Fun and games

A moment of relaxation. *Source: Eric Stevenson*

Entertainment, sport and hobbies

While living on station, the main objective was to work as hard as possible. More overtime meant more wages to take home at the end of the season. Relaxation and entertainment while at South Georgia came in many forms, just as people had hobbies, sports and interests at home – they took them to South Georgia and discovered new ones there.

Projectionist at work at Leith Cinema. *Source: Eric Stevenson*

The Cinema (Kino)

Between 1926 and 1930 many of the whaling companies installed cinemas to entertain their staff. The Kino at Grytviken and the Cinema at Leith Harbour and other stations provided some much-needed escapism for the whalers while they were living on station. Films were shown often and those wishing to view them signed up for a membership at the beginning of the season. They were also issued with cinema cards – the Grytviken Station card featured a penguin!

Films were circulated between whaling stations to provide some variety to the whalers’ viewing. These were sent around between Stromness Bay and Cumberland Bay using small motorboats which would travel between with other messages and deliveries.

Unfortunately, the Grytviken Kino collapsed following hurricane strength winds in 1994. Although the building has long since gone, the existence is now only represented by photographs, archives and personal anecdotes.

The Leith cinema was the largest of the five whaling station cinemas on the island. The building was a Nissan hut-like structure; curved corrugated iron sheets formed a long half tube with a stage at one end. It was quite separate from the rest of the whaling factory at the south-western end. Most of the men lived in the communal barracks in the centre of the station, so the walk to the cinema was possibly enough to make the whalers feel they really were “going out”.

"The cinema (Kino) at Pesca, which doubled as a table tennis hall, was a small wooden building, with an upstairs gallery, capable of seating about three hundred on a miscellaneous collection of benches and chairs. Whatever the film, it commanded a capacity audience, with first in getting the best seats.

A whaling audience is an uninhibited one, with spectators expressing views and suggestions freely throughout the show. Love scenes progressed to the accompaniment of cheers, whistles, ecstatic moans, and from one fellow, a cat-like purr of pure feline contentment that never failed to reduce me to giggles. Boring programmes were enlivened by reversing the film and by the men’s comments, so outrageous that I must surely have been blushing to the roots of my hair. At such times the dim light was a blessing indeed!

'Kino’ nights were a welcome break from the normal hard routine of a whaler’s life and an atmosphere of lighthearted frivolity prevailed, accentuated occasionally by a group with a jealously guarded bottle of spirits, celebrating a birthday or a happy event at home"
Nan Brown, Antarctic Housewife, 1971

“After 18.00 hung about before going ashore as someone said there was a cinema show on at 19.00 for the night watch. A mucky area with all the buildings up close, the place stunk of whale. Men working everywhere, here and there were a few boards to walk on due to the mud. The buildings were mainly wood, all dirty looking, no straight thoroughfare and at the end was a whaling factory.

On a runway leading from the shore up to a group of winches was my first whale. It didn’t look much as it had been hacked about and at that moment they were cutting the intestines up and there was blood everywhere. Didn’t stay long as I thought I would soon be seeing plenty of that. Nipped past a pile of rubbish and asked a bloke for the cinema, he smiled and pointed to a wooden building which we standing outside of. The place consisted of a wood interior with a stage and rows of forms and a wooden balcony. The chaps that were there were dressed in their working of island best gear, gum boots, dungaree trousers and jerseys. They all had their feet up on the forms in front of them, the floor was covered in scrap paper and mud. A notice was on the walls “No smoking”, but everybody was smoking. Well they came to see the films and they got them, so why worry about the surroundings?”
George Whitfield, 3rd Engineer, Southern Harvester, 1951

Reading in the bunkroom. *Source: Shetland ex-Whalers Association*

Library

Libraries were available at the Shore Stations and on board the factory ships. There were also some books aboard the whale catchers. In Grytviken the library was located in a small room at the back of the Church. Cataloguing research has been done by Bodil Malmose about the Whalers’ library. It was discovered that the whalers used objects they were using daily to hold their pages, such as matches or clippings from magazines. There was also a genre that seemed to be preferred – crime and thrillers. Many of the available books also recounted maritime themes. Books were also used to make notes and as a place for doodles or sketches by the whalers. There have even been a lot of mathematic problems solved in the library books!

Sport

Sports days, football and winter sports, such as ski jumping were important. In Grytviken the Kino was also used as a table tennis hall and for badminton when films were not being shown.

These events were huge and were well attended. In the summer months, matches were held between all of the whaling stations in operation and each team would play the other.

Skiing was common when the snow lay around. Those who stayed to do repairs in the winter had the chance to practice with Norwegians, who dominated the scoreboard of any ski jump competitions. Many of the whaling stations had ski jumps and in Grytviken the remnants of this can be seen on the hillside near the church.

Whalers' choir singing in Grytviken church. *Source: Hvalfangstmuseet, Sandefjord*

Not only did sessions occur, but music was also shared from records. Often people would take tape recorders with them to listen to new music. New music was also written, both songs and tunes to remember life at the whaling. Some were humorous in nature and others remembered the beauty of the island. Some music was also written about specific events, such as Da Lang Haul by David Clark. This was written in 2012 to reflect on the long tow that occurred between South Georgia and Cape Town by the Southern Main of the Southern Broom.

Cha Till Mise Sheòladh / I Won’t Go Back To Sailing

Sèist:
‘S truagh nach do dh’ fhuirich mi tioram air tìr,
‘N fhirinn a th’agam nach maraiche mi;
‘S truagh nach do dh’ fhuirich mi tioram air tìr,
Ri m’ mhaireann cha till mise sheòladh.

Ruith na muic-mhara ri gailleann sa chuan,
B’ fheàrr a bhith treabhadh a dh’ aindeon ‘bhith cruaidh,
B’ fheàrr a bhith ‘n-ceartair ri acair air Chluaidh
Na bhith direadh nan crann an South Georgia.

Dile bhon t-sneachd ‘s tu gun fhasgadh bhon fuachd,
D’ aodann ga sgailceadh le fras bho gach stuadh,
‘N t-airgead am pailteas gun dòigh a chur bhuat,
A’ sìor losgadh toll ‘na do phòca.

Nuair gheibh sinn fòrladh is nuair ruigeas sinn tràigh,
Falbhaidh an òinseach-sa còmhla ri càch,
Chosg mi de dh’ airgead air cuntair a’ bhair
Na cheannaicheadh trì taighean òsta

Chorus:
It’s a pity that I didn’t stay dry on land,
For I’m telling the truth, I’m no seaman;
It’s a pity that I didn’t stay dry on land,
For the rest of my life I won’t go back to sailing.

Chasing the whale against a storm in the ocean,
It would better ploughing, even though it be hard,
It would be better now to be at anchor on Clyde
Than to be climbing the masts in South Georgia.

Soaked from the snow and you without shelter from the cold,
Your face getting smacked by a shower from each wave,
Cash in abundance with no way to spend it,
Constantly burning a hole in your pocket.

When we get leave and when we get ashore,
This idiot will go along with the others,
I spent as much money at the counter of the bar
As would have bought three hotels.

by Donald J Macmillan

Character created from whale’s ear bone. *Source: South Georgia Museum*

Crafts

The whalers would make various crafts in their downtime. Ever resourceful, it was always made from scraps around station. Utilising scrap metal, nylon rope, spare timber and even making creations from Sperm whale teeth. The teeth were available for the whalers to take as souvenirs and to be turned into intricate scrimshaw.

In the South Georgia Museum collection there are beautiful examples of the ingenuity of the men who were working here. Some of the crafted objects are shown below.

*Source: Shetland ex-Whalers Association*

Card Games

Card games such as cribbage and 500 were very popular amongst the whalers, whether on shore or at sea. These games were played across languages and many Scottish people learned to play in Norwegian, to Norwegian rules. If it was being played on a whaling catcher, then it was common for one man coming off watch to pick up the hand of the man going on to his watch. Tournaments would be played where each man would enter a specific amount of cigarettes to be played for and the competition was fierce!

“John’s new camera”. *Source: John Alexander*

Photography

South Georgia provided a unique setting for whalers who were keen on photography. Their favoured subjects included the natural environment and wildlife, the whaling industry, their work and their daily lives. Whalers captured the start of whaling at South Georgia to the very end and beyond. For this reason the bulk of the photographs in the Whalers’ Memory Bank were taken by whalers including John Alexander, Eric Stevenson, Jock Murray and many others. Without their efforts and artistry much of the record of whaling at South Georgia would have been lost.