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Title: NORTHERN LIGHTS, the

Reference number: 3735

Date: 1969*

Production company: BBC Scotland

Sound: sound

Original format: 16mm

Colour: bw

Fiction: non-fiction

Running time: 50.00 mins

Description: BBC Scotland documentary on The Northern Lighthouses, serviced by the Lighthouse vessel the Pole Star III.

This film is part of the Northern Lighthouse Board Collection. See refs. 3720, 3725 - 3737 and 9946

Credits: nar. Tom Fleming
camera Stuart Wyld
sd. Nigel Wake, Gordon Forsyth, John Goodwin
ed. Don Godden
sc. and p. Finlay J. MacDonald
The BBC wishes to thank the Commissioners of Northern Lights and their staff for their co-operation in the making of this film.

Shotlist: REEL 1
Gv's of a ship sailing in rough seas. Views of the ship at a distance, and shots of the waves crashing over the bow from the upper deck. (.17) THE NORTHERN LIGHTS. (.24) Narration by Tom Fleming. (.32) C/u of the captain and crew member on the bridge. The crew member is turning the ship's wheel as per the instructions of the captain. (.52) View of the bow taken from the bridge as it ploughs through the rough sea. (.58) Officer working with the ship's sea to shore telephone. (1.35) Zoom out from puffins on a rock to include a lighthouse in the background. (1.39) View of puffins and lighthouse is transposed by an outline map of Scotland with the position of Suleskerry marked. (1.56) Gv's of Suleskerry, puffins, and the lighthouse. (2.27) Lighthouse keeper erecting a flag. (2.33) Visual of the thick chain attached to the ship's anchor loosening to allow the anchor to be lowered. (2.41) View of the ship at anchor with the lighthouse keeper's signal flag in the foreground. (2.45) C/u of a lighthouse officer. (2.48) Men in oil skins lowering the motor launch attached to the ship. (2.57) C/u of lighthouse officer. (3.00) Loading of the motor launch with crates containing supplies for the Suleskerry lighthouse. (3.26) Lighthouse men climbing over the side of the ship. (3.42) The lighthouse men in the motor launch as it moves away from the side of the ship. (4.30) View of taken from Suleskerry of the motor launch sailing away from the ship. Zoom in on the motor launch as she manoeuvres into the gully. (5.28) Camera in the motor launch. C/u of the lighthouse men attempting to land. (5.50) View taken from land of the motor launch sailing closer. (5.58) Gv's of the motor launch taken from the land, and inside it of the struggle to keep the vessel steady in the gully at Suleskerry. The water is too rough for the boat to dock at the pier, so the men have to attached ropes to various rocks and hold the launch in place. (7.36) Gv' s of men climbing in and out of the motor launch, and of the supplies being unloaded. The motor launch is continually being pulled backwards and forwards by the swell of the sea. (8.40) Gv's of the motor launch releasing the ropes tethering it in place. and sailing away from Suleskerry. The lighthouse keepers left behind wave goodbye. (9.19) Small rail truck loaded with ropes is pulled up along the tracks between the pier and the lighthouse. (10.05) Lighthouse keepers unpacking the crates of supplies, baked beans ; bread ; biscuits; etc. (11.15) C/u on first aid box. (11.24) C/u on planks of wood stored in the rafters. V/o quote from narrator, ".... against the worst, rock lighthouses are supplied with, coffin boards." (11.33) Lighthouse keeper taking meteorological readings. He is seen working with an anemometer, and a rain gauge. (12.09) Lighthouse keeper speaking on the sea to shore radio telephone. (12.40) Pan down the transmitter tower. (12.50) Lighthouse keeper speaking on the radio telephone. (13.13) Lighthouse keeper drying plates. (13.22) Other two lighthouse keepers playing cards. (13.58) C/u of a kettle boiling on the stove, another kettle is beside it with string tied to the handle. (14.09) Sea rushing through a narrow gully. (14.18) Talking head. Former principle lighthouse keeper at Suleskerry speaking of when one of the assistant keepers lost his life. (15.07) Gv's of rough seas and different shore lines. (16.04) Outline map of Scotland is transposed over the rocky shore. Suleskerry remains marked, and the position of North Ronaldsay is highlighted. (16.14) View from outside the lamp room of the North Ronaldsay lighthouse. The camera slowly moves to c/u on the light itself. (16.38) Lighthouse keeper walking up the circular steps of the lighthouse interior. (17.16) Lighthouse keeper pulling up the blinds protecting the light from the sun. (17.30) Lighthouse keeper lighting the paraffin lamp. (17.53) C/u of the magnifying lenses, and the wheel and cog mechanism which turn and project the paraffin light. (18.14) L/s of North Ronaldsay lighthouse with the light in operation. (18.21) Lighthouse keeper sitting at a desk writing. (18.31) The equipment in the work room. Alarm bells, morse signals. (18.55) The lens revolving around the paraffin light. (19.07) Lighthouse keeper winding the weights which control the cog mechanism back to the top of the cycle. (19.25) Demonstration on what would happen if the keeper for some reason forgot to wind the weights. C/u on a ratchet clicking as the cogs turn. If the weights reach the floor a horn goes off. View outside of birds flying off in fright, then to the inside of the lighthouse where the assistant keeper runs up to the top. (19.51) C/u on the pages of a book. (20.11) Talking head. Lighthouse keeper speaking of his own work, and how he was the fifth generation of his family to work as a lighthouse keeper. (20.52) Keeper walking from the lighthouse to the dwelling house on North Ronaldsay. (21.03) View taken from inside a car of the journey along the single track roads on the island. (21.27) View of the car driving over the pot holes in the road. (21.31) Talking head. Lighthouse keeper's wife speaking of the difficulties of raising a family when the husband is away most of the year. (22.59) 827ft [Lighthouse keeper's wife is cut off at end of Reel I.]

REEL II
View of the ship at anchor. (.09) Captain and Pole Star crew member on the bridge. (.22) Gv's of the ship at sea. (.40) Captain and crew member on the bridge, Captain looking through binoculars. (.48) Buoy bobbing in the sea. (.58) Captain looking through binoculars. (1.03) View of the buoy from the deck as the ship approaches. (1.07) Officer operating the ship's telegraph. (1.13) Crewmen working with large hooks suspended on chains. (1.20) Crewmen fixing a wicker basket to a pole, and manoeuvring the basket over the flashing light on the buoy. (1.35) Crewman in oil skins leaning over the bow. (1.39) View from an upper deck of the buoy in the sea, and the crew standing on the lower deck. (1.47) Gv c/u's of the crew capturing and landing the buoy on deck. (2.54) Lighthouse man climbs up a ladder, and then up to the top of the buoy. He removes the wicker basket placed over the light. (3.27) Lighthouse man unfastens the light, and lowers it down to the crew below. (3.50) C/u of the men working with the light. (3.54) Light is raised back to the top of the buoy. (4.05) Winch operating as the buoy can be seen in the background gaining height. (4.14) C/u of lighthouse man. (4.17) Buoy is lowered into the sea, and the wicker basket protecting the light is removed. (5.01) Captain watching from upper deck. (5.05) View of the buoy in the sea as the ship moves away. (5.14) C/u's of three buoy lamps on a work desk flashing on and off. (5.30) View of the ship at sea is transposed by a map of Scotland and the location of Flannan Isle is marked. (5.51) View of the ship turning. (5.58) Gv of Flannan Isle. (6.05) Gv's of the rocks, and rough sea at Flannan. (6.22) Gv of Flannan Isle lighthouse. (6.31) Door opens. One set of boots and an oil skin hanging up. (6.42) Bunk bed made. (6.47) Pan from a stopped clock, to a table with a chair lying beside it, oil lamps on the window. Over view of the room, book and pipe on the table, chair lying on the floor. V/o concerns the mystery of when all three keepers at Flannan disappeared in 1900. (7.31) The three modern lighthouse keepers sitting around the table having tea. (7.51) Talking head. One of the three keepers speaks of his theory of what happened to his predecessors. (8.19) View from lighthouse ext. down the cliff to the gully below. (8.36) Talking head. Another one of Flannan Isle's keepers speaks of his theory of what happened. (8.47) Gv's of the cliff face. The dangerous waves breaking around the landing pier area, and the steep steps leading up to the lighthouse. (10.02) Gv's of Flannan. The lighthouse, wild life, stone ruins, views out to sea. (11.14) C/u of a man's hands as he works with some rope. (11.19) View of lighthouse man working with the rope, and he talks about how he came into the lighthouse service after he got married. (12.27) Zoom in from overview of cliffs to the lighthouse man preparing a creel, and casting it into the gully below. (13.18) Zoom in on the Fingal, sister ship to the Pole Star. (13.33) View of a rock lighthouse transposed by a map of SCotland. The position of Skerryvore is indicated. (13.48) White waves engulfing the rocks. (13.56) Lighthouse man looking through binoculars. (13.58) View of Skerryvore. (14.04) Lighthouse man looking through binoculars then turning to talk to the camera. He speaks of the beauty and danger of Skerryvore. (14.23) View of Skerryvore with its light flashing. (14.52) 535ft

REEL III
The filing, sealing, and loading onto a motor launch of water kegs. (1.41) Talking head. Lighthouse man on the danger of Skerryvore. (1.53) View of Skerryvore as the motor launch approaches. (2.04) Talking head. Lighthouse man describing a near tragic accident at Skerryvore. (2.48) Gv's of the motor launch loaded with supplies attempting to dock. (3.19) Lighthouse keepers operating a manual winch to land the water kegs. (3.42) Water kegs are individually rolled or pushed along to the lighthouse. (4.04) Water kegs are opened and emptied into a tank. (4.36) Pan up the ladder to the hatchway into the lighthouse. (4.42) Gv's of the lighthouse and hazardous rocks. V/o concerns the building of the lighthouse. (5.18) Gv's of motor launch unloading a series of rubber pipes. One end is attached to the hold on the launch, the other is attached to the lighthouse storage tank. V/o describes the method of refiling the oil supplies. (6.25) Camera pans from men working at the base of the lighthouse to the lamp room. (6.40) Gv's of the living quarters in the lighthouse. It is equiped with all modern comforts. (6.54) Talking head. Lighthouse man describing a fire at Skerryvore. (7.47) C/u of rocks and sea. (7.56) Gv of Skerryvore. (8.01) Talking head. Lighthouse Commissioner speaks of the difficulties and benefits of automated lighthouses and fog horns. (9.39) Lighthouse keeper walking down some steps to the water. (9.56) C/u of lighthouse keeper. (10.05) Lighthouse keeper walks back up the steps. (10.17) View of lighthouse ship. (10.22) Gv of a lighthouse and the ship's bow. (10.27) Motor launch moving away from the side of the ship. (10.45) Gv's in and out of the motor launch as it moves towards a rock lighthouse. (11.18) Gv's of lighthouse men and supplies being winched ashore. (12.25) Camera Stuart Wyld. Gv's of men being winched back on the launch.(12.35) Sound Nigel Wake Gordon Forsyth John Goodwin. Gv's of men being winched back on the launch, and a l/s of the lighthouse.(12.53) Editing Don Godden. View of the sea crashing against the rocks as the launch leaves. (12.59) Script and Production Finlay J MacDonald. BBC Scotland. Lighthouse on a point at dusk. The light beam can be seen. (13.06) The BBC wishes to thank the Commissioners of Northern Lights and their staff for their co-operation in the making of this film. (13.14) 476ft