Coming to a TV screen soon: A Grand Tour of Staffin!
STAFFIN and the Trotternish peninsula will be coming to the small screen this autumn, as filming for a popular BBC series is now in the can.
With a Victorian guidebook in his hands, presenter Paul Murton follows in the footsteps of the first tourists to Scotland, travelling the country and tracing the changes that have taken place since the birth of Scottish tourism 200 years ago.
Paul, who was brought up in Argyll, is the face of the BBC series “Grand Tours of the Scottish Islands”.
The show’s crew were in Staffin last month and explored Trotternish. His journey begins at the Old Man of Storr, follows the Trotternish Ridge up the east coast through Staffin to the Quraing, then crosses over to Uig, to the Fairy Glen, and ends in the far north with a visit to the tiny Fladda Chuain islands.
The show also filmed the bi-annual swimming of Iain “the Herd” MacDonald’s cattle over to Stenscholl Island and were due to investigate the famous dinosaur footprints at Staffin Beach.
The premise of the show is thatPaul Murton explores the most fascinating parts of the country that have attracted visitors for more than 200 years.
Paul Muirton with Flodigarry Island in the background.
For centuries, Scotland was regarded as a place to avoid; a place where visitors were more likely to write home about political instability, rebellion, famine and poverty than the charms of nature. Early travellers complained about the terrible weather, bad food, poor roads and the uncouth habits of the natives before Scotland became an internationally celebrated tourist destination.
To find out, Paul Murton recreates six Scottish tours suggested by a well-thumbed copy of the Victorian guidebook: “Black’s Picturesque Guide to Scotland”. Letting its pages guide him, Paul discovers why tourism flourished and explores the island.
To find out, Paul Murton recreates six Scottish tours suggested by a well-thumbed copy of the Victorian guidebook: “Black’s Picturesque Guide to Scotland”. Letting its pages guide him, Paul discovers why tourism flourished and explores the island.
Series producer Kathryn Ross said a specific date for transmission had been agreed yet but predicted the Staffin programme will be on BBC1 Scotland in the autumn, either late September/early October.