The North East Film Archive is one of a network of regional film archives established to collect, preserve and show film made in, or about the North East of England. Our collections are non-fiction, and date from the early 1900s to the present day, providing a rich record of life in the region over the 20th century. Many of our films are available to watch, free of charge, on our website.
This film is part of Free
Life on a Hill Sheep Farm in Weardale
The son of a miner with a passion for the County Durham landscape pays tribute to hard working hill sheep farmers in remote Weardale.
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Overview
A gifted amateur filmmaker, Edward Roberts grew up in a mining community in County Durham and retained a passion for its landscape and people, which shines through in this sensitive, instructive portrait of traditional sheep farming in the harsh landscape of Weardale - herding flocks in mid-winter, sheep dipping, blade-shearing, and lambing in spring.
In 1930 Edward Roberts (1893-1975) became Headmaster of Broom School in Ferryhill and also a County Inspector for Schools in Durham City, Spennymoor and Weardale areas. He pioneered the use of visual aids in the classroom and, in his spare time, made several films including a beautiful colour documentary of Durham Miners Galas in the 1950s, and this celebration of age-old rural skills, now a record of a vanishing way of life in the Durham Dales. The film was made for the Audio-Visual Library he was creating for the Durham County Council Education Committee.
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