Miriam and Alan: Lost in Scotland
Alan Cumming and Miriam Margolyes are clearly very comfortable with each other and they are great company for the viewer in this three-part series that sees them return to their Scottish roots.
The pair hit the road in a campervan to explore the highways and byways of Scotland, revisiting significant locations from their past. That includes a visit to the Panmore estate on the east coast where Cumming grew up – a moving interlude which triggers some traumatic memories for him – and going to see the small Glasgow apartment where Margolyes’ father and his Jewish immigrant family lived when they first arrived in Scotland.
Cumming does all the driving and is remarkably patient with Margolyes’ frequent criticism of how he is doing while the Caledonian scenery provides a stunning backdrop to the duo’s nostalgic road trip. They stop off at Cawdor Castle (cue Cumming quoting Macbeth at length), and running through the first episode is the tease that Cumming may or may not be related to the first baron of Cawdor – to whom, judging by the portrait hung in one of the castle’s halls, he does bear an uncanny resemblance.
They also go to a tartan factory where Cumming has secretely arranged for a special tartan “Alium” to be made for them, and they meet up with fellow thesp the lovely Bill Paterson in the picturesque village of Fordyce. It’s an easy-going, entertaining ride.