This programme is part of a series looking at people who have opted for a career change in order find a more fulfilling way of living. Steve Ramshaw had longed to be a hill-farmer. Working in the construction industry, he became Newcastle City Council's Chief Clerk of Works. But his boyhood dream never faded, and eventually he built his farm in the Northumberland hills from the ground up and now sells his organic beef and lamb to customers all over Britain and abroad. He is currently...

This programme is part of a series looking at people who have opted for a career change in order find a more fulfilling way of living. Steve Ramshaw had longed to be a hill-farmer. Working in the construction industry, he became Newcastle City Council's Chief Clerk of Works. But his boyhood dream never faded, and eventually he built his farm in the Northumberland hills from the ground up and now sells his organic beef and lamb to customers all over Britain and abroad. He is currently hoping that the current foot-and-mouth crisis passes him by. Only then will he know whether his new life in the Northumberland Hills the right decision. Jacqui Powell-Swinburne left a Home Counties background for a new life in the Northumberland town of Rothbury. Once there, she fell in love with the Northumbrian Pipes and is now a professional musician. Partly as a tribute to her father, who was the bass player with the Joe Loss orchestra, she is trying to prove that the pipes are much more versatile than most people think. Title: Change Your Life! The film opens on a view of a farmhouse in remote countryside with a small lake in the foreground. A man walks through a farm gate, near a large storage shed. The commentary introduces him as Steve Ramshaw. He walks across an open field with his dog nearby. Off camera he talks about a long-held idea about being a hill farmer. At home in front of a fireplace he talks about keeping animals and having loved the countryside since he was a child Title: Steve Ramshaw. The film shows Julia Ramshaw walking alongside him along with a number of dogs. She talks about the early relationship with Steve. Title: Julia Ramshaw She continues on camera speaking from home. A photograph follows of their wedding. Steve talks about his career at Newcastle City Council, as he walks along a street of houses in the city, probably the Cowgate redevelopment followed by a view of the Cruddas Park multi-storey flats. At home he talks about his good relationship with his workforce and colleagues, but he reached a point in his life when he had to decide about his ultimate ambition. The film shows a small farm he has renovated. On camera his wife Julia recalls the time when Steve made his decision to move from his council work to hill farming. He built new farm buildings on the land near to his earlier project. A Land Rover drives towards the main road from the farm access road. Julia talks about the time when they were starting the farm. Steve talks about the animal stock he brought in from Scotland. A crisis for the farm came with BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) a progressive neurological disorder of cattle, even though Steve’s farm was never infected, it affected the price of stock animals. Steve walks amongst some of his current stock. During this time when income had effectively stopped he applied for a job in construction management, but withdrew his application. He carried on developed a new range of products and started a business called Northumberland Quality Meats. A butcher prepares some select cuts of lamb and beef for retail by delivery throughout the country and overseas. The film shows Steve putting out feed for his black-faced sheep. The commentary states that the farm will shortly become fully organic, discarding the use of pesticides and herbicides. As Steve watches his sheep he explains off camera, the reasoning for going organic on the farm. Steve loads boxes of meat products onto his refrigerated Land Rover, which he takes to a farmer’s market in Newcastle’s Bigg Market. Steve and his wife work at their stall serving customers. The film goes back to the butcher at work on creating meat cuts back at the farm. At home Steve talks about the practicalities of farming which he sees as producing food first and foremost. He is also an ardent conservationist and Steve has dedicated a percentage of profit to go into conservation schemes on the farm. The film shows a section of the North Tyne that runs through land, and a fence has been constructed to stop banks being damaged by cattle and sheep but also to encourage salmon and trout to thrive. Steve stands next to the protective fencing talking about the return of otters and salmon and increasing numbers of wildfowl to the river. The lake seen at the beginning of the film was purposely built to attract wildfowl and possibly otters. Steve hopes the population of wild animals using the lake will grow. He also says that current economic constraints affect how farmers can contribute to conservation projects in the future. The film shows where Steve has planted shrubs and trees for nesting birds. At home Steve sits with Julia who has a full-time job as an occupational therapist but helps with the marketing side of the meat business. On camera Julia says she likes life on the farm and knows the area well. Steve is upbeat about the future and the development of Northumberland Quality Meats. Steve drives a quad bike along a country road. The commentary says that the current farming crisis, foot and mouth disease has not affected Steve’s farm. He hopes that the disease will not affect them and that the current hard time for farmers will soon pass. Title: End of Part One Title: Change Your Life! – Part Two A couple walk along what may be Tynemouth beach at sunset. The film changes to a travelling view from a car crossing the Tyne Bridge. This part of the programme gives advice on various aspects of life which are affected when undergoing a career change. The commentary discourages driving private vehicles and owning more than one car. It suggests changing your vehicle for a more environmentally friendly mode of transport, something smaller and fuel efficient. If you must drive at all don’t drive fast and save fuel. The film shows another travelling view amongst motorway traffic. The film move on to show people getting into a car as part of a car sharing scheme, the driver holds up a membership card for a scheme called Freewheelers. The film also shows trains and buses as the commentary talks about the government wanting to encourage more use of public transport. The film changes to a view of countryside accompanied by music from Northumbrian bagpipes. The film shows the woman who is playing the instrument. Her name is Jacquie Powell-Swinburne who adopted the North East and became interested in the regions traditional music, she continues playing. Her father Jack Henry, shown in a black and white photograph playing double bass, was from the North East and a professional musician, playing with such well known dance bands as Henry Hall, Edmundo Ros and Joe Loss. Archive footage from the 1940’s shows a crowded dance hall. Over this Jackie talks about her parents. Her father was away often but at home he would play the piano and encourage Jacqui to sing along. He was also a very shy man despite his occupation. Jacqui attended boarding school and photographs show horses and riders walking through a forest. Jacqui became a dressage expert, training a horse to perform special, carefully controlled movements as directed by the rider. This gave her gainful employment in reputable places in the home counties as well as getting to know many people in high society including the Jordanian royal family. She then moved to the North East. On camera she talks from home about returning to her roots and settling in Rothbury. The film shows the main street running through the town. It was the move to Rothbury that eventually led to hearing the sound of the Northumbrian small pipes for the first time. The film shows her playing on the moors as seen earlier. She fell in love with the pipes and learned to play. Her partner Gordon Clark leads a horse into field. Title: Gordon Clark At home on camera, he talks of his redundancy as an engineer allowed him to pursue a course in music. Gordon and Jacqui are seen playing together in a pub. Gordon accompanies Jacqui on the bouzouki. They both talk about the combination of the two instruments complement each other. On camera Jacqui talks about being a musician and how hard you have to work at it. She also wants to keep her father’s memory alive and to prove that the Northumbrian pipes are a more versatile instrument which can be used in playing jazz. She wants to promote this side of the instrument and explore other types of music. On screen Gordon talks about not categorising music. The film goes back to Jacqui playing the pipes on the moors. She has recorded a CD, produced a children’s book and has a novel in the pipeline. Jacqui says she has found her roots in Rothbury and she will continue with present and future projects. The commentary highlights items following in the next programme. Credits Location, Direction & Photography – Simon Elphinstone Sound – Paul Graham Electrician – Ken Campbell Editor – Edmund Quigley Sound Post Production – Charles Heath Graphics – Jon King Music – McGregor Cook Executive Producer - Jane Bolesworth Producer – Oliver Martlew TTTV – A Tyne Tees Television Production © Tyne Tees Television MMI