Graham Oliver is proud of the profession handed to him by his grandfathers but with his children choosing different career paths, he doubts the future of shepherding. Tessa Waugh reports.
Graham Oliver hails from a respected Northumbrian shepherding family – both his grandfathers and three of his uncles were shepherds, plus his brother is one, too. ‘I was born at a time when shepherds’ sons became shepherds and farmer’s sons were guaranteed to farm,’ he observes with a smile. ‘Dad drove and Mum didn’t, so if we weren’t on a bike, we were in among the sheep. Everything at home was sheep-orientated and we began helping out as soon as we could.’
Indeed, one of Mr Oliver’s earliest memories involves one of the flock. ‘Dad had an old show ewe that we called the knocker, because she’d chase Stuart and me around the shed when we were dressing sheep [preparing them for shows or the sale ring],’ he recalls.
Having spent his life working on farms in the Borders, Mr Oliver is currently based on a farm near Wooler in the Cheviots. After 40 years in the job, he’s seen huge changes, the main one being that far fewer people are now involved in shepherding. ‘Thirty or so years ago, three men took care of the ground I look after now. Each man had 400 to 500 sheep and he’d walk around them. Now, we have quad bikes and one man looks after 1,500.
Hill Shepherd Graham Oliver in the Cheviot Hills, Northumberland, England. Pictures by Richard Cannon on 15th July 2018
‘Previous generations had nothing on the medicine side – my grandfather used to talk about dosing hogs (year-old sheep) with diluted pig muck, but I don’t think sheep are healthier now, or bigger.’
Mr Oliver feels that the future of his profession is uncertain and, indeed, his three children have taken different career paths, although they enjoy helping their father when they can. ‘In the past, family reputation got us jobs, but there aren’tas many following on,’ he notes. ‘I’m not sure where the shepherds of the future will come from.’
The luthier: ‘You don’t know if you’ve been successful until you put the strings on. That’s the moment when it comes alive’
Tom Sands brought the lessons he learnt from the California king of guitar-making back to Britain, where he makes stunning,
The Pigeon Fancier: ‘I set up a deckchair in the garden and wait for them to come back. That’s the most exciting part.’
This week’s Living National Treasure is Colin Hill, a pigeon fancier whose birds regularly race from the tip of Scotland
The Florist: ‘What I do is like good cooking – if you have beautiful ingredients, you can’t go wrong’
This week's Living National Treasure is royal florist Shane Connolly – and while he might be based in Britain, he's
The gold stamper: ‘The younger generation is very appreciative of artisan work – they’re the ones driving the trend’
This week's Living National Treasure is John Timms, the man who leads the team that stamps gold lettering into thousands
The neon sign maker: ‘Piccadilly Circus was our answer to Vegas – now it’s all pixellated screens’
This week's Living National Treasure is Marcus Bracey, the man behind the neon signs that light up our cities. He
The Glassblower: ‘When something goes wrong you can’t fix it – you just sling in into the bosh bucket and start again’
Ian Shearman's team of glassblowers are still making glass using a technique that's 2,000 years old. Mary Miers found out
The political cartoonist: ‘Politicians hate how I depict them, but they’d hate it even more if I ignored them’
Peter Brookes, political cartoonist at The Times, is a savage commentator and the spiritual successor to the likes of Gillray
The lock-gate maker: ‘Maintaining them can be a bit like painting the Forth Bridge’
Tessa Waugh meets Steve Brunt, a workshop supervisor for the Canal and River Trust, which is dedicated to protecting and
