Anyone unable to understand the Gaelic of Sorley Maclean's poem would feel indebted to the translator who brings the grim world of the Cuillin ridge on Skye with its winding lochs and the authors love for this world to life.

The translator of the written word has the time to render the original in a form reflecting its beauty - an interpreter dealing with the spoken word, however, must produce a similarly faithful result virtually instantly in another language. To achieve this time and again requires a great deal of experience, the ability to concentrate under difficult conditions and an even temperament.