Voices of Support | Guthan Taiceil

I am a Scottish singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist and performer. I have toured and performed worldwide since the mid 1970’s. I have written songs (including Caledonia, Ready for the Storm and Feel So Near) which have been recorded by many artists, including Grammy award winners. My music has been used in films, including ‘Last of the Mohicans’ in 1992. Together with my artist wife Jennifer I have also, since 1983, established a successful music business (Dunkeld Records) with management, record label, publishing company and recording studio in Perthshire, Scotland, and over 20 years ago started the ‘Perthshire Amber’ Festival which has now become the annual boutique Shades of Amber Festival. My musical efforts were recognised by Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II when I was awarded the OBE in 2011, and a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ for song writing by the BBC in 2013. You can locate my profile here.

Since 1993 my wife and I have owned The Old Farmhouse in Uig on the Isle of Lewis, spent as much time as possible there, derived inspiration for my work from the very special landscape and culture and have been fortunate in becoming part of the community there, as well as my native Perthshire. I have journeyed by boat to St Kilda and recognise the very special nature of that island. St Kilda’s distinct geographical location and rich and ancient history make it a remarkable place. Its evocative story has stirred the hearts of musicians, artists, writers and poets as well as historians. Its remoteness has made it even more compelling because being able to visit the archipelago is dependent on seasonal weather and sea swell.

The St Kilda Centre, with its amazing exhibition and location, will tell the unique story of the St Kilda people to a much wider audience, without the arduous boat journey out into the swell of the Atlantic Ocean and without degrading a double UNESCO site. I wish the project every success.

As the Hebridean Baker, I've shared the culture, recipes and language of the Outer Hebrides with people across the world. Ionad Hiort will give the history of our islands a permanent home. Celebrating the story of St Kilda, strengthening our Gaelic heritage and inspiring future generations to cherish the unique spirit of our islands.

The St Kilda Centre will be an important acknowledgement of the history of the island and the rich story of its inhabitants before evacuation. This is very important now that it is occupied by people with a different story who will have their own memories. I knew about St Kilda as a child because my father’s uncle and cousin had cattle floats in Auchtermuchty and went to Oban in 1930 to take the sheep and cattle on to other destinations after the sale. My full support goes to this exciting project.

My connection with what was then known as ‘St Kilda' goes back to my childhood in Skye. The Church of Scotland missionary Dugald Munro moved to Kyleakin after the evacuation and lived next door to my grandparents. I heard at first hand the stories of the island people. In later years in Lochmaddy, my uncle would drive us to west of North Uist to see the outline of Hirta against the setting sun. My aunt would say ‘ we will go there someday when the good weather comes.’ The story and the history of the island group would be preserved in Ionad Hiort and passed on to future generations, time is of the essence as the last links of memory fade and stories can still be recorded. So much of the oral history of the Highlands has been lost, Ionad Hiort would become a model of best practice to retain all aspects of our culture for future generations and serve as a valuable addition to the tourist economy of the Hebrides.

St Kilda exists in the terra incognita of our imaginations.

This living island continues to resonate with the unique way of life of its former inhabitants. With its breathtaking location amid a pristine ocean and vertical stacks, it is a deeply moving place to visit.

We think of the natives of St Kilda and their resilience, inventiveness and extraordinary existence in this, their whole world, situated in the wild and powerful ocean. 

 How best to inspire and inform the public through an exploration of the place itself and acting as a memory curator for a live story? Not in the form of a traditional museum but in this radical and ground-breaking building by Dualchas overlooking the stacks at Mangurstadh providing a living homage and a significant experience.

I thank all involved sincerely for this ground-breaking centre and I am so excited by the prospect!

I believe this to be the most imaginative and important cultural and heritage project for the Western Isles of Scotland that I have come across in recent years. It will not only provide remarkable fresh perspectives on the world famous history and landscape of St Kilda but through its visitor centre and related activities, will powerfully enhance the local economy and drive new opportunities for the people of the island of Lewis in general and the beautiful remote parish of Uig in particular.

Growing up on North Uist in the 1950s, on a clear day, the distant stacks of St Kilda, were an indelible part of our childhood vista.

The stories, the history, the first hand recollections and links to the people, with their unique and challenging way of life were ever-present. 

 The St Kilda narrative has fascinated so many people throughout the generations and it’s now timely and fitting that this remarkable story of civilisation and survival will be maintained for posterity.

“All the homes of the globe are like television in your eyes

A cross guarding your heart, the living years a sacrifice.” 

There must be few places on this earth that make as strong an impression on the first-time visitor as islands of St Kilda…  

I remember seeing the islands appearing on the horizon, indistinct shapes of attenuated blue emerging from the swell of the sea. And then, as we approached them, the details emerged – the sweep of green, the towering columns of the stacks, the sky-filling flocks of seabirds. Most visitors are, I suspect, unprepared for the sheer physical power of this remote island landscape...But it is not just the sheer beauty of these last rocky outcrops that makes St Kilda such a special place: it is the story of the culture they supported that is so important. 

It is not easy to get to St Kilda, but with the development of the St Kilda Centre remote access and digital story-telling will bring the islands closer to the many visitors who come each year to Lewis… It will also be of great benefit to the people who live in the Outer Hebrides and who face very particular challenges in being on the periphery. St Kilda may no longer have a people, but people still want to have St Kilda, and that, in essence, is what this remarkable project will do so much to ensure. 

St Kilda was always a close cousin to the Western Isles, and when the visitor centre at Ionad Hiort is completed it will restore an important ancient relationship.