TV show puts focus on Argyll

PEOPLE in Argyll and Bute are set to get a rare insight into how the council works in a BBC television series called The Country Council.

The three-part series follows the work of council staff in Argyll and Bute as they work with vulnerable people in the community, complaints about bin collections, road repairs and even bagpipe teaching.

The first episode provides a rare window into the airport at Connel, and a travelling music teacher visiting pupils on Mull. Episode three will see an aspiring Oban DJ who has Down’s syndrome play his first gig (see page four).

The show is narrated by Game of Thrones actor, James Cosmo, whose actor father James Copeland hailed from Helensburgh.

Elspeth O’Hare, executive producer at Firecracker Films, said: ‘We filmed over months from late spring into the summer and, as locals will be well aware, we encountered just about every shade of weather but there was a lot of warmth from the local people and we hope that comes across in the series.

‘Filmed across some of Scotland’s most breathtaking landscapes, it uncovers unsung heroes who travel hundreds of miles daily to bring care to their clients, island staff who work not one but sometimes six different council jobs and the amazing frontline workers supporting families in crisis.

Episode one will air on BBC One Scotland on Thursday October 19 at 9pm.