Harris Tweed. 1941 film of Outer Hebrides women singing a ‘waulking song‘ while finishing tweed wool. A long forgotten art. Preserved by The British Council. AI enhancement by GlamourDaze.
A rare snapshot of a long vanished era. Women sing and ‘waulk’ Harris tweed in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland in 1940/1941. Filmed by Jack Cardiff of Powell & Pressburger fame. AI Enhanced using Deep Learning techniques.
Harris Tweed Waulking Songs in the Outer Hebrides
The women are ‘waulking’ or tucking the tweed wool. A form of finishing to remove oil and dirt.
Waulking singing was a social occasion for the Island women to get together.
The practice has since disappeared with industrial methods now used. If you watch the drama Outlander, you will recognize this scene, as it was recreated.
Filmed in 1941 by Jack Cardiff who is best known as the cinematographer for Powell & Pressburger.
Cardiff photographed The Red Shoes (1948), Black Narcissus (1947), A Matter of Life and Death (1946) and The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943).
The Western Isles – Outer Hebrides Film
Original Film – The Western Isles – The British Council Creative Commons.
The historic importance of The Western Isles (1941) was lost on the UK government at the time.
UK Minister of Information to Churchill, Brendan Bracken, personally wrote to the British Council, claiming that the film was living proof that “the British are frivolous. ” We are fighting the war to perpetuate a way of living long since outmoded”
To it’s credit, the British Council preserved the film nonetheless.
Note: The film also features actress and folk singer Kitty Macleod.
You can watch several AI enhanced films on the GlamourDaze YouTube Channel.