Churchill Barriers’ plaque to be unveiled

Still connecting communities in 2023, the Churchill Barriers are to be recognised with the unveiling of a National Transport Trust Red Wheels plaque today Friday (12 May) – the 78^th anniversary of their official opening in 1945.

The Red Wheel Plaque is mounted in the entrance of Barrier View Cafe - with grateful thanks to Celina Rupp – on the site of Balfour Beatty’s Headquarters during the construction of the causeways.

The plaque will be unveiled by John Cameron and John Yellowlees from the National Transport Trust, Britain’s only charity dedicated to the preservation of all modes of transport and its infrastructure.

The Churchill Barriers were built during World War Two as a result of German U-Boat 47 entering Scapa Flow and sinking HMS Royal Oak on 14 October 1939, with the loss of over 830 of her crew. 

The plan was to protect the strategic naval base by blocking the eastern approaches between four of the South Isles – Lamb Holm, Glimps Holm, Burray and South Ronaldsay. 

The Barriers were built by Balfour Beatty with the initial work carried out by civilian labour, later joined by Italian Prisoners of War when the definition changed so that the Barriers would form a roadway connecting the islands. 

The Churchill Barriers were officially opened on 12 May 1945 by the First Sea Lord A.V. Alexander, creating a road link with the Orkney Mainland.

Chairman of the Council’s Development and Infrastructure Committee, Councillor David Dawson, said: “The lasting legacy of the Churchill Barriers has not been as a defence for Scapa Flow but as a series of causeways linking a number of our islands together.

“The Barriers changed life for those living in Burray and South Ronaldsay both socially and economically and have over the years preserved a steady and solid population.”

Also on Friday and Saturday, Another Orkney Production will be presenting two talks to celebrate air travel and Scapa Flow and the Barriers.

The first today (12 May) is celebrating 90 years of the Inverness to Kirkwall air service, “The Creation of Airline Services in the Northern Isles and Western Isles of Scotland Impact and Legacy” by Professor Andrew Rae UHI in the Orkney Theatre at 7.30pm.

The Saturday night talk by Neil Kermode is looking back on the lifetime of the Barriers and into the future and their centenary. Again this takes place in the Orkney Theatre at 7.30pm.

Tickets for both talks are priced £6 and £5 concession and are available from the Herald Printshop and on the door.