| Description | Tape 1 Side A WILLIAM ANDREW ('DREW') RATTER born 28 March 1952 Lerwick, Shetland. Family Shetlanders for many generations. Eldest of 3. Details re sisters. Family history recorded back to 1500s. Derivation of name Ratter. Details re paternal grandparents. Grandfather a crofter-fisherman. Recalls maternal grandparents and other family members, time spent with them, learning dialect from them. Saying, 'your memories are your grandparents' memories'. Recalls association with Victorian Shetland. Describes grandparents' home. Improved Shetland economy in 1920s, reflected in style of houses, facilities, 19th century a harsh time. Explains. In 19th, early 20th century many men joined British navy. Ten-pound Poms left Shetland for New Zealand. Recalls culture of grandparents' generation, e.g. informality going into people's houses. Father was a labourer, involved with worker schemes. Describes parents, their activities. Hard life of crofting. Brought up in Ollaberry. Details re location of home. Went to local school till age 12, then to Lerwick. Details. Drop in school population but recent rise partly because of oil industry, also fishing. Did OK at school. Presence of religion at home. Seldom alcohol in house. Details. No pub culture then in Shetland. Many visitors in childhood home. Describes social activities. Impact of television which came in 1963. Post-war interest in politics in Shetland, Liberal tradition. Parents' evolving positions. Further comments on post-war politics, Harold McMillan, Liberals, curiosity re attraction of Joe Grimmond, his regal manner. Mentions Jim Wallace, Tavish Scott. Evolution of own interest in socialist politics. Joined SWP (Socialist Workers' Party), Labour party. Had no career aspirations, importance of education. Comments on Scottish/Shetland/island identity.
Tape 1 Side B Comments on sense of identity, Shetland/Scottishness/European-ness. Has no sense of Britishness. Feelings about importance of European union. Feelings about Scotland/England relationship, Scottish nationalism, small island consciousness, regional identity. Recalls friendships from school days. Reasons for moving to left politically. Went to university twice. Explains. Describes egalitarian nature of Shetland, lack of bourgeoisie, compares with Orkney, effect of rich land there. Started to understand social differences at Stirling University. Back in Shetland did labouring jobs, worked for Council. When oil boom started (1971) tons of work. Anxiety in Shetland about potential pollution. At that time, economy going well. Details re fishing, export, knitwear, agriculture improvements. Recalls earlier unemployment, men working on roads. No post-war boom in Shetland unlike other parts of UK. Later prosperity helped Ian Clark, Council stand firmly against oil industry. Worked on roads 1972. Comments on tolerant attitudes at time. Comments on 1960s decade. Drove digger for contractor, worked in quarry. One of first locals to work for Land & Marine Engineering, early pipeline company. Details re delivery work routine. No awareness then of Shetland negotiations with industry. Assesses importance of Ian Clark in Council stand. Mentions Orkney situation, desperate national situation. Describes pioneering days of oil industry in Shetland, high pay, long working hours, social life, growing prosperity. Returned to university 1977, continued summer work at Sullom Voe. Details re Firth, Toft camps, social life. Seven-day working weeks. Good natured relationship between community and workers. Example of gay staff. Opinion of media commentaries on situation. Recalls superior social skills of Irishmen, self-consciousness of Shetlanders.
Tape 2 Side A With coming of oil industry, big growth in Shetland population. Shetland good at absorbing change. Explains. Recalls previous arrivals of large groups of outsiders. Trouble makers in oil industry had to leave. Example of consequences of too much alcohol consumption. Was shop steward in TGWU. Details re strength of unions, e.g. Boilermakers. Attitude of Americans to unions. Reason for going back to university, not going offshore. Important to join union though workforce well paid. Mentions strikes. Returned to university (Sussex) in 1977. Has great interest in literature, mainly American literature. Explains. Tradition of reading in family. No interest in English culture. Liked 19th century English novel, then it went to hell. Explains. Interested in American music. Details. Importance of music in childhood, especially Hank Williams, country and western music. Uncle had a record player. Mentions lack of fiddle music in childhood neighbourhood unlike other generations. Reference to Tom Anderson. Feelings about limitations of Shetland fiddling music. Joined SWP (Socialist Workers' Party) at Sussex. Reference IMG. Active in SWP. Details. Completed degree. Spent year in America at University of Massachusetts. Impact of this. Feelings about American university system. Planned to do PhD on Hugh McDairmid at Oxford, changed to oral history work on women in crofting at Edinburgh. Details. [Technical problem]
Tape 3 Side A Spent time at School of Scottish Studies in Edinburgh but stopped because of starting a family. Returned to Shetland, took up crofting, and journalism for Shetland Times, Press & Journal etc. Changes in Shetland after arrival of oil. Since own departure, end of oil construction boom, development of large permanent workforce, high wage economy, fishing doing well. Compares what happened in Shetland with changes in Aberdeen, explains why no house price explosion in Shetland. Few ancillary oil industry businesses in Aberdeen, not Shetland. No changes to culture in Shetland. Explains development of crofting. Has kept up membership of Labour Party, involved in parochial politics. No nobs in Shetland, likes equality there. During 1980s oil industry matured, now contracting. Details. Recalls tanker Brer oil spill incident, own involvement in situation. Impact of weather on dispersal. Reaction of locals to event. Sullom Voe not blamed. Mentions environmental record of Sullom Voe, relationship with locals. Compares with other parts of the world, Norway. Little connection with Piper Alpha disaster. No great link between Shetland and offshore industry. Mentions health/safety culture at Sullom Voe. Economic impact of oil industry on Shetland, money ploughed back into land, salmon industry etc. Details re own family, children. Explains involvement in local politics through project management, Crofters' Union, significance of Crofters' Union in Highlands and Islands. First stood for Council in 1994. Details re evolution of community relationship with oil industry, developments in industry. Difficulty making plans for post-oil era with economic ups and downs. Comments on use of trust fund.
Tape 3 Side B Prospects for Shetland after the oil industry. Flexible, well educated population. Attitude of crofters. Explains potential of renewable energy, eg wind farms, tide and wave resources. Chairman of Economic Development. Benefit of relationship with oil industry - skills, resources. Positive attitude of people in Shetland to windfarms etc. Compares with other places. Compares attitude of BP and Shell to wind energy. Spending of oil trust funds in retrospect - too many swimming pools etc. But, overall, few problems. Involved in all areas of Shetland life. Feelings about own identity. Future prospects for Sullom Voe, possibility of wind farm there making hydrogen.
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