Herdwick Sheep on Alston Moor

For the Austrians amongst you. (So far every Austrian who has come to visit has been overwhelmed with excitement by the fact there are sheep, lots of sheep, here).

I can sort of understand their excitement, at the risk of being labelled, I too really like sheep! In fact I even have special favourite types of sheep. I love Shetlands, with their crazy, wild starey eyes and ability to jump fences. More like goats than sheep really. Blackfaces that you see in the Highlands are gorgeous, especially the lambs. Probably my favourite sheep of all time or at least at present though are the Herdwicks, which originate in the Lake District. I think...anyway, you see them pretty much only in Cumbria. They are basically teddy bears in the form of sheep.

Sheep are also fantastic animals to draw and paint, and Henry Moore would agree with me here. I've always loved drawing sheep, and somewhere at my old school I'm pretty sure there still hangs a large canvas 'Ewe and me' which I painted in my last year, my finest achievement in six years of Scotland's best education. Ha. Who would have thought ten years later I'd still be painting sheep.....cough....