♪ ♪ NARRATOR: We are a nation of islands.

PAT O'DOHERTY: Come on, you two.

NARRATOR: Over 4,000 are scattered along our coastlines, with hundreds more in our lakes, lochs, and rivers.

VIDURA DASA: Being surrounded by water, it has a very calming effect on the mind.

NARRATOR: Many of these islands are tiny.

Many are remote.

AMIE PERREE: I love so much about island life.

NARRATOR: But over 200 are called home.

♪ ♪ ROC SANDFORD: I don't own it because you don't own an island.

If anything, it owns me.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: With rugged cliffs and sandy shores, wildlife and family, and lives very different to most of our own.

IAIN MILLER: Going over the edge here is a bit cheeky.

Shall we?

NARRATOR: These are the stories of our tiny islands.

AMIE PERREE: The fact that you just walk out your door, and you're straight into sea, that sense of freedom is amazing.

♪ ♪ [lively music] NARRATOR: This time, it's playtime on Tory Island.

♪ ♪ Double and triple-jobbing in the Orkney Islands.

♪ ♪ A trek to the tidal island of Hilbre.

♪ ♪ And the beautiful bounty of a garden on Iona.

Nine miles off the coast of County Donegal in the northwest of Ireland is Tory island.

It's 3 miles wide, and just under a mile long, and home to around 140 people.

[calm music] It's the most remote inhabited island in the country and is home to 13-year-old Dean.

DEAN CULLEN: There's a certain kind of freedom you have in Tory, like, compared to other places.

You can go walking about, and parents won't have to worry about you.

And out here, it's nice to have that kind of freedom.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: The independence Dean has had growing up on Tory has seeped into all aspects of his life.

And while he's not ready to leave the family home just yet, he already has something all of his own.

DEAN CULLEN: The name of my coffee shop is the Puffin's Nest, and I've been working for four years now around that.

I kind of thought up the idea when I was around eight, turning nine.

I'd seen coffee carts and food carts and all that out in the mainland, and I thought it'd be a nice idea for Tory to have something like that.

NARRATOR: It's the start of the summer holidays.

And with school out, Dean's eager to open up and welcome the first ferry load of visitors to the island.

He's developed a reputation as Tory's youngest entrepreneur, but he doesn't let it go to his head.

DEAN CULLEN: Any money I do make, I try to put it back into the business some way.

Otherwise, I'd save it up for me traveling somewhere or college or something like that, you know?

There's the Americano.

NARRATOR: Over 8,000 visitors land on Tory each year.

And Dean is ready to take advantage of the footfall, provided the ferry can make land.

DEAN CULLEN: It's highly weather dependent because here, you don't get anyone in with weather.

Like, it really depends.

But it's the perks of being your own boss.

And I can take a day off to myself and not have to worry about it.

And it's great.

Can I get an Americano?

Yeah.

Large or small?

Large, if you don't mind.

NARRATOR: Not content being the island's only barista, he also operates as an unofficial tourist information center.

TOURIST: I'm looking to hear some corncrakes.

DEAN CULLEN: I haven't heard of any, no.

Well, but you'd see 'em in fields over, you know, over everywhere, really.

But mainly over East Lake, there'd be-- there'd be a good two over there.

But there might be some over next to lighthouse as well.

NARRATOR: Dean's local knowledge runs deep, in part thanks to his family's history here.

DEAN CULLEN: Most of the people that come in here would know my grandfather, the king of Tory.

From Germany?

Yeah.

[non-english].

Welcome, very welcome.

NARRATOR: Patsy Dan was the last king of Tory.

The island's the only place in Ireland to elect their own king.

It's a ceremonial position that has existed since the sixth century.

And the king acts as an ambassador and advocate for the island and its residents.

DEAN CULLEN: He'd go down every morning, the first boat and every boat after that, and he'd greet all the tourists and shake their hand and welcome to the island.

[calm music] Everyone loved it.

And whenever they came back, they always wanted to see the king of Tory down at the pier.

NARRATOR: The position has remained vacant since Dean's grandfather passed away seven years ago.

And ambitious Dean isn't ruling out following in his forebear's footsteps.

DEAN CULLEN: It's a hard job to get the king of Tory, but I'd love to do it.

♪ ♪ There's no word of a king yet, so maybe.

NARRATOR: But before he ascends the throne, Dean has to shut up shop for the day.

DEAN CULLEN: Business today wasn't too bad.

There was a good few people in on the 12 o'clock ferry, and we got some customers anyway.

It was good business.

[upbeat music] NARRATOR: But it's not all work.

There's also plenty of time for play on Tory.

After a busy shift, Dean heads to the beach with seven-year-old brother Fionn.

We're looking for crabs, starfish.

Dogfish.

Dogfish, whatever's here.

♪ ♪ First catch of the day.

Usually, me and my friends would go swimming or cycling or just walking about the island until the evening time.

And then we'll go home, do it all over again.

♪ ♪ Favorite thing about the island is really peace and quiet you have out here.

You know, it's far different to anywhere else.

♪ ♪ You don't get that kind of peace anywhere else.

Like, it's just-- it's a different feeling.

♪ ♪ [gentle music] NARRATOR: Accessing our tiny islands can be difficult, requiring journeys across bridges, over open water, or through the skies.

♪ ♪ Other islands allow us special access twice a day with the ebb and flow of our tides.

One such island can be found just off the west coast of England, where the River Dee meets the Irish Sea.

Hilbre Island, it's just 500 meters long and 300 meters wide, with no permanent residents.

Despite its seeming lack of human contact, the island has its own group of dedicated supporters, the Friends of Hilbre.

♪ ♪ Former geography teacher Dave is the chair of the society who are committed to conserving the island.

♪ ♪ OK, Peter?

- Yeah, all right.

- Yeah.

Today is a task day.

We do this once a month.

For many, many years, we've supported the Wirral Ranger Service in going out and maintaining the island.

[lively music] NARRATOR: With the tide out, the group can begin the 2-mile walk from the mainland.

The island will be accessible for six hours, putting the group on a tight schedule to complete their work and make the journey back.

DAVE GREGSON: When I walk out to Hilbre, it's a real release out there.

♪ ♪ There's a solitude, you know, where you can go, and you can become yourself.

You've got time to think out there.

And it's just a special place.

♪ ♪ The tide is the major reason why this place stays as it is.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Time and tide wait for no man, especially on Hilbre, so it's straight to work clearing back the invasive bracken.

The group's task has added complications due to the island's status as a nature reserve and site of special scientific interest, which means they must take extra care.

DAVE GREGSON: We're not allowed to pitch any chemicals onto the island at all.

So everything like this has to be done by hand.

It's a slow process.

In many respects, it's good.

We know that the island is not being contaminated in any way.

The bracken just creates too much shade for other plants to push through.

So that is why it's got to be removed.

And if we don't do it, it will just literally take over the island.

NARRATOR: Ranger Matt is grateful for the helping hand.

MATT THOMAS: The Friends of Hilbre play a key role in managing the island.

And they're a really good bunch of people.

A huge amount of knowledge and skills that they can bring to help us manage the island, keep them looking tip top, and protect them for future generations.

NARRATOR: The group have also recently taken responsibility for some of the island's historic buildings and hope, in time, they can become a heritage center.

DAVE GREGSON: We've been painting this.

This is the telegraph station.

And this is the most iconic building on the island.

NARRATOR: It dates back to 1827 and served as a vital link in the Liverpool-Holyhead communication line.

DAVE GREGSON: It was where the telegraph master used to come and look for the ships coming or the messages coming around the coast.

The idea is that we will try to restore this building to when it was listed.

NARRATOR: As a Grade II listed building, it needs constant care and attention.

MAN 1: The roof tiles, are they all correct now?

Yeah, yeah.

That's-- MAN 2: Well round the corner.

Yeah, until the next storm, and then they'll all need doing-- MAN 2: Gonna make my way down now.

OK, OK.

- See you, Matt.

- OK.

See you later.

NARRATOR: For David, the hard work is far from a chore.

DAVE GREGSON: There's nothing nicer than coming out, being in isolation, and then walking back and seeing all the people playing on the beach.

I'm thinking to myself, yes, they're having a nice time.

But I've had a nice time because of something that is completely different.

♪ ♪ It is a wonderful place.

You can just get lost in yourselves.

It makes me feel very privileged.

[calm music] ♪ ♪ [upbeat music] NARRATOR: Those living on islands work to provide public services, to grow food, and create community.

♪ ♪ For some, however, the work they do is about much more than making a living.

It's about sustaining the heartbeat of an island.

♪ ♪ Just off the northern coast of Scotland lie the Orkney Islands, a scattered archipelago of around 70 isles, only 20 of which are inhabited.

Among them is Papa Westray, known to locals as Papay.

Just 4 miles long and a mile and a half wide, it's home to 95 people.

♪ ♪ Alistair was born on the island.

Then, after a brief spell on the mainland in childhood, he returned to Papay 48 years ago.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: I love it here.

I just absolutely love it.

I sit at my table in the morning and look out on the view that we have here.

And it doesn't matter if it's a bonny summer's day or the absolutely worst winter's day, the change that you're getting here is just remarkable.

I always love it.

NARRATOR: On his return, he set up as the island's builder in chief, an important role maintaining Papay's homes and making it an attractive place for newcomers.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Accommodation is something that's been very short of.

Rentable accommodation over the years has been very short.

We have about five, six places that are for rent.

And that's making a difference.

Folk can move in here.

NARRATOR: It's a constant battle to keep the island's population over 70 people so vital services like the school can stay open.

In the late '90s, numbers fell to just 54, putting Papay's future at risk.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: There were quite a desperation then in the island to see what we could do to get it up again.

NARRATOR: Since then, islanders have increased the amount of affordable accommodation, and the population has risen.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: It seems to have worked.

Been up to 80 now for a good while and seems to be thriving well enough.

NARRATOR: Today, Alistair's off to check on a job son Barry and grandson Aidan are already working on.

MAN 3: Hey.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Done a wee bit of digging with a small digger that we have hired in.

And we're having a wee bit of bother with the soil there.

It's quite firm.

Don't go very deep at all.

The cable is there, the phone cable, so a few inches off the top.

I think working with the family's great.

I'm quite delighted at the moment just to be the three of us going at it.

NARRATOR: They're digging a trench and laying pipe work for an en suite to make the home ready for a family to move in.

We need to increase the length of the pipe up that way.

And this is, obviously, a rodding eye from 40 year ago.

But like I say, I don't think it's ever been off in that time.

So we might have to break it all the way over here and just join to it underneath here.

It's a possibility, it is.

NARRATOR: Today, the family have a lot to do.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: The machines are hired from a firm on the mainland.

And yeah, I've just had it out for a week to get on with the job.

But it has to go back on the boat on Friday.

Obviously, then it puts a little bit of pressure on getting things done, but we don't have far to go.

It's just up to the end of the year and then joining up.

So we'll get there.

NARRATOR: And the equipment isn't helping.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: It's still having a wee bit of struggle.

The machine's just a little bit on the light side.

It would need to be a slightly bigger digger, to be honest.

NARRATOR: Not content with being the island's only builders, the trio also act as electricians, joiners, plumbers, and plasterers.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Well, you become capable, but you're not a master by any means.

But one day, you're working a plasterboard.

And then you realize you've got to get some wiring in for sockets.

So I don't get on to an electrician on the mainland to do that.

I can do that.

And so that, to me, makes life easier.

OK, I'm heading home to look at the base.

You continue on what you're doing in the meantime.

No slacking off and going home now.

NARRATOR: And his building gig isn't the only way Alistair welcomes new arrivals to the island.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Just out checking this young calf here.

It was born last night, and it's looking fine.

You're very concerned just to make sure they are having a suck, to be honest.

You want them to be sucking quite quick after they're born.

They need to get the colostrum in them, which is the first milk.

NARRATOR: Alistair began farming 40 years ago after marrying his wife, whose family have farmed the island for seven generations.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Farming to me is more-- I wouldn't say it's a hobby, because it's far from that.

We've silage to make and get the winter food for them and calving to do.

And so yeah, it's certainly more than a hobby.

NARRATOR: There are six other farmers on Papay and just 918 hectares of land, meaning farm sizes can be small.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Farming at Papay is quite different, I think, from a lot of places.

And we work very well together.

There never seemed to be any disputes, I don't think.

We're all kind of almost of the same age.

We kind of started farming at a time together, and we've come up through the whole thing together.

NARRATOR: Papay's farmers all share the island's heavy machinery.

Alistair is meeting Ian, and together, they're checking over the island's baler ahead of the impending silage season.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: If it's not too good, you get it in order so it's ready to go when the weather's right.

The last thing you need is a breakdown in the middle of your silage because living out in a small island like we are, you can't just get parts in the next hour or so.

You have to wait maybe a few days or so.

That's all sounding good.

Yeah.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: It'll be ready for the show, huh?

IAN: I think so.

[gentle melody] NARRATOR: For centuries, islands have been a source of inspiration for artists, their unspoiled landscapes, peaceful beaches, and undisturbed wildlife eliciting works from painters, photographers, writers, and printmakers.

♪ ♪ In Merseyside, less than 10 miles from Liverpool city center, is the island of Hilbre.

♪ ♪ The volunteers from the Friends of Hilbre aren't the island's only regulars.

And it has more than its fair share of admirers, including Liverpool-born artist Terry.

♪ ♪ TERRY DUFFY: I live locally, and I exhibit my work internationally.

♪ ♪ Come on, Reg.

TERRY DUFFY (VOICEOVER): During the first lockdown, I came out here with Reggie to get away from people, and we started doing the drawings and came across these fascinating buildings.

And I just thought, this could be perfect for artist studios.

♪ ♪ That's it, go.

NARRATOR: Terry's ambition is to establish the island as a base for artists, designers, and scientists.

You can see Wales in the distance.

NARRATOR: Inspired by work he completed with First Nations communities in Australia, Terry has approached putting the island into his work literally.

And today, he's low on vital supplies.

TERRY DUFFY: Walking down this path, you can see now the sandstone cliffs, the bedrock of what is Liverpool and Merseyside.

You know, you see 20, 30-foot high cliffs of sandstone.

It really seemed obvious to me that for me to integrate that into the work.

What's fallen from the cliff edges is the fine sandstone.

[gentle music] NARRATOR: This Hilbre sandstone was formed in the Triassic Period around 240 million years ago and will become a central part of Terry's art.

As you can see, as I wipe my hands across it, there's the sand falling to the ground or the sandstone.

And if we take some of that back to the studio, I can ground this down into oil paint.

♪ ♪ Come, Reg, quick.

NARRATOR: Terry has studios and gallery space in the old buoy master's buildings on the island.

It's here that Hilbre truly becomes part of his paintings.

♪ ♪ TERRY DUFFY: Place that on the-- NARRATOR: By further grinding down the sandstone and mixing it with oil paint, he can turn the island into art.

♪ ♪ TERRY DUFFY: And if I keep that going for a while, make myself a cup of tea, listen to Radio 4, and just be here and think about what you're doing, eventually, the grinding stone sound goes, and you have smooth oil paint.

NARRATOR: And with this oil paint, he creates works based on the island.

Seabirds are a common sight at Hilbre Island, and Terry became inspired by the gannet.

TERRY DUFFY: I try to express the-- the energy, the power of the bird.

♪ ♪ It's about, maybe, the life it lived, the vitality, the energy, the places this bird had traveled to.

♪ ♪ I'll leave it to you to decide whether it's any good or not, you know?

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: For Terry, both the island and the art he creates there are unique and entirely intermeshed.

TERRY DUFFY: Integrated within the oils is the bedrock of Hilbre.

That is the sandstone which creates this physical and symbolic meaning, this integrated element into this bird that can only be from Hilbre.

To actually begin to play with the nature around us is a wonderful thing to do.

It's an absolute gem of a place, yeah.

♪ ♪ [calm music] NARRATOR: Many of us love to spend our downtime exploring tiny islands, their rocks and caves, their lochs and rivers, their beaches and fields.

♪ ♪ Others are lucky enough to set foot on these islands as part of their daily commute.

♪ ♪ On the west coast of Scotland, just a hair's breadth from the Isle of Mull, lies Iona.

At just 3 miles long and 2.4 miles wide, it has a population of 178 permanent residents.

♪ ♪ The ferry is a key part of life there, bringing 130,000 tourists a year to its shores and also acting as a key commuter route.

♪ ♪ Floortje, originally from the Netherlands, moved to Mull two years ago.

Each working day begins with a ferry ride to her job on Iona.

♪ ♪ FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: It's probably the nicest commute I've ever had.

Like, who gets to go on a ferry in the morning to go to work?

[upbeat music] There's a wee group of us that commute onto Iona from Mull every day, so there's usually about 10 of us, and we all know each other.

NARRATOR: Leaving a career in media, Floortje came to the island after looking for a new challenge.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: In my late 20s, I guess I got itchy feet, and I just wanted to go and do something else for a bit.

So I booked myself in for a horticulture course.

So I've been a grower for 15 years now.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Floortje is now head gardener at the St.

Columba Hotel and responsible for their organic garden.

♪ ♪ FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: It's a 2-acre garden, which isn't really that big, but we cram a lot in.

We grow a lot of fruit and veg for the kitchen.

We grow fruit and herbs for gin and rum, cut flowers for in the restaurant and in the hotel.

We grow lavender, mostly for essential oils.

And we also keep bees.

So yeah, we're quite busy.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Iona is at the end of a long supply chain, which means getting fruit and veg to the island at peak freshness can be difficult.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: Growing this sort of stuff here and it going only 50 yards into the fridge means that the quality is just so much better.

Every Friday, I make a list of what's available and how much of it is available from the garden for the following week.

Then the head chef orders all the various produce, and we harvest that three days a week.

NARRATOR: Today, the chef has put in a special request-- chard and some of Floortje's famous salad mix.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: We try and make our salad mix interesting so it doesn't just have lettuce in it.

So this bed is where we grow some, like, a variety of some more special things.

So this is salad burnet, which is really tasty.

It actually tastes like cucumber.

The kitchen washes it for us, so we don't have to worry about it too much.

But I try and give them the leaves slug free.

NARRATOR: These leaves will be added to a mix of cornflower, herbs, and calendula flower.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: It is something I'm quite proud of that, like, our salad mix is, I'd say it's unique.

And because it's so fresh, it's not just that sort of green side thing on the plate.

NARRATOR: The island's geography plays a big role in the garden.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: So despite being quite northerly, we have a coastal maritime climate.

We have the gulf stream passing by here or passing through, meaning that there's actually quite a mild climate for growing.

NARRATOR: And in fact, Floortje's able to produce a surplus of what the hotel needs.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: I'd say about 90% of what we produce goes into the kitchen and gets served to people in the restaurant.

The other 10%, we sell it in our wee shop.

But also, some of it is for wholesale customers.

NARRATOR: Each week, she texts islanders and local businesses.

They order from what's available and collect from the garden.

Next for the day is making sure nothing goes to waste, even the kitchen scraps.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: We try and be as closed loop as possible.

So we pick up the scraps, and then they go in here.

And then we, over a matter of weeks or months-- it depends a bit on the time of year-- we turn the compost.

NARRATOR: As an organic garden, no pesticides or fertilizers are used.

So this compost helps restore nutrients to the soil, enabling Floortje to make the best use of her small space.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: It ends up looking like soil, really.

This has got a lot of fertility in it, so it's cool because it's literally kitchen scraps.

And then you end up with something, like, just this amazing product, basically, that you can use to produce food with.

So yeah, it's the stuff of gold, really.

[bright music] ♪ ♪ NARRATOR: With the garden, Floortje has found her place in the community here.

FLOORTJE BRANDSTEDER: I've always felt quite welcome.

I feel part of the community in that, I suppose, my job is a very traditional role like you used to have, like, your village butcher and your village this and that.

And I suppose we grow the veg.

♪ ♪ The backdrop here is amazing.

I've never worked anywhere with a view this good.

You could be working away in the garden, minding your own business, and look up, and there's dolphins in the sound, which is amazing.

And you'd be thinking to yourself, I can't-- can't believe I'm getting paid for this.

♪ ♪ [upbeat music] NARRATOR: Separated from the mainland, islands must be independent, self-sufficient, self-reliant, able to support the homes and families that have made their lives there.

This can mean raising their own livestock and growing their own crops, to teaching their children and celebrating their unique ways of life.

Less than 10 miles from the Donegal coastline, you can find Tory Island.

It takes its name from the Irish "toraigh," meaning place of steep, rocky heights.

The island has a rich maritime history, and fishing has been a vital occupation on the island for generations.

Mickey-John has always connected with the waters there.

MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: I was born and reared here.

And most of my life I spent here on the island.

♪ ♪ I lived beside the slip there when I was growing up, and I would be jumping in and out on boats all the time in my young days, anyway, so I love boats.

That was the only connection we have to the mainland.

That's the only transport we have.

It was boats.

NARRATOR: Mickey-John himself sailed the waters of Tory as a fisherman, but has taken on a new career in retirement as Tory's only boat builder.

MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: There's a bit of decoration for the boat.

So this is a fishing boat.

And it looks more like a fishing boat when you add a bit of net onto it.

NARRATOR: Mickey-John's toy boats, given to every child on the island, are the stuff of legend on Tory.

Specially designed with flat bottoms, they can sail in shallow water, allowing children to safely keep the Tory bond with the water.

MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: These model boats I made maybe last year now.

My grandson wanted a wee boat, and that's how I started.

And then the rest of the kids on the island, they wanted one.

NARRATOR: The boats are custom built for each child.

MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: I must have made 60 or 70 by now.

Between girls and boys, they all wanted different colors.

And as you see, this one belongs to my granddaughter, and she wanted it to be pink and yellow.

When we were growing up, we used to see them a lot.

NARRATOR: For Mickey-John, this is a tradition he can recall in his childhood, when the island's youngest residents would build and play with tin boats.

And it's something he's keen to pass on.

MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: Well, some of the boats, I put names on them myself.

And some of them want their own name on them.

But this one is named after a rock behind Tory.

And every rock around the island has a name, and this one is called Tor Na Cois.

I have no owner for it yet.

But sometime, I give them away as a surprise for kids not expecting this.

And you feel the joy with the children coming and take them away from you.

So that's very-- I like that kind of thing.

[gentle music] ♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Content his craft is looking ship-shape, it's time to set sail.

♪ ♪ MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: Looking well.

A bit to one side, but I think the ballast drifted a bit.

Built this wee pier for all the kids on the island.

It's shallow, and it's safe enough for the kids to play around with their boats.

NARRATOR: And Mickey-John is proud to help continue this childhood tradition on the island.

MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: I think they're very popular now.

A few years back, there weren't so many coming with boats on the lake.

Only that I started building this boat for the grandson, it was only a few at that time.

Now there's about one or two in every house.

NARRATOR: Saskia moved to the island from France after meeting her Tory-born husband.

Her children have been bitten by the boating bug.

SASKIA LEVY-JONES: It's always been a tradition on the island for kids to play with boats.

Mickey-John has made a mission to build boats for all the children on the island.

So we're extremely lucky.

We have two beautiful boats, and they are work of art.

I mean, they are the best toys any child can get.

♪ ♪ MICKEY-JOHN RODGERS: It's nice to see them down on the shore or up here in the lake.

It gives you something nice that you've done something nice for kids anyway.

If people ask me to make one for them, I will surely.

I'll keep it up.

It's a great pastime in the winter for me.

It gets me out of the house, and I have someplace to go and something to do.

So I'm happy to keep going anyway, as long as my eyesight keeps working.

♪ ♪ [calm music] NARRATOR: Islands can be solitary, isolated, distant.

Island communities are close knit, bonded, interdependent.

They must come together to put food on the table, to look after their children, to care for one another, and to keep each other safe.

[upbeat music] Papa Westray is the 10th largest of the Orkney Islands.

The island's name comes from an anglicized version of its old Norse title, meaning Island of the Priests.

♪ ♪ Alistair is still hard at work at yet another of his roles on Papay.

♪ ♪ ALISTAIR HOURSTON: The fire service is part of me life.

I got a long service medal for just last year, owing to the 30 years.

And yeah, it's a little bit of pride in that.

♪ ♪ We train on a Monday night, two and a half hours training.

Not a lot of fire goes on, and that's great.

You don't want it.

NARRATOR: But just three jobs isn't enough for Alistair.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: I also seem to have gone to be the chief gravedigger within the isle.

Other jobs, I actually work to the council.

We do gritting work in the winter time.

NARRATOR: And in case all that wasn't enough, workaholic Alistair has one more job before he can finish up for the day.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: I've been doing the rubbish for 25 years now I've been doing it.

The guy who was doing it was leaving the island, and it was actually a council-run job then.

And they just got on to me if I'd be willing to do it.

There's a lot of jobs in the isle, I guess, that are done differently here than on the mainland, and rubbish is definitely one of them.

It's how it's been done for a long time now, but it seems to work fine.

NARRATOR: There are no incinerators or landfills on Papay.

All the waste must be collected by Alistair and taken to the ferry before it's taken off island.

Unfortunately, the council didn't provide Alistair with a bin lorry for the task.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: It's just a van and a small trailer behind the van.

We throw the black bags into the trailer, bring them back here, and then we, on the Friday morning, they go into tote bags, big bags, and get shipped off.

That's how it all works.

[bright music] NARRATOR: This evening, he's joined by his grandson, Aidan.

The hour-long drive around the island gives the pair some one-on-one time.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: Aidan coming with me, it lightens my load.

I actually don't get out of the van very often, which is much to Aidan's dismay sometimes because he has to do all the heavy lifting.

AIDAN HOURSTON: Somebody's gotta help out with jobs.

And if you're contributing to the island and you're doing the work that's needing done, then it's the best thing, especially if you get paid for it.

NARRATOR: Unlike many 19-year-olds keen to fly the nest, Aidan needs no convincing of the pleasure of island life.

ALISTAIR HOURSTON: He sort of reminded me of when I first came back here.

Obviously, he's a wee bit older than I was then.

But he seems to be keen, keen to remain here and to make a future of himself.

Just the right time.

All the bags and boxes will be getting wet.

Aye.

AIDAN HOURSTON: I was always in the mind of staying in Papay.

I could have moved to Westray, but nothing further afield than Orkney was never really any consideration at all.

Papay's home.

[calm music] ♪ ♪ I met me girlfriend when she moved up to Westray.

♪ ♪ Four years together now, and saving up and seeing if we can move in together in the next couple of years.

I would say, ideally, Papay.

But she lives across in Westray, so it should be one of the two.

But that's the short term.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: For Alistair, the future of Papay is more secure.

Now island-born children can remain here and hopefully in time be joined by newcomers, securing the island's survival.

♪ ♪ ALISTAIR HOURSTON: I love the thought of the young folk coming back here and wanting to remain on the island.

They just need to make sure they get partners, look to children, get a future on the island.

And that's what the isle needs.

Well, I'll see you in the morning, boy?

- Yeah, see you in the morning.

- Thanks for that.

Cheers.

I guess at my age, I should be considering doing less than that.

But I think if you're able and fit, I don't see any reason that you should consider slowing down.

Well, that's the rubbish collected for another week.

Ready for collection on the boat at the morn.

That's me, feet up.

[bright music] NARRATOR: Off the western coast of County Donegal is Tory Island.

♪ ♪ French-born writer and anthropologist Saskia is raising her young family on the island.

♪ ♪ SASKIA LEVY-JONES: I think it's the best place in the world to grow up, yeah, most definitely.

They have many friends.

They have a lot of freedom.

I have a daughter who is 12 now.

And I have Aaron, who is eight.

And in the middle, I have Sean, and he is 11.

He is autistic.

There is no better place for him than here to grow up.

Everybody's very understanding and very accepting of his nature.

He is really part of this community.

♪ ♪ This generation is an extremely lucky generation.

They have all the advantages without any of the inconvenience.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Saskia first came to the island as part of her master's degree.

SASKIA LEVY-JONES: My granny went to the dentist, and she picked a geo magazine about Ireland.

They had that big article about Tory.

And I was, gosh, I would love to visit that place.

I don't know.

Something called me.

I spent two months here, fell in love with the island, and well, I met someone.

I was lucky enough to meet a man who kind of embodies the island.

[calm music] He's the real thing.

He is from Tory, and he's from Tory generations and generations before.

If I had met him in London, I don't know if it would have been the same story.

We met at the right place at the right moment, and that's it.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: 17 years on, Saskia is more passionate than ever about promoting the cultural heritage of the island.

SASKIA LEVY-JONES: All year round, I am conducting cultural projects.

So I worked on web series.

I wrote books, organizing exhibitions.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Part of Saskia's mission is to record and share the stories of the island.

And it's at the forefront of her mind in her walks.

SASKIA LEVY-JONES: There have been people documenting the island long before me.

But what I'm trying to put in place now is to really get into the archaeological and historical details because you need to do two things.

You need to record the stories and the folklore that we don't forget about it.

But you also need to dig into the history and the archeology of the island to get the facts.

[calm music] NARRATOR: Saskia has become as well-versed as the Tory natives in their island's tales, including some involving one of Ireland's patron saints, St.

Colmcille.

SASKIA LEVY-JONES: This is called the Church of the Seven.

♪ ♪ According to the folklore, seven people from India came to the island to talk to Columbkille to get some of his wisdom and teaching.

It was six men and one princess.

Unfortunately, the shipwreck happened somewhere around here, and they all died.

♪ ♪ So the islanders at the time took the bodies, and they tried to bury them all together here.

♪ ♪ Except that the following morning, the princess body was on top of the grave.

♪ ♪ So they tried to bury her again with the men.

And no, no way.

The following morning again, the body was back on top of the grave.

Because the princess was refusing, or the ghost of the princess was kind of refusing to stay with the men, Columbkille considered that she was a saint, that she was refusing to be buried with men.

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: The folklore is that the princess was buried separately.

And for almost 1,500 years, the eldest member of the Duggan clan has collected holy clay from the princess's gravesite.

♪ ♪ SASKIA LEVY-JONES: The beautiful thing is, you can see a candle there.

People are still coming to put candles on her grave.

That really shows you how important is this site for people or holy is this site.

We do have holy clay at home collected the right way.

It's very precious to us.

And thank God, I think we are doing quite well.

So maybe it's the clay.

[lively music] NARRATOR: Saskia hopes her passion, passed on through her cultural projects, can inspire the next generation of islanders.

♪ ♪ SASKIA LEVY-JONES: I'm raising three islanders, and I really want them to get an interest in their own culture and their own heritage.

Very often, unfortunately, people tend to pass by the monuments and the places, and they take it for granted.

What I want the generation coming now to do is to say, well, what we have here is extremely precious, and we really need to take care of it and to look into it and to promote this heritage.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪