I am so Hibee to be joining River City
Panto star thrilled character is fan of his team
RADIO DJ Grant Stott is thrilled to have been given his dream role in River City – but joked he might have turned it down if his character was a Hearts Fan.
The diehard Hibee, who makes his Shieldinch debut tonight as Stevie’s long lost dad Sam Spiller, says he was delighted when he read the script and realised Sam was not a Jambo.
River City writers haven’t always been so kind to their football-loving actors’ club allegiances – Stephen Purdon is Rangers daft yet Shellsuit Bob is a diehard Hoops fan.
And panto star Grant, who has been a regular spectator at Easter Road since he was a boy, admits having to don a maroon jersey would have been a hard pill to swallow.
The 54-year-old plays veteran rock star Sam, who had a teenage love affair with Scarlett – which resulted in Stevie, the child he never knew about.
Grant said: “Would I have turned the role down if they had decided to make Sam a Hearts fan? Well, it could have been a dealbreaker.
“I didn’t have any say in Sam’s likes and dislikes. So when I got the script for episode one and the writers had mentioned Hibs winning the 2016 Scottish Cup Final against Rangers, and Sam going out and painting a red car green in celebration, I was ecstatic.
“My dad is really excited about me joining the show. I haven’t told him too many of the details. So when he sees the Hibs stuff, he is going to absolutely love it.”
Grant sees his role in the hit BBC Scotland soap as a gift from his best pal Andy Gray, who played loveable rogue Pete
Galloway in the show and passed away from Covid, aged 61, in January.
He said: “Landing a part on River City is the most exciting thing that has ever happened to me.
“We used to laugh and joke about how getting on River City together would be the ultimate crowning glory of everything we have done together – sadly that was the one thing we didn’t get to do and it breaks my heart.
“Although Andy died before I was given the role, he is very much part of it and would be very chuffed how it all came about and the role he played in getting me the job.”
Grant, who is dad to Sam, 24, and Lori, 20, and married to Claire, added: “Andy and I were so close. He was family. He was part of my everyday life, my working life and my family life.
“Claire and my kids loved Andy and he was over at the house all the time.
“I am so lucky to have someone who knew me so well, who was intrinsically linked to so many parts of my life.
“There is now a massive hole in both my life and my heart.”
Grant’s character Sam arrives in Shieldinch under the pretence he’s being interviewed for a music magazine and Stevie’s a journalist, little realising there’s a secret family connection – which inevitably comes out.
After his initial shock, Sam is delighted he’s a dad but his enthusiasm quickly proves overwhelming for Stevie.
The panto baddie, who lives in Edinburgh and is DJ for BBC Radio Scotland, said: “Every time a script arrives I’m chomping at the bit to see what Sam is doing next.”
While Grant was a policeman before becoming a well loved Radio Forth DJ, he revealed his dream was always to be an actor.
He said: “I have wanted to be an actor for as long as I can remember and being rejected from three theatre schools aged 17 was one of the biggest blows of my life.
“I’ve taken an alternative route to get where I am today but I’ve got there in the end. It’s been a journey that has taken 36 years but it’s been worth it.”
River City, tonight, BBC Scotland at 10pm.