Hands (TV series)

Hands
Title card
Genre documentary, biography
Written by Benedict Kiely
Ray McAnally
Directed by David Shaw-Smith
Narrated by Benedict Kiely
Composer(s) Jolyon Jackson, Paddy Glacken, Matt Molloy
Country of origin Republic of Ireland
Original language(s) English, Irish
No. of episodes 37
Production
Producer(s) David Shaw-Smith
Running time 24–27 minutes
Release
Original network RTÉ1
Picture format 576i (SDTV) 16:9
Audio format Mono
Original release 1978 (1978) – 1989 (1989)
Chronology
Followed by In Good Hands
External links
Website

Hands was an Irish television documentary series broadcast by RTÉ between 1978 and 1989, covering traditional Irish crafts.[1][2][3][4]

Production

Creater David Shaw-Smith began with Telefís Éireann in the 1960s, working as a cameraman with Gerrit van Gelderen and became an independent filmmaker in the early 1970s. he and his wife Sally, an illustrator, travelled Ireland in a VW van recording traditional craftsmen.[5]

Episode list

#Broadcast DateTitle
11978Wool Spinning
21981Irish Patchwork
3Irish Lace
4Irish Embroidery
51978Donegal Weavers[6]
6Dublin Woolen Mill
7Donegal Carpets
81978Tailor
9English Silk
10Carriage Building
11Cavan Cabinetmakers
12Cavan Cooper
13Chair Maker John Surlis
14Dublin's Viking Longship
15Harp Making
161983Hurlmaking
17Irish Spinning Wheel Making
18Shannon One Design
19Carley's Bridge Potteries
201987Belleek Potteries
21Clay Pipe Works
221980A Dublin Silversmith
231989Powers of the Metal
24Stone
25Dublin's Workhorses
261979Shoe Making
27A Dublin Bookbinder
281981The Saddler
281978Curraghs
30Rushwork
31Basketmaking
31Wexford Thatcher
33Fermanagh Country
34Stoneground
35A Dublin Candlemaker
36Of Bees & Bee Skeps
37Lighthouse Crafts[7][8]

Legacy

Hands is still widely referred to as one of the greatest Irish TV series of all time.[9][10]

Harvey O'Brien, in his The Real Ireland: The Evolution of Ireland in Documentary Film (2004), said "The series was marked by its close-up observation of the techniques involved, and though lacking an explicit social commentary always gave the sense that these skills were gradually disappearing.".[11]

For over 20 years, the original film sat in tea chests in a barn in Creagh, County Mayo. In March 2013 archivists packed all 1,800 film cans into storage containers and brought them to the RTÉ Archives.[10]

In 2015, it was revisited in the series In Good Hands.[12]

References

  1. ↑ O'Brien, Harvey (22 March 2018). "The Real Ireland: The Evolution of Ireland in Documentary Film". Manchester University Press – via Google Books.
  2. ↑ "Old hands at film-making".
  3. ↑ Byrne, Terry (1 January 1997). "Power in the Eye: An Introduction to Contemporary Irish Film". Scarecrow Press – via Google Books.
  4. ↑ "BM/E's World Broadcast News". Broadband Information Services. 1 May 1982 – via Google Books.
  5. ↑ "About - Hands".
  6. ↑ "DONEGAL WEAVERS ARE 'IN GOOD HANDS' WITH NEW RTE SERIES! – Donegal Daily". www.donegaldaily.com.
  7. ↑ "Hands Series - Cottageology - Irish Cottages & Culture". 5 May 2010.
  8. ↑ "Others - Hands".
  9. ↑ McLysaght, Emer (4 August 2013). "What's the greatest episode of Irish television, ever?". The Daily Edge.
  10. 1 2 Cummins, Steve (5 April 2012). "RTÉ Revisits 'Hands' Series, GMarsh Begin Production". The Irish Film & Television Network.
  11. ↑ O'Brien, Harvey (22 March 2018). "The Real Ireland: The Evolution of Ireland in Documentary Film". Manchester University Press – via Google Books.
  12. ↑ "Watch In Good Hands on RTÉ Player".
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