D200 Ep 17: Gearrannan Blackhouses (Darwin200 visits a village of traditional Scottish stone houses)

Darwin200 Episode 17: the Darwin200 team continues exploring the Isle of Lewis in Scotland's Outer Hebrides. We visit Gearrannan Blackhouse Village.
The blackhouses are distinctive, traditional Scottish stone houses.
The blackhouses at Gearrannan are designed to survive the cold, Scottish winters. They have thick stone walls (up to 1 metre wide) that were often insulated with heather on the inside.
Each blackhouse has a double door (so that the inner door could always be closed whilst the outer door opens), so as to ensure the frigid winds of winter are kept outside.
The houses of Gearrannan have thick, thatched roofs, the edges of which are traditionally lined with living plants (especially grasses) which grow around the edge of the roof and seal any holes in the thatching!
The houses of Gearrannan Blackhouse Village were lived in until the 1970s. Today, they are preserved and maintained as a tourist site. However, several other blackhouses across the Isle of Lewis have been renovated and are lived in to this day!
Follow the Darwin200 UK Voyage to see what further discoveries the team makes during the Darwin200 UK Voyage!
Visit www.Darwin200.com for information!

[@rrachelalma]

Would love to see the interior part of this house.

[@christinegerard4974]

Thank you ! Great !

[@Gaableend]

A minor point but I thought the roofs were traditionally covered in heather, not 'hay'. Also, it's a great pity to see (in the last few frames of the video) the hideous wind turbines sitting on the horizon. They're such a blight on our beautiful landscape....

[@IntrospectorGeneral]

I believe that they traditionally use Marram grass laid over turf on Lewis. It's a tall blade grass grows on coastal dunes.

[@corydorastube]

I quite like our wind turbines. Less of an eyesore than a petroleum refinery.

[@corydorastube]

You get two heats from peat. One when you cut it and another when you burn it.

[@hawraaahmad4729]

Nice home

[@Priyo866]

Is this the same isle of Lewis where those famous medieval chess pieces were discovered?

[@R_McGeddon117]

Yes

[@markcarey8426]

Interesting. Would've liked a bit more detail. For eg I think they had two walls of stone, an inner and an outer.

[@MG-bs5mr]

Are you thinking of Brochs?

[@markcarey8426]

@@MG-bs5mr It's so long ago I cant recall what I was thinking. I just think it's an interesting and fundamental element in stone dwelling building in regard to insulation.

[@MG-bs5mr]

@@markcarey8426 sorry, I've just noticed that your comment was from a year ago
Yeah double walls would have been good for insulation.
Storage as well.

[@corydorastube]

I have an aunt who was brought up in a black house.

[@joffrey.ph_]

Wow

[@MuneebKhan-yr6bh]

Showe inside house

[@clairecadoux471]

There is a black house you can enter, not in that village tho. Also it is next to the first 'white house'. Not much detail in this video when more was available

[@Yellowcarlover]

I came here for school lol

[@barkershill]

Would have been better to see more of the houses and less of this guys face . Also he says “hay” while the camera shows what looks to me very like wheat straw .