Restoring the Falkirk Wheel

Descriptor: First we meet the four students from Cardonald College who made the film, before we see various shots of The Falkirk Wheel.

David: We are students from Cardonald College, and we have made this piece you’re about to see. It is on The Falkirk Wheel, one of the many Good Cause projects around the UK which have benefited thanks to you playing National Lottery games.

Descriptor: We are now introduced to the members individually, beginning with Ashley, the producer, who we see talking on a mobile phone. We then meet Karin, the Sound Recordist, who we see wearing headphones and holding a large boom microphone, before meeting Gary, the Camera Operator, who we see looking through a camera. Lastly, we meet David, the Director and Editor of the piece, who we see preparing equipment. We now see a shot of the four students making the film, as David introduces it.

David: This is Ashley, she was our producer; this is Karin, she was the Sound Recordist; this is Gary, he was our Camera Operator; and I’m David, I directed and edited the project. It was great making the film, here it is.

Descriptor: We now see a blue map of the UK on a red graphic background, which zooms to Falkirk on the map, where a white caption reads, “Falkirk Wheel Lottery Funding - £33.8m”. Once again we see various shots of the Falkirk Wheel.

Narrator: Falkirk, home to The Falkirk Wheel. This feat of Scottish engineering is one of the most innovative projects ever built in waterway technology, but would not have been possible without funding through the sale of National Lottery games.

Descriptor: We now meet Carol Keltie, the Destinations Manager of The Falkirk Wheel, who describes what it does. As she speaks, we see a map graphic on the screen, which shows the canals that The Falkirk Wheel connects.

Carol Keltie: It connects the Union Canal and the Forth and Clyde Canal. One of the original transport links between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Descriptor: We now see various black and white stills of the Union Canal and Forth and Clyde Canal as they were before closure in 1965, with the captions (in order) "Copyright: RCAHMS, Reproduced courtesy of JR Hume", "Copyright: RCAHMS, RAF Air Photograph collections", and "Copyright: RCAHMS, Reproduced courtesy of JR Hume" .

Narrator: The canals were originally used to transport people and commercial goods between the two cities, having a substantial impact on growth and development in the area. However, with the coming of the railways and the expansion of the two cities, they fell into disuse and were officially closed by Parliament in 1965.

Descriptor: We now see shots of boats sailing on the canals, before we see a wide shot of The Falkirk Wheel.

Narrator: In the 1990's there was a concerted effort to restore the canals, recognising their historical and ecological importance, at the heart of which lies The Falkirk Wheel.

Descriptor: We now meet Craig Sear, Technical Team Leader at The Falkirk Wheel, standing in front of a long red boat on the canal. As he speaks, we see a boat entering The Falkirk Wheel, before seeing a shot taken from inside the boat, of moving inside the wheel. We then see the gates lifting, before we see The Falkirk Wheel rotate, including various close-up shots of the internal workings of the wheel as it rotates.

Craig Sear: The Falkirk Wheel is the only structure like it in the world. There are many boat lifts of different sizes and shapes, but this is the only rotating boat lift. Once it’s in station the gates can come down and allow a boat to sail in. And once the boat is in, the gates will come up and then when it’s safe to do so the wheel will rotate. It takes very little power indeed to turn the wheel, in fact it’s equivalent to six kettles.

Descriptor: We now see a black and white boat coming through the gates, called, “Govan Seagull”, before seeing a rear shot of a boat backing up towards the gates.

Narrator: People playing National Lottery games has resulted in funding, which has meant the canals and the countryside have been opened up for all to enjoy.

Descriptor: Once again we meet Craig Sear. As he speaks, we see people moving onto boats and also tourists at the side of the canals.

Craig Sear: Year upon year it gets busier and busier, we have over seventeen hire boats on this site alone. We get a wide spectrum of people, I’ve met people from all over the world that come and visit.

Descriptor: We now meet a man in a grey and white top, who describes why he likes to come to The Falkirk Wheel. As he speaks, we see the wheel turning, taking a red boat from one canal to the other.

Man: As an engineer, I just love coming here to look at the wheel. It’s a fascinating piece of machinery, how you can get a boat from one level up to the next level in a revolving direction without the water falling out, is just fantastic.

Descriptor: We now meet an American tourist, who describes what The Falkirk Wheel reminds her of.

Woman: Not to be clichéd, but it’s like something out of Star Trek (laughs).

Descriptor: We now meet Linda Gow, the leader of Falkirk Council, who describes what the lottery funding has done for the canals.

Linda Gow: It’s very accessible now, whereas before the lottery award the canals were very overgrown, and in, in some places quite difficult to access.

Descriptor: We now see various shots of The Falkirk Wheel in motion.

Narrator: The development of The Falkirk Wheel has also benefited local people in other ways, and has had a positive effect on the economy of the area.

Descriptor: Once again we meet Carol Keltie, who describes how the wheel has benefited the local community, before we see shots of people working in and around the wheel as well as interior shots of the building which houses the caterers and related shops.

Carol Keltie: Thanks to The National Lottery, The Falkirk Wheel has benefitted the community, obviously through the creation of jobs, the setting up, the actual building of the wheel and also through third party operators who we’ve been able to offer business development opportunities, such as the photography service and the onsite caterers.

Descriptor: We now see tourists walking along the side of The Falkirk Wheel, before being introduced to Sinead Guerin, the Regional Director of Visit Scotland, who we see standing in front of the wheel. As she speaks, we see various shots taken from the wheel, including the people on the ground, as well as people sitting on a boat. Once again we see various aspects of The Falkirk Wheel, including the underside as it moves.

Sinead Guerin: Tourism in the local area benefits greatly from The National Lottery funding. The area is going into a period of growth. The Falkirk Wheel is a really important visitor attraction, not just for the area, but for the whole of Scotland. It’s an iconic attraction, it looks beautiful, and it’s very impressive.

Descriptor: For the final time we meet Carol Keltie, who explains the importance of The National Lottery funding, before final shots of a blue canal boat sailing away from the camera.

Carol Keltie: Well, without The National Lottery funding, the project wouldn’t have come into fruition, to be perfectly honest. We wouldn’t have seen the reopening of, erm, the, the connection between Edinburgh to Glasgow.

Descriptor: Finally we see a white background with The National Lottery logo and the Millennium Commission logo, with a blue caption beneath, which reads, “Lottery Funded”, before seeing a black background with the Cardonald College, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Creative Loop logos and a white caption, which reads, “Produced by Gary McLintoch, David Van Der Zamdem, Ashley Watson, Karin Gardiner”.