Salmond ‘endorsed by Robert the Bruce’

ALEX SALMOND has been accused of pandering to extreme Scottish nationalists after his new party released a campaign video which spoke of breaking “the spine of English superiority” and claimed the support of a king who died nearly seven centuries ago.

The former Scottish first minister’s Alba Party yesterday broadcast a supposed endorsement from Robert the Bruce, who successfully led Scotland during the first War of Independence against England. In the clip, King Robert, who died in 1329, predicts that Mr Salmond’s rival party to the Scottish

National Party will “unite the clans”. The bizarre video was in fact voiced by Angus Macfadyen, an actor who played the Scottish king in the 1995 film Braveheart,

and is a supporter of Mr Salmond’s

party. In it, modern-day images of pro-independence activists are shown during a supposed monologue from King Robert.

Opponents claimed that Mr Salmond had resorted to anti-english bigotry in his attempt to make a breakthrough in next month’s Holyrood election.

Mr Salmond said: “These attacks from our opponents on our campaign video show scant regard for the history of Scotland.”

Pamela Nash, chief executive of the pro-uk Scotland in Union campaign group, said “the nationalist mask has slipped”.

In a further blow, a rival King Robert, David Paisley, the actor who starred as the monarch in the BBC docudrama Rise of the Clans, criticised Alba’s message. He said: “I know Alba are seen as regressive but I wasn’t expecting to be dragged back to the 1300s.”

‘I know Alba are seen as regressive but I wasn’t expecting to be dragged back to the 1300s’