worldwide, and most of
those are found in hot steamy places. And
while Shetland is many things, hot and
steamy are adjectives that rarely apply… As
you may hear when you come here, we’re
closer to the Arctic Circle than we are to
London, and as far north as St Petersburg in
Russia or the southern tip of Greenland.
Finding orchids here seems a
little unlikely, excepting those showy
Phalaenopsis cultivars that our local
Tesco has for sale with the cut flowers.
But there really are wild orchids here,
and some of them are not only numerous
but widespread too. Where better to start
our journey than staying in Tesco’s car
park – for here, on the grassy mown areas
that border the asphalt, are to be found
rich royal purple flower spikes – Northern
Marsh Orchids.
These gorgeous flowers may not be as
tall and flamboyant as their cultivated
cousins for sale inside the store, but a closer
look reveals their intricate patterning
and fabulous texture. They’re often to be
found growing in people’s lawns all over
Shetland, and it’s a testament to their good
looks that they’re often carefully mowed
around by the appreciative householder!
So there are orchids here – and these
Northern Marshes are the tip of a small but
spectacular iceberg in the islands. Britain
is home to fewer than 60 terrestrial orchid
species, and at least nine of these are to be
found in Shetland. Not bad considering
how far north we are, how geographically
Main image: Lesser Twayblade
Above: The Small White Orchid
isolated our location is, how exposed our
islands are and how extreme the climate
here can be, and the relative shortness of
our growing season.
I spent some years living in Kent, a
county in the south of England blessed with
some distinctive and localised orchids in
isolated pockets of that rapidly urbanising
area. It was natural then that when I moved
to Shetland twelve years ago I would see
what I could find here by way of the local
orchids, and so a small quest began. And
some of our orchids are really very small
indeed, and took a little finding…
Our most numerous orchid here in the
islands is undoubtedly the Heath Spotted
Orchid, a close relative of those purple
Northern Marsh Orchids. As a rule, they
prefer a more acid soil and are to be found
60 North | SUMMER 2015
37
Clockwise from right:
Heath Fragrant Orchid; Early Marsh Orchid Unst;
Bog Orchid, and the Early Purple Orchid
Opposite page clockwise from left:
Heath Spotted Orchid Fetlar; Northern Marsh
Orchid, and the Frog Orchid
It’s hard to resist a
flower that looks
like raspberry ripple
ice-cream!
in less fertile areas where their delicate
white and purple-traced flowers often
stud the ground in a dense constellation.
They’re highly promiscuous, and readily
hybridise with the Northern Marsh
Orchids, spawning offspring with flowers
and leaves that look like a halfway house
between both parents. Sometimes though,
these hybrid young will look fairly similar
to one or other parent – often a trap for the
unwary orchid hunter hoping to see their
first Northern Marsh Orchid in Shetland.
Last year at the opposite end of the
archipelago, up on Unst, I was showing
guests some Golden Plovers in a remote
corner of the island when we noticed some
distinctive pale pink orchids growing
alongside a shallow damp streambed; these
proved to be Early Marsh Orchids, my first
sighting of this internationally rare species
in the islands and immediately my new
38
60 North | summer 2015
favourites of all – it’s hard to resist a flower
that looks like raspberry ripple ice-cream!
Unst is a productive place for the orchid
hunter, and one location in particular
is very special – the seemingly desolate
Keen of Hamar. At first glance, this stony
hillside appears bleak and stark, but a closer
inspection reveals a wealth of botanical
delights – including some alpine species
that are rare elsewhere in the UK and, most
famously of all, Edmonston’s Chickweed,
a flowering plant found nowhere else in
the world but in this small area of Unst.
Not surprisingly then in such a botanically
rewarding location there are some orchids
to be found too.
The season kicks off there with Early
Purple Orchids, and shortly afterwards the
sharp-eyed will find subtle Frog Orchids
amidst the stony debris. Early Purple Orchid
has a name that succinctly describes what
the plant does – it flowers earlier than the
other species, and it’s purple. Frog Orchid,
on the other hand, is rather less obviously
named. Is it because the unopened hood
formed by the sepals looks like a closed,
slitted frog’s eye? The flower as a whole
bears little resemblance to its namesake,
and yet the name has been in use since
the 17th century. While the reason for the
name has been lost in the passage of time,
these green and burgundy flowers are a
satisfying reward for the orchid hunter’s
slow walk across the hillside in search of
them.
Later in the summer, the Keen of Hamar
hosts one of Shetland’s rarest orchid species
– while relatively common on the UK
mainland, it is only here in the islands (and
in one small area on the hillside itself) that
we can reliably find Heath Fragrant Orchids
in mid-July. These are pale pink flowers
with long spurs; but their sweet, clove-like
fragrance takes a leap of faith to discern.
Rather like one more orchid species on the
Shetland list, Heath Fragrant Orchid was
historically reported from elsewhere in
the islands, but hasn’t been seen latterly in
these locations. With such small flowers,
and such a huge area to search, who knows
where else some may yet lurk?
And some orchid species found in
Shetland are positively tiny… dwarfed
by the previous species, both Bog Orchid
and Lesser Twayblade are undoubtedly
overlooked and more common than we
give them credit for. Both favour the damp,
peaty hills that abound across Shetland,
and while known from a handful of sites
there are surely more out there just waiting
for someone to stumble across them. It
took me several years of searching a known
www.SHETLAND.org
location on Yell for Bog Orchid before I
finally got my eye in and found one – and
that after spending for the best part of four
hours one sunny afternoon, painstakingly
traversing on all fours a damp hillside
absolutely determined that I wasn’t going to
give up until I found one… and then, finally,
there was a diminutive green flower and
beyond it, many more.
Orchids seem to do this to people – they
inspire a certain mania, a determination
to see them that transcends that for other
plants. There are many tales told of orchid
hunters in the tropics who risked life and
limb – and sometimes succumbed – in
pursuit of the rare or unknown. Tropical
disease, inhospitable terrain, wild
animals, and latterly armed militia have
all inconvenienced or even killed those
looking for orchids. Pity, for example, Tom
Hart Dyke who, in 2000 whilst travelling in
Central America looking for orchids, spent
some nine months held captive in the deep
jungle by guerrillas…
There’s no such danger for the intrepid
orchid hunter here in Shetland – you’re
instead far more likely to be accosted by
an inquisitive sheep or a feisty Great Skua!
That’s not to say though that there aren’t
some discoveries to be made… There are
References:
“Rare Plants of Shetland” by W.Scott, P.Harvey, R.Riddington and M.Fisher
(Shetland Amenity Trust, 2002)
“A Naturalist’s Shetland” by J.Laughton Johnston (T & AD Poyser, 1999)
“A Flora of Shetland” by T.Edmonston (Aberdeen, 1845)
“Orchids of Britain and Ireland” by A & S.Harrap (A&C Black, 2009)
www.SHETLAND.org
surely more isolated and hitherto unseen
colonies of rare Early Marsh Orchids out
there; Bog Orchids and Lesser Twayblades
are probably commoner than we think; and
who knows, you might just find some more
Heath Fragrant Orchids away from the Keen
of Hamar. No matter what, you’re likely
to see some beautiful Heath Spotted and
Northern Marsh Orchids on your travels.
But what of the real prize, the Holy Grail
of Shetland’s orchid flora? That would
be something that hasn’t been seen in
the islands since before 1845 – reported
by Shetland’s famous botanist Thomas
Edmonston on Bressay. As the name
suggests, Small White Orchid isn’t going
to win any prizes for showiness, and would
be easily overlooked. Present in northern
Scotland, on Orkney, on Faroe, and in
Iceland and Norway, one would have to
assume that it was here once and might just
be here still – finding this rare gem would
be the highlight of any Shetland orchid
hunter’s time in the field – and I know what
I’ll be looking for this summer, as every
summer since I moved here.
One day, maybe I’ll get lucky… and until
then, I’ll carry on enjoying all of those
other beautiful orchids that grow in this
seemingly unlikely location.
www.jondunn.com
60 North | SUMMER 2015
39
There’s much
more to Bressay’s
neighbouring island
than just gannets,
says Kevin Briggs
NOSS
the perfect
day out
O
n a fine day in Shetland, there
are lots of opportunities to enjoy
the outside. There is a plethora
of beaches and many hills upon
which to wander, as well as wildlife and
stunning scenery in abundance. One place
that has it all in relatively close proximity,
combined with a vigorous walk, is the
island of Noss off the coast of Bressay.
Last summer, on a windless day when the
temperature reached a giddy 24˚C, we
decided to take the family on an adventure.
First there is the brief ferry journey
from Lerwick to Bressay, which lasts
approximately 7 minutes. Whilst it is
possible to walk the three miles across
Bressay to get to the Noss boats, you may
want to save your feet. Instead, you can take
your car and leave it in the parking area
whilst you descend the hill to the sea.
The 200m crossing definitely forms part
of the experience. There is a ferry service
operated by Scottish Natural Heritage
(SNH), though you would term the craft
more a dinghy. The boats hold a maximum
of five people plus the warden in one go and
you are required to don a life-jacket. Seating
is not made for comfort and comprises a
metal box in the middle or a seat on the side
of the vessel. Being low down to the ground,
you feel every wave, but this time the
sea was flat calm and we passed serenely
through the water.
Despite some early morning haar, upon
arrival we met a beautiful blue sky with
wispy clouds and some genuinely hot
40
60 North | summer 2015
summer sun. For a trip to Noss, conditions
were more than perfect and it was fine to be
bedecked in shorts.
Once off the ferry, the warden took us to
the visitor’s centre which is stationed in one
of the few old stone buildings that exist on
Noss. After paying the nominal fee for the
crossing, we were advised of where to walk.
The route was fairly simple: follow the coast.
Veering too close to the beaches would put
you in contact with tirricks (arctic terns)
protecting their nests whereas in the centre
of the island, great and arctic skuas nest.
The great skuas (bonxies) are likely to swoop
down to ward off any predator. Bonxies are
a protected species and, with around 400
nesting pairs, the island’s colony is one of
the world’s most important.
I found to my cost how protective a pair
of nesting arctic skuas (skootie allans) can
be. Having inadvertently wandered near
their breeding ground, I had to duck low to
avoid one heading straight at me. I certainly
got a view closer than I could ever have
expected!
Noss, whose name comes from the Norse
name for “nose”, is managed in partnership
between SNH and the owner, who grazes
his sheep on the island. Apart from the
landowner, wardens, sheep and summer
visitors, the sea birds have the island to
themselves for most of the year and are
therefore protective of their territory.
The tirricks are mesmeric birds to watch
as they hover before diving, changing
direction perpendicularly as if there is a
large puppeteer in the sky pulling their
strings. However should you stray too close
to their nests, a number of them will take
to the air and shriek, before diving at you.
Rather than warn you, they are more likely
to make contact so you are best to keep
your distance. Local advice suggests that
you should put your hand up vertically to
protect your head.
Unusually, last year’s tirricks had
fledgling chicks. Recent breeding seasons
have been fallow but thankfully fish stocks
have been more plentiful. The warden
explained how gannets have succeeded by
www.SHETLAND.org
flying further to find food, and they have
a more varied diet. Puffins and guillemots
tend only to survive on a diet of sand eels.
It is a positive sign that the seabirds are
flourishing.
The bonxies’ predatory instincts allow
them to survive as they feed on eggs, small
birds and chicks. On Noss, it was surprising
to see a different side to the bonxies. On the
grass outside the visitor centre, a bonxie
could be seen nestling on the ground,
unconcerned by its close proximity to
human visitors. The warden explained
that this was Bill who, with his friend Bob,
has become a tame companion to the Noss
wardens this year. Bill was more bothered
by a passing tirrick who was determined to
swoop at him while he sat ruminating on
the grass.
Although the walking is mainly
following tracks over grassland, some of it is
marshy near the few burns that traverse the
island. The SNH leaflet warns of the ground
being uneven and steep in places and you
need to keep an eye out on the ground to
www.SHETLAND.org
avoid the many rabbit holes. An island tour
is about 8 km and will last about four hours,
but the warden will advise you of shorter
routes if required.
The dinghies run every day except
Mondays and Thursdays during the
summer months, except for cancellations
because of fog or bad weather –it is best to
call the helpline in advance. Owing to the
sheerness of the cliffs, it would be unwise to
undertake a walk in poor visibility.
A good place to stop and eat is Rumble
Wick where you can sit by the cliff edge
and watch the seabirds: fulmars, gannets,
shags, guillemots and puffins are all in
close proximity. The puffins pay so little
heed to their human admirers that you
can sit alongside them as they show off
their finery, before taking flight. They
are comical looking birds and their wings
beat incredibly fast and you think they are
going to crash upon landing. Yet with their
colourful beaks and black and white suits,
they are everyone’s favourite, bringing a
smile to their adoring public and lifting
spirits.
The puffins however are not the island’s
main attraction. Fortunate visitors may see
harbour porpoises in the sound between
Bressay and Noss and others may spy otters
playing in the kelp by the jetty, yet most
people come to see birds with a wingspan of
more than 1.8m– the gannet. The vertical,
inaccessible cliffs are a perfect location for
gannet colonies to thrive and you can see
Upon the highest cliffs
on Shetland’s east
coast, you can see
up to 8500 pairs of
breeding gannets
them in abundance and up close. Inevitably
this means a climb to the highest point of
Noss – the Noup – rising to a height of 180m
above sea-level at its peak.
The gannetries are unmistakable and
are an experience for all of your senses.
Before you see them, you will hear the loud
calls echoing across the cliffs and then your
nostrils fill with the fish-filled aroma of
guano. It is not an unpleasant smell and you
know it means the cliffs are alive with birds.
Upon the highest cliffs on Shetland’s
east coast, you can see up to 8500 pairs
of breeding gannets. It is surprising to
see such large birds seemingly cramped
together on the side of the cliffs. Sharing
their location are also 45,000 guillemots,
as well as razorbills and fulmars. As you
ascend to the peak, there are various
natural viewing points for you to view them
in their full glory. It is an amazing sight as
the cliffs teem with gannets and the air is
full of their echoing calls.
Following a rapid yet arduous climb to
the summit of the Noup, you are rewarded
with a stunning view of Shetland all the
way down to Sumburgh Head and across
Bressay to mainland Shetland’s east coast.
Strangely, owing to the acoustics of the
cliffs, once you start to descend the sounds
of the gannets fade quickly as they are
contained in a natural amphitheatre
flanked by the cliffs.
Walking becomes somewhat easier
and you get a view of the moorland on
which you will see nesting bonxies. The
descent will take you past geos cut into the
landscape, with Whiggie Geo particularly
eye-catching.
The last inflatables leave about 17.00
and it is a good 60-90 minute walk from
the Noup back to the visitor’s centre, so you
need to leave yourself enough time. You
will need to bring your own provisions,
sun cream and a waterproof owing to the
rapidly changeable weather conditions.
By the time we had left Noss and returned
to our car, the top of the hill was already
covered in mist.
For the walker and nature enthusiast, a
visit to Noss has something for everyone. A
reasonable degree of mobility is required
as the access path to the inflatables is quite
steep and there are steps leading from the
ferry on Noss that are prone to getting wet.
For those who are able, it is a real chance to
get away from everything where you can
enjoy being at one with nature. It was a
perfect way to spend a lovely summer’s day
with the family.
60 North | SUMMER 2015
41
Putting your
mind to it
Helen Smith finds
inspiration in
Jim Thomason’s
Levenwick garden
im Thomason’s garden in
Levenwick is a source of
inspiration and a fantastic
example of what can be
achieved when you really
put your mind to it. As I head
through the gate I’m welcomed
by yellow and orange daffodils
standing to attention, with
their trumpets heralding in
the spring weather. When I
spot Jim he’s hard at work and
accompanied by his faithful
border terrier, Archie. Archie’s
also hard at work – patrolling
the ponds and keeping a
watchful eye on the frogs.
Jim is as
colourful as
his garden
www.SHETLAND.org
I’m not the first person to
stop by to interview Jim –
his garden has featured in
several gardening and lifestyle
magazines and it came equal
ninth place (along with
Rosa Steppanova with Lea
Gardens) in Alan Titchmarsh’s
competition of “Britain’s
Best Back Gardens” on ITV;
no mean feat, with over 600
entries from across the UK.
60 North | SUMMER 2015
43
im is as colourful as his garden.
He’s well travelled - having lived
in London, the south of England,
Greece and Australia. He’s
rubbed shoulders with some
very interesting people; while
in London he was employed as a
gardener by Ella Winter, second
wife of screenwriter Donald Ogden
Stewart, who won an Academy
Award for Philadelphia Story. While in
the capital, Jim opened an art gallery and
also wrote poetry. He had a poetry book
published and sold it door to door in posh
areas, often providing readings at dinner
parties. He’s had exhibitions in various
countries and has recently returned from
holding an exhibition in Australia.
Gardening has always been in Jim’s life.
His love for gardening started when he was
44
60 North | summer 2015
young; watching his mother work with
Livingstone daisies, he appreciated the joy
that the flowers gave her. He developed
and nurtured his talents to provide himself
with a satisfying career as both a garden
designer and as an artist. It’s a successful
mix, as each profession complements the
other well. Jim tells me that being an
artist, gardening lets you be creative and
you become known for that.
The garden that Jim has created and
tended at his home ‘Nonavaar’ is on a
sloping site, with gravel paths leading
you past flower beds, ponds and statues of
Buddha. The view down over Levenwick
to the coast is astounding. As I meander
through the garden I marvel at how one
man could have the time and energy to
tend to this garden, design other gardens
and paint.
When Jim moved to Nonavaar 12 years
ago, the first thing he did was replant a lot
of areas; he established flower beds and
built walls. He explains that he houses
plants in ‘rooms’, so that taller plants
shelter the more delicate ones. He prefers
herbacious plants, as they’re strong and
disappear in the winter, so they don’t
get the weather. He uses a lot of bedding
plants and grows them in his greenhouse,
this enables him to bring on plants that
give his garden that all important splash
of colour in the summer. As we enter the
greenhouse, the warmth and tropical smell
meets me - I have to admit, I love the smell
of a greenhouse.
Jim’s garden is full of plants that thrive
in Shetland and can be spotted in many
gardens throughout the isles - red hot
pokers, bachelors buttons, lupins, sea
www.SHETLAND.org
Shetland born Jim
Thomason achieved
great success in Australia
with various exhibitions
before returning to
Shetland about 15 years
ago where he designs
and creates gardens.
His own garden was
recently featured on TV
recognised as a national
gem in a harsh climate.
pinks, alliums and southern wood are all
there. Then you see more unusual plants
such as tree peonies, gunnera (looks a bit
like rhubarb), a monkey puzzle tree, and at
least two New Zealand flax; it fares well in
Shetland, but Jim warns me to be careful
where I plant it, as it can grow big!
When I ask Jim how he goes about
designing a garden for someone else, he
tells me he first asks the client if he can
go inside their home and look at their
garden from their window. He explains
that with the Shetland climate, not many
people sit out in their gardens for long
periods of time - but they do like to view
their garden from inside, so it’s important
that the he gets that perspective. It’s also
important to look at the geology of the land
and work with it. Jim tells me he doesn’t
like to see soil in his gardens, he likes all
www.SHETLAND.org
space to be fully utilised and explains that
this really helps with weeding - as there
simply isn’t space for weeds to grow. Come
summertime, the garden at Nonavaar will
be a riot of colour, with no soil in sight.
For him, a garden really is a labour
of love; it’s also a great form of exercise.
You have to put time into your garden;
spending at least an hour a day in your
garden will ensure you keep on top of it.
Jim says he continues to work on his garden
in the winter by tidying up and having
bonfires. That means that come spring,
a lot of the hard work has already been
done. He explains that to be a gardener in
Shetland you have to be dedicated, but that
the rewards can be wonderful .
Before I head home Jim presents me
with a root for a bush that has silvery
foliage. He has momentarily forgotten
the name of it, but says it will fare well
beside me - for some reason things with
silvery leaves do well in Shetland. When
I returned home I planted it in the
flowerbed outside my kitchen window. A
lovely old lady I knew long ago, told me I
should create a memory garden - a garden
that is made from plants given by friends
and relatives. That way I would always
remember them. Now, when I wash my
dishes I’ll look out and remember the
lovely morning I spent with Jim Thomason;
artist, garden designer and poet.
Jim’s garden is open to the public as part of
Scotland’s Gardens. Open 2.00 to 5.00pm
Thurs and Fri March – Sept and Sat – Wed
by arrangement. Phone ahead on 01950
422447, or if you spot the sign on the
main road you know it’s okay to drop by.
Admission is £3.00.
60 North | SUMMER 2015
45
Summer in
My Shetland
Garden
Misa Hay shares some recipes
for the versatile rhubarb
I
t’s almost midsummer and things
piece of her established plant and gave
in the garden are fairly coming on,
it to me. Since then we’ve been enjoying
despite the weather not beeing
this super versatile crop in abundance.
great this year so far.
And to get wonderfully crisp, vividly
In this issue I’ve decided to concentrate on
pink stalks, we force the plants in the
something that’s an essence of Shetland
early spring by placing and old garden
summer – rhubarb.
incinerator over the crowns. Rhubarb
In Shetland rhubarb seems to grow in
thrives in a sunny position with well-
abundance in almost every garden and
drained fertile soil and it will respond
you’ll also often find it growing wild
well to spring top-dressing of well rotted
around old abandoned crofthouses. So
manure.
probably because it grows far better than
Although the edible stems of rhubarb are
anything else here, it formed an important
traditionally treated like a fruit and eaten
part in the Shetland diet.
as a pudding or as a jam, it is truly a
In the past I tried to grow rhubarb but
vegetable so it is also wonderful with meat
unfortunately with not much success. Until
or fish or in chutney. Here are some of my
the time when my neighbour dug out a
favourite recipes.
46
60 North | summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
R h u ba r b cor di a l
Ingredients:
rhubarb
sugar
vodka
Method:
1. Chop the rhubarb finely to expose
maximum surface area. Pulsing it a few times
in a food processor makes the job much
faster. Place in a glass jar add the vanilla pod
Ingredients:
1.5 kg chopped rhubarb
600g caster sugar
4 unwaxed lemons
1 vanilla pod
Method:
1. Place the rhubarb, split vanilla pod and
lemon zest in a pan with 100ml water over
a low heat. To zest the lemon I use a potato
peeler which makes the job really easy. And
it fills your kitchen with a wonderful uplifting
smell too! Cook slowly until the juices start
coming out of the rhubarb, then turn the heat
up a little. Continue cooking until completely
soft and mushy.
(cut in half; lenght wise), cover with vodka by
4. Boil the orange peel in a small amount of
approximately an inch or so, seal, and allow to
water for 20 minutes, strain and add to the
steep a month. Over this time, the flavour and
rhubarb mixture.
colour will leach out of the rhubarb, leaving
5. Turn the heat down and simmer for
the alcohol pink and the rhubarb yellow-white.
approximately 40 minutes, until the rhubarb
2. When the rhubarb has finished steeping,
has broken down.
strain it from the alcohol, and filter the
6. Transfer the jam into sterilised jars, seal and
solution through several layers of cheesecloth. leave to cool. Store in a cool dark place, once
3. Measure the final amount of alcohol – this
open in the fridge.
is your base number. In a saucepan, heat 1.5
times that amount of water, and 1/2 – 3/4 that
amount of sugar, depending on how sweet you
Pick l ed R h u ba r b
like things. To give an example: 4 cups rhubarb
alcohol would need 6 cups of water and 2-3
cups sugar. Let the sugar syrup cool, then add
it to your filtered alcohol.
4. Taste and add more sugar if desired. Let age
for at least a month before enjoying. Rhubarb
schnapps keeps at any temperature, but is
especially delicious straight from the freezer.
2. Put a sieve in a large mixing bowl and line
R h u ba r b Ja m
it with a piece of clean muslin or a tea towel.
Ladle in the rhubarb and leave it to drain for
several hours or overnight.
3. Measure the juice: for every litre add
I love experimenting with rhubarb as it is
approximately 600g caster sugar. Pour into a
very versatile. I came across an interesting
pan on a medium heat and stir to dissolve the
pickled rhubarb recipe in one of my favourite
sugar. Turn off the heat before it boils. Add
books about food preserving called ‘Salt Sugar
lemon juice, pour into sterilised bottles and
Smoke’ by Diana Henry. seal.
Make s 3 jar s
4. Serve 1 part cordial with 4 parts sparkling
water and don’t forget to add slices of lemon
for an extra zing. Or even better – for a special
Ingredients:
summer treat add it to your Prosecco!
4 stalks of rhubarb
M a k e s 10 j a r s
R h u ba r b Schna pps
600 ml red wine vinegar
1kg granulated sugar
Ingredients:
1 small cinnamon stick
2kg rhubarb, 1cm chunks
4 whole cloves
2kg granulated sugar
inch long piece of root ginger, peeled
Method:
and julienned
1. Heat the vinegar, sugar and spices in a
zest of one orange, thin strips
saucepan until the sugar dissolves.
vanilla powder (optional)
2. Cut rhubarb into pieces and poach briefly
(approximately 2 minutes but keep an eye
Method:
on it so it doesn’t become too soft which can
1. Tip the rhubarb pieces into a large bowl,
happen very quickly).
along with the sugar, ginger and vanilla
3. Spoon the rhubarb into sterilised jars and
powder.
cover. Wait until the vinegar sirup cools down
2. Leaving the mixture sit for 2 hours, turning
and pour it in the jars. Seal and store in a cool
with a spoon every 30 minutes.
dark place.
3. Once most of the sugar has dissolved, tip the
www.SHETLAND.org
contents of the mixing bowl into a large sauce
Pickled rhubarb is delicious with mackerel,
pan and bring to a brisk boil.
pâté, pork or cheese.
60 North | SUMMER 2015
47
Right:
Examples of Robyn
Inkster’s work, and sat
at her machine
Shetland’s culture, history
& environment inspires work for
inal year students on the BA
(Hons) Contemporary Textiles
course at Shetland College
UHI are busy getting ready
for their degree show. In this fourth and
final year of their studies, students must
research, devise and develop a personal
programme of creative work. They study
with a high degree of autonomy, focused on
developing and refining skills and creative
ideas to produce a coherent and resolved
body of work.
The degree show is a forum for students
to display and promote their skills and
celebrate their achievements, as well as
being a spring board for their professional
careers. The work of these six final year
students shows a diverse range of creative
interests and approaches. What is clear
in one way or another is the impact and
influence Shetland’s historical, cultural
and natural environment has had on the
direction of their work. u
F
48
60 North | summer 2015
Degree
Show
www.SHETLAND.org
The pieces are
conceptual so are
therefore open
to interpretation
from the viewer
Shetland music is the force underpinning
Eleanor Hynd’s textiles. Using selected
yarns she weaves crochets and knots her
materials, creating intricate and expressive
forms. In Eleanor’s words “the focus and
inspiration for my honours year and degree
show has been my response to Shetland
music. My intention has been to capture
the energy of my emotion and create three
dimensional sculptural forms and convey
this to others.”
Kharis Leggate on the other hand has
developed a range of woven textiles for
blankets and upholstery using Shetland
wool. Her colours and weave designs are
inspired by the exterior details on an
old croft house on Yell. Kharis explains,
“I have a lot of emotion connected with
Westsandwick and, in particular, the house
there. Along with old crofthouses in the
area, everything about the land and sea,
how the use of them by people over time
can be seen, is something I love to think
about and feel a connection with.”
It has been Shetland’s industrial
environment that has attracted Robyn
Inkster’s attention. The bold geometric
shapes and forms have inspired designs for
a knitted textiles collection for interiors.
She has been working with computer aided
design systems to design and make use
of both domestic and industrial knitting
machines at the college. Robyn says:
“Knitting has been something I always
wanted to learn – I watched my Nan knit
from a young age and was mesmerized
by it. The patterns and colours and sheer
speed were influential.”
In contrast, Jennifer Hutchison has
50
60 North | summer 2015
been exploring her inner activist; using her
sewing and embroidery skills as a means to
communicate personal and political issues.
Her aim is to engage, share, communicate
and inform others. As Jennifer outlines,
“I became aware of Inner Activism in
January after a college visit from Sarah
Corbett of the Craft Collective. For me it
is about making connections between
how the persona (a person, myself), can
be affected by ‘political’ power structures
in relationships (close ones and that with
strangers) and how my personal reactions
can be perceived as political and have
a broader outcome. Inner Activism can
cover other things too, such as in our
relationships with consuming, but I chose
to focus on relationships with people. I aim
to have a small collection of night dresses
at the final degree show and hope they
resonate with some and cause others to ask
questions”.
Cloth and how it can affect our
emotions and evoke memories has
www.SHETLAND.org
Left: Jennifer Leask and her piece ,
Don’t confine yourself’
been Connie Flynn’s focus. As well as
researching the material, Connie has
looked at the historic and symbolic
significance of the humble apron to inform
and develop her work. Connie has been
recycling, reworking and embellishing
particular fabrics - piecing, layering,
quilting, stitching and felting cloth as a
means to realise her ideas: “My current
work is called Cloth Connotations; the
concept of the work is about how cloth
can stimulate a mood, feeling or memory
depending on our very own experiences.
The concept has developed into a collection
of utilitarian half aprons constructed in a
variety of functional and decorative cloth.”
Last, but not least, Shetland seabird
colonies have inspired Mhari Smith.
Concerned by the impact of plastic debris
on their lives and habitats, she has been
developing a body of creative work that
can convey this manmade intrusion. Her
pieces combine a range of mixed media
textile techniques which include hand
weaving, knitting, crochet and macramé.
Says Mhari explains: “When I realised the
full impact plastic has on the seabirds of
Shetland I became compelled to create a
series of works which highlight this issue
for my honours year degree show. Each
piece will work to express a gradual shift
from the natural to the synthetic. The
pieces are conceptual so are therefore open
to interpretation from the viewer.”
Hopefully this small insight into the
student’s creative worlds will entice you to
come along to the Degree Show and find
out a bit more about the students and
their work.
The Show is open to the public Monday to
Friday 9am to 4pm from the 8 –19 June at
Shetland College UHI, Gremista, Lerwick
Left:
Kharis Leggate’s detailed
piece, and hard at work
Right
Connie Flynn with Cloth
Connotations
www.SHETLAND.org
60 North | SUMMER 2015
51
Shedding light on the
Shetland
Nature
Festival
2015 is the UNESCO International Year of
Light, and Robina Barton asks: what better
place to celebrate light and all its benefits
than Shetland in the summer?
52
60 North | summer 2015
www.SHETLAND.org
Left: Climbing taster
Above: Mountain hare
Right: Gannets
Below right: Volcanic
cliffs at Eshaness
T
he theme of light will be central
to this year’s Shetland Nature
Festival which takes place from
4-11 July in partnership with
European Geoparks Week.
The International Year of Light is a global
initiative which highlights the importance
of light and light based technologies for
our lives, our future and the development
of society.
Another festival focus this year is
creativity, with a week of workshops
devoted to drawing and painting. Wildlife
artist and Shetland Ranger Howard Towll
will lead an introduction to drawing
seabirds from life, by direct observation
of the seabirds on the cliffs at Sumburgh
Head. Shetland artist Diane Garrick will
lead classes in botanical drawing and
watercolour painting from live plants.
Diane is particularly inspired by
flowers and their medicinal uses. Shetland
has a history of using locally picked herbs
to make creams, teas, salves and tinctures,
to treat colds, flu, stomach ache, improve
the complexion, disinfect wounds and
ensure rapid healing. Diane’s workshops
will be complimented by sessions with
herbal plant expert Amy Hardie, who
will introduce herbs found abundantly in
Shetland, and show how to make salves
with oil, flowers and beeswax. Festival
goers will also have the chance to learn to
make their own nature journal with bookbinder Lotte Kravitz.
There will be plenty of opportunities to
see Shetland from a whole new perspective
www.SHETLAND.org
with coasteering, kayaking, snorkelling
and climbing led by experienced and
enthusiastic guides. By popular demand,
the education team from Edinburgh
science centre Our Dynamic Earth are
returning to the festival for a second
year running and will be found at venues
around the islands with a new range of
activities to inspire, entertain and inform.
The festival also looks forward to
welcoming an artistic production by
Edinburgh based arts agency Vision
Mechanics. ‘Drift’ is inspired by the true
story of Betty Mouat, the Shetland crofter,
who spent eight days drifting alone in the
North Sea. Soundscapes and installations
on the island of Unst will evoke the feeling
of being adrift, isolated and unaided.
Traditional favourites, the Noss
National Nature Reserve Open Day and
Sumburgh Head Open Day will ‘bookend’
the 2015 festival with fun for all the family.
Guided walks will journey through an
extinct volcano and a desert landscape,
introduce puffin colonies and rare plants
and even show how to spot an otter.
Festival goers can explore the magical
island of Mousa with the RSPB and wait
in the Iron Age broch to witness the
incredible phenomenon of the tiny storm
petrels returning by night under cover of
darkness. They can find out why Shetland’s
peatlands are so special with the Peatlands
Restoration Project, or wander through
woodlands at Kergord and unearth the
place of trees in folklore and religion,
discover the wonderful world of bugs and
moths with Shetland Biological Records
Centre or have a ‘peerie hock’ for creepy
crawlies at the Crofthouse Museum.
With so much going on it’s just as well
Shetland has such long summer days! The
festival programme is available on the
website and booking is now open. Keep up
to date with the Shetland Nature Festival
Facebook page.
60 North | SUMMER 2015
53
Agriculture
Shetland’s summer really is
special. Nowhere else in Britain
enjoys longer days and in fact
there’s no complete darkness
from mid May until early August.
In the weeks around the summer
solstice on 21 June, it’s bright
enough to contemplate fishing
or even golf right through
the night. On clear nights, an
unfinished sunset simply drifts
across the northern horizon.
Not surprisingly, every form of
life in Shetland makes the most
of all this light; for example,
birds settle only briefly; and,
although the human calendar
does include some outstanding
indoor events, people revel in the
islands’ outdoor opportunities.
Shetland’s natural wonders are
the focus of several summer
events. For example, the RSPB
organises walks at the Mires of
Funzie on the island of Fetlar,
where the wildlife to be seen
includes the rare and beautiful
Red-necked Phalarope. This
is the best place in Britain to
get close to these fascinating
little birds, remarkable that
the rearing of the chicks is left
entirely to the male.
54
60 North | summer 2015
Back on land, Shetland’s agricultural
shows get under way in the second half of
the summer, beginning at Voe on 1 August
and continuing with Walls on the 8th,
Cunningsburgh on the 12th, Unst on the
29th and Yell on 5 September.
The very best of Shetland’s livestock and
produce is on display. However, the shows
also offer a wide range of other exhibits,
ranging from knitwear to photography,
and the islands’ amateur bakers and
cooks compete for honours with scones,
sponge cakes, preserves and much more.
Indeed, with all this activity, the
notion of setting down with a scone, jam,
cream and a cuppa is very appealing;
and that’s where Shetland’s Sunday teas
come in. All over the islands, volunteers
organise afternoon teas in community
halls, the proceeds going to charity. On
any given Sunday, there may be a choice
of three or four halls, in various parts
of the islands, and it’s not unknown for
die-hard enthusiasts to take in more than
one afternoon tea. It’s understandable:
the fare on offer always includes a
mouth-watering range of home-made
cakes, traybakes, scones, biscuits and
sandwiches. Depending on the hall, it
might extend to more exotic offerings
such as empanadas. All of this is washed
down with bottomless cups of tea and
coffee. This admirable tradition has
attracted attention well beyond Shetland
and, in September 2009, filled an entire
edition of The Food Porogramme on BBC
Radio 4.
However, Shetlanders adore music at least
as much as chocolate gateau, so there’s no
rest for musicians.
June
Jazz sounds
Unst on Between 5 –14 June the
Shetland JAWS Festival features an
eclectic programme of jazz and world
sounds, with a garnish of poetry. The
2015 line-up includes such outstanding
performers as singer-songwriter Eddi
Reader, virtuoso saxophonist Tommy
Smith and the superb Scottish National
Jazz Orchestra, plus the Criterion
Jazz Band, Drum Explosion, Melanie
Harrold, the Bevvy Sisters, Christine
Tobin, Alex Cluness & Christine De
Luca. It’s a cracking programme.
Lau in Concert
26 June, a different tradition will be
celebrated in a concert by Lau, voted best
band in the 2013 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.
Bergen-Shetland
and 1000 mile
Doublehanded
From 25–28 June, Lerwick Harbour
welcomes the Bergen-Shetland Race and
1,000-mile Doublehanded Race.
The latter begins in Scheveningen, in the
Netherlands, sails to Bergen and joins
the other race from there to Lerwick.
The town’s picturesque old harbour is
packed with beautiful yachts, but these
are great social occasions, too, with old
friendships renewed and around 250
visiting sailors experiencing the very
best of Shetland hospitality.
www.SHETLAND.org
July
Nature Festival
On a larger scale, the Shetland Nature
Festival, from 4 –11 July, features all
sorts of events throughout the islands,
aimed at offering local people and
visitors the very best opportunities to
explore our endlessly varied natural
environment. In an island community,
it’s no surprise that so many activities
focus on the sea. All over Shetland,
there are sailing and rowing regattas
right through the summer, invariably
accompanied by barbecues and dances.
Several classes of yachts compete in most
regattas but there’s particular affection
for the traditional ‘Shetland model’, a
double-ended vessel that can trace its
origin back to Viking galleys. In the
rowing races, crews in larger, six-oared
versions engage in friendly but intense
inter-district competition. The boats are
developments of the type that was once
the mainstay of the Shetland fishing
industry. There are i nternational yacht
races, too, reminding us of Shetland’s
historical links with nations around the
North Sea.
Stand–up
If stand-up comedy is your thing,
Shetland is well established on the
British circuit, with recent appearances
by – among others – Bill Bailey, Ross
Noble, Kevin Bridges, Dylan Moran
and Mark Steel. Next up, on 14 July, is
Jeremy Hardy, of whom the Guardian
wrote: “In an ideal world Jeremy Hardy
would be extremely famous, but an
ideal world would leave him without
most of his best material”
Costa Fortuna
Other sea-borne visitors include many
thousands arriving on the steady stream
of cruise liners that visit the islands
during the summer months. The ships
vary greatly in size but include some
impressively large craft, such as the
Costa Fortuna, weighing in at 102,000
tonnes, carrying 2720 passengers and
1027 crew. On 24 July, she’ll dwarf
everything else in the harbour.
August
September
Fiddle Frenzy
Reel Festival
Screenplay
The folk theme is picked up again at
Shetland Fiddle Frenzy, which draws
on the isles’ extraordinarily rich fiddle
heritage, pulling in participants from
all over the world for a week of musical
exploration and performance running
from 2 to 9 August.
The Shetland Reel Festival from 14 –16
August is a newcomer to the scene,
taking place on the northernmost
isle of Unst and featuring many of
Shetland’s best-known musicians,
together with a selection of visiting
American artists.
Then, as the summer nights begin
to draw in, it’s time for Screenplay,
Shetland’s annual film festival, which
kicks off on 29 August and runs until 6
September. It’s curated by well-known
film critics Linda Ruth Williams
and the BBC’s Mark Kermode. The
programme always includes a great
choice of film screenings, including
some featuring the work of local
young film-makers. There are also
talks and panel discussions, quizzes
and parties. In 2014, the programme
included 95 events.
All of this may seem like enough to fill more than one summer, but in fact is far from the end
of the story. Dozens of other local events take place right across the islands, ranging from
Lerwick’s colourful Midsummer Carnival to the Party at the Pier in Cullivoe, Yell and UnstFest,
Britain’s most northerly community celebration.
With so much going on, it’s no wonder that Shetlanders may seem a little bemused when
visitors ask (as they often do) how we pass the time at 60 degrees north.
www.SHETLAND.org
60 North | SUMMER 2015
55
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