MONARCH OF THE GLEN

'''Monarch of the Glen''' was a television drama, produced by Ecosse Films for BBC Scotland and originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom.
The series was created by Michael Chaplin and produced by Nick Pitt, Paddy Higson, Jeremy Gwilt, Stephen Garwood and Rob Bullock. The show saw many directors, most notably Edward Bennett, Richard Signy, Rick Stroud and Robert Knights; and many writers including Chaplin, Niall Leonard, John Martin Johnson, Leslie Stewart and Jeremy Front. The series premiered in February 2000, and its seventh and final season was broadcast from September 2005 until October 2005 - with 64 episodes in total.
''Monarch of the Glen'' is loosely based on Compton Mackenzie's ''Highland Novels'', which are set in the same location but in the 1930s and 1940s. The first book in the series is called ''The Monarch of the Glen'' (with a conscious reference to the famous Landseer painting). The television drama has been heavily criticised for its "liberty-taking", particularly as Mackenzie, a co-founder of the Scottish National Party, was satirising the pretences of Scotland's thoroughly anglicised nobility. The first five seasons of ''Monarch of the Glen'' told the story of young restaurateur, Archie MacDonald, trying to restore his childhood home in the Scottish Highlands, starring Alastair Mackenzie, Richard Briers, Susan Hampshire and Dawn Steele, whilst the final two seasons of the show focused on new Laird Paul Bowman trying to modernise the estate, primarily starring Lloyd Owen, Tom Baker, Alexander Morton and, once again, Susan Hampshire.

Contents

History

Series synopses

Series 1

Series 2

Series 3

Series 4

Series 5

Series 6

Series 7

Cast

Regular cast

Recurring roles

Notable guest stars

DVD releases

See also

References

External links

History

''Monarch of the Glen'' was broadcast in the United Kingdom on Sunday evenings on BBC One, usually at 20.00 GMT (repeats of the series are shown on UKTV Drama). Filming took between six and eight months per series in the Badenoch and Strathspey area of the Scottish Highlands. Seven series, totalling 64 episodes (including a Hogmanay Special), were filmed. The show's mixture of comedy and drama, its location, and cast appealed to countries all over the world, including: USA (BBC America and PBS), Australia (ABC), Canada (BBC Canada), Norway, Sweden, Hong Kong, New Zealand, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Vietnam and Dubai. The series is shown to more than 100 countries on BBC Prime, the BBC's 24-hour global entertainment channel, broadcast to Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It is one of BBC America's most popular imports, despite only broadcasting the first six series. Publicity in America has included front-page coverage on the ''Chicago Tribune''Monarch of the Glen returns for a sixth series on BBC ONE BBC, 21 November 2003. Retrieved 13 January 2007. , one of the top newspapers in the USA. ''Monarch of the Glen'' was Australia's most popular BBC drama in 2002 and 2003
British ratings in the first five series were always high, but they lowered after the departure of several of the main characters (Archie, Hector, Lexie, Duncan and Kilwillie). A petition to ensure that the lead character, Archie stayed on the show was formed by 21-year-old "Boglie" Emma Richards, but it failed when the actor left the show midway through the fifth series.^[1] After ratings hit an all-time low in 2004, BBC bosses axed the show, but promised they would bring back many of the cast from earlier series for a fantastic series finale. The seventh and final series ''did'' bring back Richard Briers, Hamish Clark and Julian Fellowes^[2] as promised by the BBC, but the reunion didn't include Archie or Lexie.

Series	No. of Episodes	Episode Runtime	Series Premiere	Series Finale	Average Viewers (in millions)	Average Share (in percentage)
'1'	8	50 minutes	February 27, 2000	April 16, 2000	8.0	26.0
'2'	8	50 minutes	January 07, 2001	February 25, 2001	7.6	26.5
'3'	11	50 minutes	October 28, 2001	January 20, 2002	6.9	25.7
'4'	10	60 minutes	September 01, 2002	November 03, 2002	7.2	29.1
'5'	10	60 minutes	September 28, 2003	November 30, 2003	7.2§	''Unknown''
'Hogmanay Special'	1	60 minutes	December 28, 2003	December 28, 2003	''Unknown''	''Unknown''
'6'	10	60 minutes	September 19, 2004	November 21, 2004	5.3	''TBA''
'7'	6	60 minutes	September 18, 2005	October 23, 2005	5.8	''TBA''

^§ Unconfirmed.

Series synopses

Series 1

Archie MacDonald, trying to carve a living out of the London restaurant he runs with his girlfriend Justine, is called back to his Highland home, to the bed of his dying father, Hector. When he arrives, however, Archie finds that the idea of his dying father was just a ploy by his dotty mother, Molly, to get him to Scotland and tell him face to face that he has inherited his father's large estate and castle, Glenbogle. Archie faces a tough decision: whether to help the debt-ridden Glenbogle, or to return to Justine in London. Archie meets the local school headteacher, Katrina Finlay, and finds he is set to have a love-hate relationship with her. The feisty staff of Glenbogle -- Lexie, Golly and Duncan -- prove hard to handle, and his eccentric parents are difficult. To please all, Archie faces a challenge to save Glenbogle.

Series 2

After his split with Justine, Archie finally knows where his future lies - at Glenbogle. With a relationship with Katrina set to bloom, Archie faces obstacles: with his new Head Ranger, Fergal MacClure who has also taken a shine to Katrina, and with Lexie, who seems to have her own eye on the Laird. Hector and Molly face problems, too, as their daughter Lizzie comes, heavily pregnant, to Glenbogle. Hector must visit an old flame, whilst Golly faces a battle with Fergal to keep Duncan as his friend and assistant. Archie once again has a challenge on his hands to save his childhood home and to please all who live there.

Series 3

Glenbogle has finally lost control of its debts, and the bank, Lascelles, sends Stella Moon to take over the estate as financial controller. With the hard and stubborn Stella proving difficult to handle, Archie seeks solicitude with Lexie, after his split with Katrina. Duncan also faces romantic problems. Hector's and Molly's relationship goes through bad patches as Molly realises that Hector is spending more time with his chum Kilwillie than with her. Golly is reunited with his daughter after many years, and local entrepreneur Stuart McKintosh tries to take land from under the MacDonalds' feet. Archie faces difficulties in juggling his work, his family and his love life as he loses ultimate control of Glenbogle.

Series 4

Lexie struggles to become the new Lady of Glenbogle after her marriage to Archie. Molly tries to come to terms with being a widow after Hector's death and finds she has a suitor in the shape of new neighbour, Andrew. Archie is horrified to learn that his father once had an affair and that a child was produced -- and that the child, Paul, is now coming to Glenbogle. Golly is devastated to find that Duncan is romantically involved with new housekeeper, Irene, but Duncan himself is horrified to find that Irene is set to have a child. Archie must deal with his father's astronomical death duties and finds that he has some competition for the Lairdship of Glenbogle.

Series 5

With Glenbogle's financial problems finally over, Archie starts to find he has cold feet and wonders whether his future lies in Glenbogle. Paul returns to Glenbogle to start afresh but is treated like dirt by the locals. Molly wonders whether she is in love after her relationship with Andrew starts to blossom. Golly's daughter, Jess, comes to live in Glenbogle. Duncan finds a new girlfriend in Kilwillie's niece Hermione, and Paul finds he has some admirers in the glen. Lexie wonders whether she has what it takes to be Laird after Archie leaves Glenbogle to climb a mountain with Lizzie in honour of their late father.

Series 6

Paul becomes Laird of Glenbogle after Lexie and Archie move to New Zealand, but he falls in love with Lexie when she comes back to Glenbogle temporarily. Ewan sets up a pirate radio station in the glen, and forms a friendship with Paul's uncle Donald, who comes back to his childhood home under a curfew order. Golly falls in love with new dancing teacher, Meg, but wonders whether he is too old to have a relationship. Jess tries to come to terms with Duncan's departure from the glen, as Molly's relationship with Golly comes to pieces. Paul tries to decide who he really loves after new arrivals threaten a possible love interest - a new farmer, Isobel.

Series 7

Paul becomes close to a local shepherdess, Iona McLean, but his romantic dreams are dashed when Iona's former fiancé arrives in the glen. Ewan wonders whether to stay with girlfriend, Zoe, when he takes a shine to Paul's goddaughter, Amy. Molly becomes a mother- like figure to Golly's new son, Cameron, after the death of Meg. Jess tries to prove herself to her father when she starts to feel Golly does not care about her. Donald wonders whether to go to a retirement home when he starts to feel his age. Glenbogle is threatened with closure after Paul realises that the financial problems that once plagued the estate are slowly returning.

Cast

Regular cast

The following is a list of the regular cast of ''Monarch of the Glen'' who were credited in the opening credits of the show (in appearance order).

Actor	Character	Series	Recurring	No. of Episodes (/64)
Richard Briers	Hector Naismith MacDonald	Series 1-3	Series 7	28
Susan Hampshire	Molly MacDonald	Series 1-7		60
Alastair Mackenzie	Archibald 'Archie' Horatio Hector MacDonald	Series 1-5		43
Lorraine Pilkington	Katrina Finlay	Series 1-3	Series 4	18
Alexander Morton	'Golly' MacKenzie	Series 2-7	Series 1	64
Dawn Steele	Alexandra 'Lexie' MacDonald	Series 2-6	Series 1	51
Hamish Clark	Duncan McKay	Series 2-6	Series 1, 7	51
Julian Fellowes	Lord Angus Errol Sharon Kilwillie	Series 4-5	Series 1-3, 7	24
Lloyd Owen	Paul Bowman-MacDonald	Series 5-7	Series 4	29
Simone Lahbib	Isobel Anderson	Series 6		10
Martin Compston	Ewan Brodie	Series 6-7	Series 5	20
Rae Hendrie	Jessica 'Jess' MacKenzie	Series 6-7	Series 3, 5	26
Tom Baker	Donald Ulysses MacDonald	Series 6-7		12
Kirsty Mitchell	Iona McLean	Series 7		6
Kellyanne Farquhar	Amy McDougal	Series 7		5

Recurring roles

The following is a list, in order of appearance, of actors who were in three or more episodes of ''Monarch of the Glen'' as the same character but who were not credited as a regular in the opening titles of the show.

Actor	Character	Series	No. of episodes (/64)
Anna Wilson-Jones	Justine	Series 1-2	6
Carole Cassidy	Maureen MacLean	Series 1-2	4
Simon Slater	Lancelot Fleming	Series 1-2	3
Paul Goodwin	Alan Smythe	Series 1	4
Jason O'Mara	Fergal MacClure	Series 2	6
Alexandra Gilbreath	Stella Moon	Series 3	9
Jenny Lee	Aunty Elizabeth 'Liz' Logan	Series 3-5	4
Gavin Mitchell	PC Callum McIntyre	Series 3, 5-6	8
Rebecca Lacey	Irene Stuart	Series 4	8
Angus Lennie	Hamish 'Badger'	Series 4-5	4
Paul Freeman	Andrew Booth	Series 4-5	11
Richenda Carey	Lady Dorothy Trumpington-Bonnet	Series 5	5
Hermione Gulliford	Hermione Trumpington-Bonnet	Series 5	4
John Yule	Dougal Raeburn	Series 5-6	3
Sara Stewart	Amanda MacLeish	Series 5	3
Kari Corbett	Zoë	Series 6-7	6
Donald Douglas	Dr. Gordon McKendrick	Series 6-7	3
Karen Westwood	Meg Paterson	Series 6	5
Lucy Akhurst	Lucy Ford	Series 6	4
Anthony Head	Chester Grant	Series 6	4
Rhianna and Katelyn Duff	Cameron MacKenzie	Series 7	5
Antony Strachan	Frank	Series 7	4

Notable guest stars

The following are famous actors who have appeared as guest stars in one or two episodes of ''Monarch of the Glen'', alongside (in brackets) their character name on the show (in appearance order).
'Abigail Cruttenden' ''(Lizzie MacDonald (I))'', 'Julia Haworth' ''(Janice)'', 'Phillip Whitchurch' ''(Mr. Brown)'', 'Serena Gordon' ''(Mary)'', 'Phil McCall' ''(Tosh McKellen)'', 'Sam Graham' ''(Reverend Mitchell)'', 'Benjamin Whitrow' ''(Terry 'Toad' McLean)'', 'Olga Sosnovska' ''(Marie-Helene)'', 'James Murray' ''(Jeff Ramsden)'', 'Phyllida Law' ''(Professor Isobel Hogg)'', 'Leslie Phillips' ''(Louis Grimshaw)'', 'Charles Edwards' ''(David Fraser)'', 'Hugh Ross' ''(Greg MacDonald)'', 'Saskia Wickham' ''(Lizzie MacDonald (III))'', 'Robin Hooper' ''(Ian Body)'', 'Steven Elder' ''(Alex Faversham)'', 'Robert Fyfe' ''(Jackie McIntyre)'', 'James Fleet' ''(Phillip Liel 'Liam' Forester)'', 'Michael Cochrane' ''(Colonel Ford)'', 'Matthew Marsh' ''(Viktor Zinchenko)'', 'Ruth Millar' ''(Catriona Zinchenko)'', 'Clive Russell' ''(Peter Finlay)''.
''For a detailed list of the ''Monarch of the Glen'' cast, please click here.''

DVD releases

''Monarch of the Glen'' has been released on DVD in the UK and USA only on Region 2 and 1 respectively. In the UK, series 1, 2 and 7 were released in one set, and series 3-6 in two sets - each set containing two discs. Acorn Media produced the original DVDs, but in 2006 a box-set featuring all seven series on 22 discs was produced by the BBC themselves. The Acorn Media DVDs, featured special features such as an exclusive interview with Susan Hampshire, photo galleries, production notes and filmographies. The BBC box-set only featured a making-of show entitled ''The Last Monarch'', which was broadcast on BBC Scotland before the series finale on 23 October 2005.
The USA have only released series 1-6 on DVD, all of which are on one disc per series, three discs per set. The DVDs are produced by BBC Warner.

'DVD Series'	'Release Dates'
	'Region 2'	'Region 1'
Series 1	December 27, 2002	September 16, 2003
Series 2	May 5, 2003	May 4, 2004
Series 3	October 6, 2003	May 17, 2005
Series 4	December 29, 2003	May 16, 2006
Series 5	December 27, 2004	October 24, 2006
Series 6	October 10, 2005	May 15, 2007
Series 7	April 3, 2006	October 23, 2007
Series 1-7	October 24, 2006	October 23, 2007

The first seven series was released in Region 4 in July 2007.

See also

★ List of episodes

★ Monarch Country

References

1. BBC boggled by number of Boglies Juliette Garside, The Sunday Herald, 1 September 2002. Retrieved 12 January 2007
2. Faces from Monarch's past BBC, 24 March 2005. Retrieved 12 January 2007.

External links

★ ''Monarch of the Glen'' at bbc.co.uk

★

★ Monarch Country

★ BBC America ''Monarch of the Glen'' website