The BBC site (link given in first message on the thread) says that Fàilte Don Eilean Sgitheanach was written by Niall MacLeòid, who was born in the Glendale (Gleann Dail) area of Skye (an t-Eilean Sgitheanach, the winged island) in 1843. His father was also a published bard.

Life was hard in Skye during Niall's lifetime. It was a time of land struggles and evictions. Niall and his cousin Ruaraidh left for Edinburgh in 1866. Niall had not had much schooling but appears to have taught himself to read and write English. He spent much of his life in Edinburgh, though he also travelled for his work as a tea merchant. His poems were first published in the book "Clàrsach an Doire" in 1883.

There is a translation along with the lyrics at http://www.celticlyricscorner.net/cormack/failte.htm

TRANSLATION of Fàilte Don Eilean Sgitheanach (from the Gaelic of Niall MacLeòid)

Oh hail to your crags And dark corries
Your solid mountains Where the young roe wander
The gloom of winter Closes around the hills
And the wind-blown groves Are completely stripped
And I see the Cullin Like a fearless lion
With a beard of snow Encircling its head
And its cheeks furrowed By foaming waterfalls
Falling and twisting To the glens below

Oh where are the brave men Who were reared in your glens
Who moved with alacrity Around the misty hills?
With powder fired From clean muskets
And their mighty hunting dogs Who never faltered in their search
The heroes uncowardly In the face of battle
Who would not yield readily To the enemy's war cry
On every field and plain Where they unfurled their banner
They left a historic legacy Which does not disgrace their issue [progeny]

But I love your glens Your valleys and mountains
With mist resting On their high pillars
The fertile fields The high promontories
And the streams loudly calling The hind and her young
May your history be eternal And your sons renowned
Until the earth decays And the heavens fold
While the surf Pounds its rocky shore
I will never relinquish my love
For the Isle of Mist