A You Tube video protesting proposals for rural school closures, entitled Chasing Cuts, has clocked up over 2,850 hits in less than 24 hours.
The video made by Unst Leisure centre worker Faye Cox stars a mystery singer and music edited by Martin Rich. Mrs Cox said that the professional sounding vocalist, who sings lyrics adapted from Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars single, was “shy” and wanted to remain anonymous.
Made with the help of Unst Action Group and Communities United for Rural Education the video shows pupils and parents from Unst holding home-made placards explaining why they don’t want to leave home and go to school in Lerwick.
Mrs Cox said: “We are hoping this becomes a big viral hit on the internet. We are hoping to get as many people as we can to watch the video and raise awareness of what’s happening in Shetland.”
She added that the idea had come from seeing various challenges on the internet such as the ice bucket challenge. She said that it was important for people outside the islands to learn what was going on here.