The Inverness storytellers

Eilidh Shaw lives in Inverness and teaches Gaelic to adult learners. She told a story (watch it online here) about her childhood in the Hebrides – with some family help:

Eilidh made an audio slideshow about life on Uist. Watch her story, Baile Gharbhaidh

"I recorded my brother, Neil, singing Gaelic family and townships songs that I remember my mother teaching him when I was just 3 or 4 years old. He was then about 12 and I thought, 'Neil will remember them,' and kept on drawing or looking at a comic, whatever keeps you quiet when you're little. That was over 40 years ago.

"Recording Neil repeating the poems and songs for Highland Lives was the highlight of 2007 for me.

"One of them he'd not been allowed to say out of doors, in case the neighbours heard him. My mother would have had to listen to complaints about her rude child, as the song named my grandfather and his neighbours having a wee dance in the kitchen and then moving closer to the potato pot which would have sat on every stove, every day, in every house in South Uist at that time. Scandalous stuff in those days! You did not want to offend your neighbours as you depended on them for anything you yourself did not possess.

"Hopefully we'll use the equipment again to record more stories and songs. My brother's head is full of information our mother handed down to him – chatting beside the fire on winter nights. The rest of us were too busy to listen!"

Also from Inverness

Ruairidh Duncan has big plans to follow in his dad's musical footsteps, and then go a lot further. Watch Words to lend.

Ros Rowell is adamant she's no hippy, just keen on being self-sufficient. A 20-year wait to erect a polytunnel on her croft has already borne fruit. Ros had a great time making her film. "I was really happy with the end result. It's whet my appetite to do more – a bit longer next time." Watch Love to grow.

Claire Houlihan & Jon Shutt moved to Inverness for the outdoors. They reckon the Highlands are an ideal place to live if, like them, you're into motorcycling. Watch Watch East to west by motorbike.

Seonag Anderson had first used a computer just six weeks before starting to make her Gaelic film about 'her heaven', Uist. Watch Eilean Uibhist mo rùn.

John Burns came to Scotland for the mountaineering. Now he gets his highs at lower altitudes. Watch The high life.

Anna Onadeko is part of Inverness's large Polish community. How did reality compare to expectation when she arrived from afar? Watch Poland to Scotland.

Other Highland Lives locations

Click around the map (upper right) or read about the Highland Lifers who took part in: Alness | Brora | Fort William | Grantown | Thurso