This film is part of Free
Hill Sheep Farm
Shearing, rearing and auctioneering – sheep farming in the Highlands of Scotland.
Overview
This pleasant film shows the work of a shepherd in the picturesque highlands of Scotland across a calendar year and was made to encourage the repopulation of the highlands, and the redevelopment of hill sheep farming. Some images are slightly less pleasant, including a drowned lamb, but all contribute to a realistic presentation of a shepherd’s life and work.
This film was created on behalf of the Department of Agriculture for Scotland and offers a depiction of the realities of hill sheep farming in Scotland, and how valuable it was to the wider sheep industry. It begins by indicating that the two world wars had had a significant impact on the number of shepherds working the Highlands, and the film underlines the importance of growing the industry again. Some of the scenery is stunning, including pictures of snow-covered hills, and rural life throughout the year in the Highlands is rendered beautifully. This government film is a public record, preserved and presented by the BFI National Archive on behalf of The National Archives, home to more than 1,000 years of British history.
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