Orkney Image Library

The brothers Sinclair and Isaac along with sister Mary were as well read as anyone in the land, there was not a subject that either of them could not speak on and indeed all held strong views on a wide field of knowledge. Clever people are not always in our places of learning, a great number can be found in humble surroundings like the Mansons o' the Stoop, who I grew up beside.
Jist look at the owld Wireless, that was the connection tae the world outside and the batteries alongside 'incase' the power should fail when something important might be on. I think Isaac liked boxing and other sports as well.
Sinclair was a brilliant stockman and Mary was a superb baker and cook. This type o people were the life o our communities in days gone by we must never forget them.

Thanks Steven, that's a big improvement.

Good to see photo's of folk that I remember from back then.

We had the same wireless, had the trawler band on it, and always listened to the lifeboat and Wick radio, if there was a rescue being carried out, Jimmy Groat sold that radios , memory is bad but think it was a SKY MONARCH .....

Excuse the ignorance, but what is the object (cloth?) above the young lady's head?

It was a little curtain on a wire Jim, but I can't remember what was behind it. My Dad might remember though.

Can hardly believe 40 years have been and gone since that photograph was taken.

I would say the cloth is a curtain to hide whatever is on the shelf behind it.

It would be safe tae say every house in this island would have a wireless that had what we called the trawler band (short waveband). Almost everyone listened to their set if it was bad weather or if it was known the lifeboat was out on a mission. These sets were a source of entertainment not only for news sport etc they entertained all who tuned in to the trawler band at night. The very religous east coast fishermen would sing hymns across the airwaves to each other and oh my, my, the Aberdeen and Grimsby trawler men had a turn of phrase that would turned the air blue!!.
I suppose listening to the short wave may have been to some extent illegal but everyone had a set and were tuned in.
Yes Jimmy that looks like a Sky Monarch. We never had one of them (only weel aaff, folk hid one o them Jimmy !!) The set here was an Invicta I still have two of them out in the shed, a rechargeable wet battery and what was called the high tension dry cell. This was usually an Ever Ready, and would it have been rated at something like 110 volts- any way it was expensive. Faither wid rant on about the price o ane, the shops here recharged the wet cell ane and the grocery vans always carried a spare. Can anyone remember how much was takn by the shop to provide that service. My, My, how the times have changed.

Thanks, I thought it was too ornate to be a "flakie".
Jim.

Times have sure changed and I have three wifi internet radios.
A Magicbox Imp, Roberts WM 201 and a Clarus Plus.
How my dad would have enjoyed them - Country music from all over the world.
Mum used to listen to the trawlers as well and it used to drive me up the wall as the reception wasn't great a lot of the time. Radio Luxembourg was more my cup of tea.

I don't think it was illegal to listen to SW but it might have been illegal to repeat anything you heard.