An Lot - Episode Guide

While the sheep might be Sweeny's first love, episode one sees him take a new direction as he prepares to go into egg production with 300 new chickens. But as the day of the chicken's arrival looms with a trip to the mainland for Sweeny, the hen house is far from finished. Can Sweeny sort things in time?

In this episode, we see how the new hens are settling in, and Sweeny picks up his first home-produced pork and sausages and gets a visit from a chicken inspector.

In this episode, Sweeny gears up for egg production and has a school visit, but crofting's many challenges are all too apparent when the first major winter storm hits and there is a death on the croft.

In this episode, the first lambs appear, and Sweeny sells his first eggs. But there are some unwanted visitors in the hen house.

In this episode, a downpour threatens the local Gala day, and Sweeny makes his show debut with some of his beloved sheep - and some of his hens. As the summer comes to an end, Sweeny prepares for another winter and gets the peats home.

A year on, Sweeny looks back at how things have gone. Is he any nearer his dream? What have been the successes and what failures have there been? What would he do differently now looking back, and what does the future now hold?

It's March, and with his flock having expanded from 60 to 80, Sweeny begins gathering the sheep ahead of lambing. There is also an update on his chickens and egg production, as well as his plans for more pigs.

It's late spring with summer on the horizon as we follow Lewis man Donald (Sweeny) MacSween fulfilling his dream of giving up his day job and becoming a full-time crofter. Lambing is fully underway as he plays host to a group of teenagers who provide a willing helping hand. His winter fuel is taken care of with the help of a mechanical peat cutter and one of his sows produces her first litter of piglets on the lot.

It's mid summer and it is a busy time on the croft for Sweeny! This week there are more new arrivals as 300 chickens are delivered to replace his old stock, he takes a trip to the mainland in order to increase his sheep flock, two more of his sows are ready to give birth and he takes ownership of his first ever cattle on the lot.

It's early autumn and time for the sheep sales again, but will the lamb prices meet Sweeny's expectations? A new income stream is in the planning as Sweeny heads off to Skye to check out progress. And Sweeny's brother Innes is home again, but he needn't think that he is on holiday as there is far too much to be done around the Lot!

Its autumn on the lot and Del Boy, the local bull, arrives to visit Sweeny's new cows, and his rams are let out to the sheep. A trip to the butcher proves profitable as he collects his very own home-reared pork sausages, and its all hands on deck for himself and Innes as they prepare for the Ness community bonfire and fireworks display despite the wild weather!

In the final episode of the series, Sweeny reflects on how year two on the croft has gone. It's been another busy one that's seen him diversify in new directions, and with the addition of cows and more pigs to his livestock things have gone well. After investing so much time in building his business though is he any nearer his dream of crofting full-time?

This week he reveals another new venture which might well be just what he needs to achieve his goal.

We follow young crofter Donald ‘Sweeny' MacSween on his croft in the Isle of Lewis, a croft that has been in his family for over 100 years. Sweeny first captured the imagination of BBC ALBA viewers in 2015 in the first series, as he tried to turn his passion for crofting life in to a full-time occupation. Three years on we join him again and follow Sweeny across his first year full-time to see if he can make it all work.

In the first of six programmes we see the challenges of winter on the croft with the famous ‘Beast from the East', and some really cold weather making an appearance. As a full-time crofter Sweeny is also constantly exploring new ideas to ensure a steady income throughout the year. We see one of these new ideas lead him to a new hobby - knitting – as Sweeny heads to the Isle of Skye to get creative with his wool.

There is never a dull moment on the croft for Donald "Sweeny" MacSween, and there is always something to be done.

Having made it through a very wet winter Sweeny now focuses on new life on the croft as we head into spring. It is one of his favourite times of the year, and it's all go as one of his sows goes into labour, but this is one that he has to keep a close eye on.

He also deals with the challenges of lambing; a time of very little sleep and plenty of early starts. With over 50 already lambed he's half way there, but his early morning checks prove vital as he finds out when he needs to give help to one of his sheep which is struggling.

This isn't the only sheep he has to help. Sweeny lives on one of the most rugged coastlines in Britain, and although it's beautiful it can be very dangerous for the animals as he knows all to well. He calls the local mountain rescue in to help one of his sheep distressed on the cliff edge.

It's late spring on the croft and as always things are really busy with plenty to keep Sweeny on the go. The lambs are doing well, and there is more happy news with Sweeny welcoming the first calf to be born on the croft since his grandfather was a crofter - very special times!

Meanwhile, while searching for some missing sheep out on the moor, Bud proves his worth when coming to the rescue of a sheep in distress, while back on the croft Sweeny also hosts a visit from pupils from ‘Sgoil a' Bhac' as they help him with feeding time.

Sweeny also finds time to learn another new skill as he tries his hand at clipping sheep with electric shears – and it's not quite as easy as he thinks!

It's the middle of summer and Sweeny is taking advantage of the fantastic Lewis weather during the hottest summer on record, as he and David do some work on the house which he plans to let for self-catering.

He takes a trip to Uist to meet crofting legend Ena MacDonald, who is an expert on Highland cattle, and also visits ‘Uist Wool' as he explores ways to make the most of his Hebridean sheeps' fleeces. There is also a big community day in Ness for the tractor run, and his dad comes to his rescue when Sweeny struggles to get his pigs loaded in to the trailer!

Now in autumn and with winter approaching, things aren't quite so hectic for Sweeny but there's plenty still to be done!

He does some wool grading as he prepares his fleeces for sending to Uist, and also checks out how things are progressing with his self-catering project.

Sweeny also achieves another milestone – with his own meat being stocked and sold at the local shop in Ness.

It's also the end of the line for the last of the chickens, and he takes them off to a new home at the Lews Castle College, where they will be well looked after by some of the local students. Meanwhile, his cows are also heading for a change of scene as he gets them out to the moor for the winter months.

He also has the excitement of an awards ceremony after being nominated for the ‘Young Crofter of the Year'. Will Sweeny bring the trophy home to Ness?

After following Sweeny over his first year as a full-time crofter, the final programme of the series sees him take some time to reflect on the last 12 months and look ahead to the future.

The support of family, friends and neighbours has been really important to him, as he often he needs some extra help. One young man who has been vital to things is David, who is always on hand to help out. Lambing was a crazily busy time, and the early morning rises weren't always Sweeny's favourite part of the day!

There was also a massive 2018 highlight for Sweeny with the first calf to be born on the croft in 60 years. Then there were the pigs and the piglets, and of course the hens - busy times indeed! Vital to his plans was to maximise the income he could bring in, and there was another proud moment when he saw his own meat being stocked and sold in the local shop in Ness – as well as meat boxes heading to the mainland by post. He also explored how he could get more from his wool – and even had a go at knitting!

Sweeny's hard work was also recognised in the best way possible as he won ‘The Young Crofter of the Year Award' - a fantastic way to end his first year as his own boss on the croft.

The Croft returns for a new series as we catch up with young crofter Donald ‘Sweeny' MacSween on his croft in the Isle of Lewis, a croft that has been in his family for over 100 years.

Sweeny first captured the imagination of BBC Alba viewers in 2015 in the first series, as he tried to turn his passion for crofting life in to a full-time occupation. Over the last four years there been many challenges as he strives to fulfil his dream. Now in his second year full-time, Sweeny is always on the look out for something new to maximise his income from ‘An Lot' as we find out.

In the first of five programmes he looks at different ways of using wool, gets ready for 600 new hens, and builds a new shed shop for the tourists. He also heads to the bright lights of Edinburgh for the Scottish Rural Awards, where he is nominated, before heading back to the realities of crofting life and lambing - and early mornings. Definitely not Sweeny's favourite time of the day!

Recent years have seen more and more tourists visiting the islands. The increase of cruise ships coming in to Stornoway has played its part, with many of the visitors keen to experience life on a Hebridean croft, and Sweeny is more than ready to welcome them with some typical cheeky charm.

After a tour of the croft, he goes in to sales mode, with some novel new wool products for his visitors to check out in his newly opened shop. He also reveals how a somewhat surprising job provides him with moments of inspiration - cleaning out the hen house!

Sweeny heads to Shetland for the first time to find out more about crofting life in the Northern Isles. The main purpose of his trip is to check out a new type of building that could make a big difference to his future plans in Lewis. With the crows and ravens a threat to his sheep and lambs, this could provide a safe place to be, as well as protection from the weather. Designed by a Shetland company, it has a strong green ethos at its core, and is similar to a polytunnel but much stronger, and able to withstand 120mph winds!

Sweeny continues to strive to make a living from crofting full-time. This year Sweeny is upping the game with his wool, as he reveals his ambitious plans to create his own Harris Tweed. Weaver Rebecca Hutton shows him how it's done, and he also has a go himself. His jumper, knitted from the wool on his own sheep, is also ready to be collected, and Sweeny is really looking forward to seeing the end result!

This week, Sweeny welcomes a new calf to the croft. Since taking his wool production to the next level by creating his very first batch of Harris Tweed, he is excited to receive the finished product from the mill, which he plans to sell far and wide.

Donald Macsween or Sweeny as he is best known is back with a brand new special series from his croft in Ness, as we follow him from the beginning of the year and into lockdown, getting his thoughts on how the coronavirus has impacted him in his job as a full time crofter.

The whole country is in lockdown and Sweeny is adjusting and working out how to keep the croft going during these challenging times. With no camera crew permitted to visit for now, he is also getting to grips with self-shooting. Good news arrives amongst the chaos in the form of a new calf being born. Sweeny is also very excited about the opportunity to put the polycrub into use during lambing, and he receives more good news, which will make a big difference to life on the croft in Ness for the year ahead.

Sweeny is affected by loss on the croft. The shears come out - not for the task of shearing the sheep as you would have imagined! As he gets organised for an essential day trip to Uist, how does he feel about making this journey and what preparation needs to be done? There is also a lot of excitement on the croft as Sweeny is getting ready to pick up the new telehandler from the ferry and finally, he gives us his thoughts on the easing up of lockdown, questioning his future as a full time crofter.

In episode one, Sweeny reflects on the unusual year that has passed discussing the effects of the pandemic on him personally and as a crofter in a tight-knit island community. He and his new friend Romesh Ranganathan get the opportunity to look back on how the programme they made together last year during lockdown had an impact on themselves and on a wider audience. He also buys some new hens from the Isle of Skye – hundreds of them!

Sweeny gives his cousin and her family, who bought a croft last year, some sheep and some valuable advice. But then he gets bad news - the chickens are to go into lockdown because of the threat of avian flu.

Sweeny takes a trip to a mill in Tore to learn about what goes into the food that he gives his animals and whilst he is there, they put him to work, getting him involved in the process.