BBC Alba Documentaries

In 2007, two men and a dog set out to beat the behemoths of brewing. James Watt and Martin Dickie first met at Peterhead Academy in the northeast of Scotland and within 10 years the close friends turned their craft beer cottage industry into a global phenomenon. Today they employ over 2,000 people, and have opened over 100 bars globally from Japan to Australia and America, all from their base in Aberdeenshire. But their journey wasn’t smooth, and the business nearly went under until a supermarket competition changed their fortune. They faced negative press and grew through unconventional means. In 2018, they sold a 22% share to a private equity company, earning £50m each in the process. They are adamant they won’t sell out, but have the punks grown up to be just like the corporate giants they fought so hard against? With exclusive access – they tell us their own story from the beginning.

In 1954, Richard Dimbleby and a BBC film crew visited the Isle of Skye to record an episode of the early British television series About Britain. In this programme he gives viewers across the United Kingdom an insight into life on the island, meeting local characters and gaining an understanding of the lifestyle and culture of islanders, as well as spending some time with the Skye Mountain Rescue team and with Dame Flora Macleod at Dunvegan Castle. This programme was originally broadcast in September 1954.

Margaret Fay Shaw was born in 1903 near Pittsburgh. A talented piano player, she loved music from a young age. Arriving in South Uist in 1929 to collect Gaelic songs, she fell in love with the island, and spent the remainder of her days collecting songs and stories, whilst taking photographs and filming a way of living which was ceasing to exist. She married John Lorne Campbell in 1935, and two years later, they purchased Canna. Margaret stayed in Canna House until her death at the age of 101 in 2004. In this programme, Canna House archivist Fiona J Mackenzie gives a fascinating insight into the life of Margaret Fay Shaw, told through her own photographs, films and audio recordings.

Canna lies about 25 miles southwest off the coast of Skye in a cluster of four islands known as the Small Isles. But with only 16 residents living across 10 households, and with the lack of easy access to the mainland, Canna is a fragile community. We spend a summer with the residents to find out what life is like for them and how they cope with the challenges island life throws at them, from weather to water supply. We discover how tourism is a vital part of their economy and how they attract around 15,000 visitors to their island every season. And high stakes are at play when the Small Isles Island Games are held on Canna for the first time in four years, with teams from Eigg, Muck and Rum competing for the coveted trophy. Will Muck retain their winning streak or will Canna benefit from their home advantage? A heartwarming insight into a close community working together.

Featuring some of the best clips from great movies, Cinema Gadelica reveals how film-makers have been drawn to the Highlands and Islands to shoot amid the spectacular scenery of the Gaidhealtachd. Discover James Bond’s Glencoe birthplace, as revealed in Skyfall. Join Harry Potter on his way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry via the Glenfinnan Viaduct, and set out on Ridley Scott’s Prometheus to discover the origins of humankind – starting the mission at the Quiraing in Skye. Join Mel Gibson’s Braveheart rebellion in Glen Nevis. Did you know that Eilean Donan Castle was both the headquarters of the warlike Clan MacLeod in the cult fantasy Highlander as well as the HQ of MI6 in the Pierce Bronson Bond movie The World Is Not Enough? The great locations of great movies revealed.

Two of Scotland’s leading young traditional musicians, Charlie Grey and Joseph Peach, take a musical voyage on the Dutch vessel Wylde Swan to some of the most remote islands off Scotland’s north west coast. Two musicians on the high seas hoping for inspiration to compose new material which they will perform for the first time in this isolated part of Scotland. A beautiful film from musician and director Hamish Macleod. In Gaelic with English subtitles

Canna lies about 25 miles southwest off the coast of Skye in a cluster of four islands known as the Small Isles. But with only 15 residents and with the lack of easy access to the mainland, Canna is a fragile community. We spend a winter with the residents to find out what life is like for them and how they cope with the challenges island life throws at them, from weather to farming. Canna House is closed for renovations but we get a look inside what was home to John Lorne Campbell and Margaret Fay Shaw, now owned by NTS. And the islanders are excited as resident Anna Rothach is getting married in spring - the first time in 10 years since a resident got married on the island, and the whole community is invited to help the newlyweds celebrate. A heartwarming insight into a close community working together. In Gaelic with English subtitles.