Hamish Macbeth (TV series)
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''Hamish Macbeth'' is a Scottish
mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...
comedy-drama television series produced by BBC Scotland that aired from 26 March 1995 to 4 May 1997. It is loosely based on a series of mystery novels by M. C. Beaton (
Marion Chesney Marion Gibbons (née Chesney; 10 June 1936 – 30/31 December 2019) was a Scottish writer of romance and mystery novels, whose career as a published author began in 1979. She wrote numerous successful historical romance novels under a form of he ...
). The series concerns a local police officer, Constable
Hamish Macbeth Hamish Macbeth is the lackadaisical police constable of the fictional Scottish Highland town of Lochdubh, in a series of murder mystery novels created by M. C. Beaton (Marion Chesney). Considered by many to be a useless, lazy moocher, Macbeth ...
, in the fictitious town of Lochdubh on the west coast of Scotland. The title character was played by
Robert Carlyle Robert Carlyle (born 14 April 1961) is a Scottish actor. His film work includes '' Trainspotting'' (1996), ''The Full Monty'' (1997), ''The World Is Not Enough'' (1999), ''Angela's Ashes'' (1999), '' The Beach'' (2000), ''28 Weeks Later'' (20 ...
. It consisted of three series, with the first two series containing six episodes and the third containing eight. The series was released on
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
in the United Kingdom and the United States in 2005 and 2006, respectively, with the exception of the first series episode "West Coast Story". This was due to rights issues surrounding the episode's extensive use of excerpts from the 1961 film ''
West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play '' Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid ...
''.


Synopsis

Hamish Macbeth, a police constable in the
Northern Constabulary The Northern Constabulary ( gd, Poileas a' Chinn a Tuath) was the territorial police force responsible for Northern Scotland, covering the Highland council area along with the Western Isles, the Orkney Islands and the Shetland Islands, which mak ...
, accompanied by his dog, a West Highland Terrier named Wee Jock (later another West Highland Terrier called Jock following Wee Jock's death), keeps the peace in the small town of Lochdubh (pronounced with the guttural 'ch' sound, LoCH-DOO). Macbeth does this in his own way, without undue reliance on the letter of the law and with every intention of avoiding being promoted out of what is his ideal job. He strongly dislikes involvement from Inverness police, and sometimes his main work doesn't seem to be the capture of local ''very'' petty criminals, but to keep them away from prison and penalties. The major running theme of the series is the tension caused by Hamish's attraction to both the journalist of the local newspaper, Isobel Sutherland and the aristocratic author Alexandra Maclean. Other themes include the
clairvoyance Clairvoyance (; ) is the magical ability to gain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception. Any person who is claimed to have such ability is said to be a clairvoyant () ("one who sees cl ...
of Hamish's friend and co-worker "TV John", John McIver, the not-so-secret romance between the school-teacher Esme Murray and the shopkeeper Rory Campbell, the volatile marriage of the publican Barney Meldrum and his wife Agnes, the schemes of the two Lachie MacCraes, father and son, the laid-back, pipe smoking Doc Brown, and Major Peregrine Maclean, father of Alexandra and aristocratic penniless widower. The series was accompanied by the Gaelic music of John Lunn.


Production

The series was filmed on location in the village of
Plockton Plockton ( gd, Am Ploc/Ploc Loch Aillse) is a village in the Lochalsh, Wester Ross area of the Scottish Highlands with a 2020 population of 468. Plockton settlement is on the shores of Loch Carron. It faces east away from the prevailing winds, a ...
, the town of
Kyle of Lochalsh Kyle of Lochalsh (from the Gaelic ''Caol Loch Aillse'', "strait of the foaming loch") is a village in the historic county of Ross-shire on the northwest coast of Scotland, located around west-southwest of Inverness. It is located on the Lo ...
and the surrounding area. A map of the Lochdubh area shown in the episode "In Search of a Rose" places Lochdubh close to
Toscaig Toscaig ( gd, Toghsgaig) is a small, remote village, at the southern end of the Applecross peninsula, in Wester Ross in the Highlands of Scotland. Toscaig is in the Highland council area, and lies at the head of the south facing sea loch, Loch To ...
, just to the north of Kyle of Lochalsh, with Lochdubh Island being part of the
Crowlin Islands The Crowlin Islands () are a group of uninhabited islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. They lie between Skye and the Applecross peninsula on the mainland. The individual islands are: * Eilean Mòr (big island) *Eilean Meadhonach (middle is ...
. The series was directed mainly by Nicholas Renton, with Mandie Fletcher directing four episodes and Jonas Grimas directing two episodes in 1997.


Cast

*
Robert Carlyle Robert Carlyle (born 14 April 1961) is a Scottish actor. His film work includes '' Trainspotting'' (1996), ''The Full Monty'' (1997), ''The World Is Not Enough'' (1999), ''Angela's Ashes'' (1999), '' The Beach'' (2000), ''28 Weeks Later'' (20 ...
as PC
Hamish Macbeth Hamish Macbeth is the lackadaisical police constable of the fictional Scottish Highland town of Lochdubh, in a series of murder mystery novels created by M. C. Beaton (Marion Chesney). Considered by many to be a useless, lazy moocher, Macbeth ...
; A policeman in the village of Lochdubh, laid-back in dealing with the inhabitants' quirky ways. He works to avoid promotion or transfer, and is clearly more interested in keeping the peace than enforcing the letter of the law. *
Ralph Riach Ralph McKenzie Riach (26 January 1936 – 20 March 2022) was a Scottish actor from Elgin, Moray. Early years Riach was born on 26 January 1937 in Elgin, Scotland. He He was educated at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow, and he wor ...
as John James McIver (pronounced "Mc-Eever"), AKA "TV John"; Hamish's friend and confidant who got his nickname because he was the first man in Lochdubh to have a television set. He manned the station when Hamish was away and was gifted with the sight. *
Shirley Henderson Shirley Henderson (born 24 November 1965) is a Scottish actress. Her accolades include two Scottish BAFTAs, a VFCC Award and an Olivier Award, as well as BAFTA, BIFA, London Critics' Circle, Chlotrudis, Gotham, and Canadian Screen Award ...
as Isobel Sutherland; A reporter on ''The Lochdubh Listener'' who is in love with Hamish. Hamish later realises his love for her, but their relationship remains largely unrequited. She temporarily left Lochdubh for a job in
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, but later returns and starts a relationship with Hamish. * Valerie Gogan as Alexandra "Alex" Maclean (Series 1–2); Major Maclean's daughter, a novelist who has an on/off relationship with Hamish. She breaks up with Hamish after discovering that he no longer has feelings for her, and is actually in love with Isobel. She then attempts to leave Lochdubh, but falls down a muddy cliff and dies. *
Barbara Rafferty Barbara Rafferty (born 15 January 1950 in Clydebank), is a Scottish actress. Credited as Barbara Ann Brown in her early acting career. She is known for her roles as Ella Cotter in the long-running BBC Two sitcom '' Rab C Nesbitt'', then firs ...
as Agnes Meldrum; a landlady who runs the local
pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
with her husband, Barney. It is later revealed that when she was 16, she had a son named Gavin, whom she gave up for adoption. He later reunites with her. *
Stuart McGugan Stuart McGugan (born 2 March 1944) is a Scottish actor. He played the roles of Gunner 'Atlas' Mackintosh in the BBC sitcom ''It Ain't Half Hot Mum'' and Bomba MacAteer in ''Tutti Frutti''. McGugan was a presenter on BBC's '' Play School'' f ...
as Bernard Keir Hardy "Barney" Meldrum; the local publican, an "incomer" from Glasgow. * Anne Lacey as Esme Murray; The local teacher and owner of the boarding house. * Brian Pettifer as Rory Duncan Campbell; Owner of the local grocery shop, and a very close friend of Esme. *
Duncan Duff Duncan Duff (born 1964 in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK) is a British stage, television and film actor who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London 1985 - 1987. He is best known for His role in Not Going out as Pete and for A Quiet Pas ...
as Dougal Alexander Fleming Brown, AKA "Doc"; The kilt-wearing, pipe-smoking village doctor, who appears to smoke quantities of marijuana. *
Jimmy Yuill James Evander Munro Yuill (born 13 February 1956) is a Scottish actor. He is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and later joined the Renaissance Theatre Company. He has appeared in many of Kenneth Branagh's films, most recently as Ed ...
/Billy Riddoch as Lachlan McCrae, Sr.; A local schemer who fills his days making unlicensed sausages. * Stuart Davids as Lachlan McCrae, Jr; Son of Lachlan Sr., who starts out in the sausage business and ends up the local undertaker. * David Ashton as Major Roderick Peregrine ("Roddy") Maclean; Alex's father, local land-owner and former army officer. * Zippy as Wee Jock; Hamish's dog. After Wee Jock dies, he is replaced by another dog named simply "Jock".


Recurring characters

* Jon Croft as Malkie Clunie (Series 1); The Major's groundsman and gamekeeper. * Mona Bruce as Edith ("Edie") (Series 3); The Major's housekeeper. * Dolina MacLennan as Flora (Series 1–2); The secretary and receptionist at the local newspaper office, and prolific knitter. * Iain McColl as Neil (Series 2–3); Operator of the local omnibus and the small, unstaffed local railway station. *
Ronnie Letham Dugald Ronald Letham (10 September 1949 – 27 March 2008) was a Scottish actor. Biography Letham was born in Falkirk, Stirlingshire. He had a sister, Maggie and attended Bantaskine then Falkirk High School. Letham originally trained as a tea ...
as Peter (Series 2–3); Station Officer at the local fire station, which is run by trained locals. *
Ron Donachie Ronald Eaglesham Porter (born 26 April 1956), known professionally as Ron Donachie, is a Scottish actor. He is known for starring as DI John Rebus in the BBC Radio 4 dramatisations of the Ian Rankin "Rebus" detective novels and for his supporti ...
as Zoot McPherrin (Series 1–2); Leader of a hippie colony, with various Lochdubh associations. * Laurie Ventry as Reverend Alan Snow (Series 2); Local clergyman of undisclosed denomination. * Bill Leadbitter as D.I. Willie Bruce (Series 1); Hamish's superior from the Inverness police force. *
Alex Norton Alexander Hugh Norton (born 27 January 1950) is a Scottish actor. He is known for his roles as DCI Matt Burke in the STV detective drama series '' Taggart'', Eric Baird in BBC Two sitcom '' Two Doors Down'', DCS Wallace in '' Extremely Dangerou ...
as Duncan Soutar (Series 1–2); Local farmer. * Rab Christie as Jimmy Soutar (Series 1–2); Duncan Soutar's son. *
Sandy McDade Sandra Isobel McDade (born in February 1964), professionally known as Sandy McDade, is a Scottish actress, known for her part as Margaret Brown (née Ellison) in the television series ''Lark Rise to Candleford'', Miss Scatcherd in the 2011 film ' ...
as Jean Foley (Series 3); A friend of Isobel's, who along with her nephew, Frankie, leaves Glasgow to stay in Lochdubh. * Stephen Henderson as Frankie Bryce (Series 3); Jean's nephew, who comes with her and Isobel to stay in Lochdubh.


Episodes


Series Overview


Series 1 (1995)


Series 2 (1996)


Series 3 (1997)


Home Media

Region 1: All three series have been released on DVD in Region 1 from October 25, 2005 to October 23, 2007. Region 2: All three series have been released on DVD in Region 2 from September 5, 2005 to April 24, 2006. Region 4: All three series have been released on DVD in Region 4 from March 21, 2006 to February 7, 2007.


References


External links

*
The Wee Hamish Macbeth


{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamish Macbeth (Tv Series) BBC television dramas BBC Scotland television shows 1995 Scottish television series debuts 1997 Scottish television series endings 1990s Scottish television series English-language television shows Television shows set in Scotland Skye and Lochalsh 1990s British comedy-drama television series British comedy-drama television shows 1990s British mystery television series