Memories of Westray

Westray lies in the northern most section of the Orkney islands. With a history stretching back to the arrival of the Vikings it is an island that has seen many changes and has provided challenges to those who lived there. Farming the land has required skill to make the best of the changeable weather, and while the sea has enabled bountiful catches it has also claimed some lives through the years. Two of Westray's longer living resident Myrtle Drever and Alex Costie have witnessed many changes to the lifestyle and the structure of those that live on the Island.

In these two Audio Documentaries they talk about life as it was in Westray when they were growing up: the strict observance of "the Sabbath", Xmas & New Year, schooling, the war years, marriage celebrations, and the changing commercial activities that have taken place over the last 80 years or so. Myrtle shares her life as the island's school teacher and Alec shares his time as a fisherman which included a stint of Whaling down in the Antarctic. Together they paint a picture of island life in the years gone by and leave us with a valuable "snapshot in time" of how life used to be in this picturesque tiny corner of the world.