THE last time I interviewed Carl Lis, we talked about his penchant for dressing up in women's clothes. At the time, this might have seemed an odd habit (no pun intended) for the leader of Craven District Council.

This time, as I waited for him in the bar at the Wheatsheaf in Ingleton, I was scanning snapshots on the wall of regulars up to strange antics and there was a picture of Carl again. And he was dressed up as a Teletubby!

If this once again seems a little bizarre for the man who has just been elected the new chairman of the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, it is only fair to explain that his behaviour is nothing to do with strange longings, but a well-established ritual in the village.

For every year, Carl takes on a key role in the Ingleton pantomime and, being as masculine a looking fella as you cold image - there are more effeminate heavyweight boxers - he is always cast as the Dame.

For me, this proves two things. The first is that Coun Carl Lis is a contributor, a man who takes part. The second, which will be even more important over the next few years, is that he has a sense of humour.

And he'll need it because the authority is just bracing itself to face not one, but three major changes which will affect life in the national park for decades to come.

All will be unpopular in some quarters and chances are that, although much of this will be out of members' control, they will get a lot of the blame.

So for a man who has volunteered to give many more hours of his precious free time to tread not one, but three tight-ropes simultaneously, a sense of humour will be precious beyond rubies.

"There are a lot of changes coming up and they will be viewed differently by different people," said Carl, 55, over a much-needed pint of orange and lemonade. "My task, hopefully, will be to smooth things through and ensure that all sides get an equally fair hearing.

"I am a great believer in consultation rather than confrontation."

Within the next 12 months, rural life is due for some mighty shocks. Changes in the notorious European Common Agricultural Policy will mean that hill farmers will have to discard well-set farming methods.

The Right to Roam legislation, which will allow ramblers access to millions of acres of previously private land, comes into force in the park next spring and has already put landowners and militant ramblers at each other's throats.

And the Government is asking small rural businesses to expand in the wake of foot and mouth, mostly in the tourist market. But there are many locals who think we are already swamped by trippers without encouraging more.

Squaring these three circles will be no easy task. But then, little has been easy in Carl's life.

He is the son of a Free Polish Army soldier who escaped the Nazis in his homeland and made a precarious trek to England to continue the fight. He married a Penrith lass and they raised their family in Cumbria.

Tragically, the mother died very young and they found themselves living in a caravan as a one-parent family. In these circumstances, it is not surprising that Carl failed his 11-plus so he left school early and got a job as an electrician at a local quarry.

Talent will out, however, and he was soon deputy manager.

Then, in 1981, he successfully applied for a job as manager of the Ingleton quarry and moved south with wife Sue, another Penrith lass, and their two daughters.

"We got such a friendly welcome that we were a bit taken aback," he recalls. "We were invited to join all sorts of local organisations then, a bit later, asked if we would like to join the committee. It all started from there."

To list all his local offices would take up most of this page - although he is particularly proud of being chairman of the village football club - and that in turn led to the parish council, the district council and the national park authority.

Local politics have never been a bed of roses and Carl has felt the thorns. After leading the Liberal group on CDC, he walked out when asked to vote against his conscience - and is now the leading Independent.

But what particularly intrigues me is that, as a quarry manager, he is now the YDNP head man. And there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, who would ban quarrying within the park altogether. How does he reconcile that?

He laughed: "I have seen both sides of that argument. We completely rebuilt the Ingleton crushing plant along environmentally friendly lines with the approval of everyone involved: the park authority, the district council, English Nature and many more.

"It has now become something of a model of its kind. That was another victory for consultation, not confrontation, but it was very important: jobs are very scarce in these parts and quarrying has been a major employer for centuries."

I like that because I am one of many observers who fear that these Dales of ours could end up as a living museum for weekenders and wealthy retirees. Without jobs, there is little hope for our young folk and the future.

But that adds the fourth tightrope for Carl Lis to cross. Not a good place for a hearty laugh, the tightrope - but when he's off duty, I hope he keeps that great sense of humour sharp.