"Five miles long, three miles wide, one road, 210 inhabitants, two shops, a post office, a pub... and a film society."

Arena's Gavin Millar visits Rousay, one of the northern isles of Orkney, and the home of what is quite possibly the most remote film society in Britain. The Rousay Film Society endeavours to meet the cinematic needs of its 75 fully paid-up members, and movie lovers who arrive by boat from nearby islands. It is the brainchild of Bradford potter Frank Harris and his wife, who transform the Island hall into a functioning cinema, drum up support among residents, publicise the film programme in the local shop, and operate the projector. Frank Harris' mother stitched the hall's cinemascope screen together from sail cloth.

The film reels themselves arrive from Mainland Orkney on Mansie Flaws' ferry boat. Films shown by the society to date include Doctor Zhivago, Romeo and Juliet, A Man For All Seasons, Lenny, Soldier Blue and The Music Lovers. Tonight's attraction is Fiddler On The Roof.

Since the sad demise of Sandy Wylie's mobile cinema some ten years ago, a night at the pictures has become an expensive and arduous ordeal for North Isles residents - as Gavin discovers when he takes a trip to the nearest cinema, the Phoenix Cinema in Kirkwall. So thank goodness for the Film Society.

Originally broadcast 2 February, 1977.





You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults.

Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - [ Ссылка ]

свернуть