Fred Macamhlaigh - Fear de Mhuinntir Sholais

'S e fear de mhuinntir Sholais a bh'ann am Fred Macamhlaigh fad a bheatha. Dh'aithnichear e mar Ghàidheal, Albannach agus Eòrpach ach 's ann a dh'Uibhist a bha e tilleadh bliadhna às dèidh bliadhna.

Bha dlùth cheangal aig ainm Fred Macamhlaigh ri craoladh Gàidhlig thairis air iomadach bliadhna ach mar a chaidh ainmeachadh le Jo NicDhòmhnaill anns an ro-ràdha 's e a bha seo ach fear aig an robh fìor eòlais air an luchd-èisteachd agus a' choimhearsneachd anns an robh e beò.

A-nis, airson a' chiad turas gheibhear a bhàrdachd aige cruinn ann an aon leabhar. Bàrdachd a bha e a' sgrìobhadh tràth sa mhadainn ro obair, a' gabhail a-steach cuspairean agus daoine a bha dlùth dha chridhe. Gheibh Gàidheil às gach ceàrnaidh tlachd asta.

Fred Macaulay identified as a Gael, a Scot, a European, but the pull of Uist called him back year after year to revisit his childhood haunts from Grenitote to Malaglete.

Fred Macaulay's name was synonymous with Gaelic broadcasting over many years but as Jo Macdonald recounts in her foreword, this was a man who knew his listeners and the community in which they lived, and a man who understood the power of the spoken word.

These poems, published as one collection for the first time, were written before going in to work at the BBC. They commemorate his love for Sollas and the land of Uist, they record his thoughts and observations on love and life, and they celebrate the esteem and deep affection in which he held those who were dear to him.

The book is edited by Fred's daughter, Lindsay Macaulay, with Bill Innes providing an English translation of the poetry and a foreword by Jo Macdonald.