Man's friendship with a wild otter on a remote Scottish island is a real-life fairytale

Humans often form strong connections with domesticated animals, but forging a bond with wild creatures while ensuring they remain free to thrive in their natural environment is truly extraordinary. That’s the premise behind a heartwarming documentary from National Geographic titled Billy and Molly: An Otter Love Story. It tells the story of Billy Mail, a man from the Shetland Islands—the northernmost region of the United Kingdom—who discovered an orphaned otter pup on his doorstep in 2021. According to the BBC, the otter was starving and alone, marking the beginning of an extraordinary bond between the Mail family and the wild animal.

Billy named the pup Molly and took on the task of nursing her back to health. In doing so, he found himself growing closer to the natural world around him. At 57, Billy first noticed Molly diving off a nearby pontoon and decided to approach. To his amazement, the otter didn’t flee but sat nearby, calmly eating her prey. “She stopped eating, looked me right in the eye, and then went back to it,” Billy shared. “I thought, ‘That’s not right. A wild otter should’ve run away at that point.’” Reflecting on the situation, Billy recalled hearing about a female otter found dead in the area and believed Molly might be her orphaned pup.

"She was really thin and emaciated, but she wasn't unhealthy. She was just hungry," Mail said. He contacted a local wildlife sanctuary, which informed him that he could feed the otter as long as he didn’t domesticate her. It was then that Molly became part of the Mail family. Her arrival brought a breath of fresh air to the couple, who had recently moved back to Shetland after Mail's parents passed away. "She was a lovely distraction," Mail mentioned, noting that Molly arrived at the perfect time, when they were struggling with the distress of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Susan also noticed a drastic change in her husband's mood. "Watching what he got back from helping an animal who needed it was incredibly emotive and touching," she remarked. Molly and Susan initially had a rocky start to their friendship, as Susan was afraid of interacting with a wild otter. "The more I watched and learned, the more I saw that she wasn't aggressive at all," Susan confirmed. Soon, Mail and his family did everything they could to make Molly feel comfortable around them. Mail bought several colored plastic balls and built Molly a mini-ball pool where she could play.

Mail initially planned to build an extension to their house but scrapped the idea to create a miniature croft house for the otter. The croft house was equipped with a camera, Wi-Fi and a set of Mail family photos. Later, filmmaker Charlie Hamilton James (@chamiltonjames), working with National Geographic, shared some pictures he captured of Mail and Molly on his Instagram. Inspired by their story, James decided to turn it into an award-winning documentary. During a visit to Shetland, James heard about the Mail family and their otter and decided to meet them, proposing the idea of turning their story into a documentary.

"Billy and Molly: An Otter Love Story" premiered in March 2024 at the South by Southwest festival in Texas. "My family say I'm the woman with the heart of stone, but I found it very emotional," Susan said after watching the final cut of the film. The film also won an award at Bristol's Wildscreen Festival and was nominated in several categories at the prestigious American Critics Choice Documentary Awards. Although the Mail family had developed a strong bond with Molly, they knew she needed to fend for herself in the wild before winter. After several months together, Mail stopped feeding her. Gradually, the otter's visits became less frequent and eventually stopped altogether.

But one snowy night, the camera in Molly's croft house automatically switched on, alerting the Mail family to a visitor. Molly had returned, now healthy and pregnant. She gave birth to her own pup, and the otter family still visits Mail's garden from time to time. "The one thing Molly taught me was compassion," Susan shared. "We took this otter that was cute and cuddly but in desperate need of help and to feed her and nurture her through adolescence and help her develop into a fully-grown adult. Then observing that circle of life happening but also being a part of it was incredibly rewarding," Mail concluded.