Roddy MacNeill, former fisherman and forestry worker, Salen, Isle of Mull

Photographer

Niles, John

Date

• 1993

Summary

• Born in the village of Salen on the Isle of Mull, Roderick (Roddy) MacNeill (1920-1999) lived on the small island of Gometra and the adjoining isle of Ulva until age 7, then on Mull, in the area of Loch na Keal, until World War II. He then served in the Army for six years. He settled down in Salen, Mull, in 1967 and was living there in his retirement when interviewed in 1993. He had chiefly worked as a fisherman during his adult life on Mull, whether lobster fishing or deep sea trawling. He discusses changes he has witnessed on Mull, including an influx of incomers; the work of the Forestry Commission; the loss of the Gaelic language, and related topics.