BBC Radio Orkney

Our Story

Factual: History

Communities around Scotland tell the stories that matter to them. With Mark Stephen.

Our Story: Series 10

Our Story: Series 10: Episode 3

Episode 3

Series 10

BBC Radio Scotland - Our Story, Series 10, Episode 3

Mark Stephen hears the story of the Tunnel Tigers who built Scotland's hydro network.

Mark Stephen hears the story of the Tunnel Tigers - the men who built Scotland's hydro network.

After the second world war, a huge civil engineering project took place in Scotland aimed at providing cheap and efficient electricity for the whole country. Tunnels and dams were built on a scale never seen before. But because there was a shortage of man power in the country, workers from elsewhere came to dig and blast the rock. Many came from poverty stricken Ireland and it is their courage and tenacity that we have to thank for our hydro network today. In this edition of Our Story, Mark Stephen speaks to 4 men who came to Scotland to build the hydro in the 1950's and hears about how they lived in an environment when health and safety was not a priority.

BBC Radio Scotland

Mark Stephen hears the stories of Scotland's distinctive past.

Mark Stephen hears the stories of Scotland's distinctive past from those who are part of its rich history.

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