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A Less Travelled Road and a Mystical Journey

Paul follows in the footsteps of Bonnie Prince Charlie, exploring the lochs of Moidart before travelling round the Firths of Easter Ross.

In this programme, Paul follows in the footsteps of Bonnie Prince Charlie, exploring the lesser-known lochs along the west coast of Scotland.

Landing at Glenuig, he makes his way inland to Loch Moidart and MacDonald country, walking the old coffin road, which was used for centuries by funeral parties, taking their dead to a sacred isle. On the track, Paul meets a trials bike enthusiast and learns the secrets of a 'dabbing coat', before landing of the Green Isle where he rings a 1100 year-old bell for the dead.

Taking a boat north, Paul sails up Loch Shiel to Glenfinnan where Bonnie Prince Charlie officially began his rising to reclaim the throne for the Stuart Dynasty. From a forgotten monument that commemorates this event, Paul heads back to the coast and Loch Ailort, where he learns how to knife fight before taking a trip across the loch to a deserted community on the roadless Ardnish peninsula.

Later in the programme, Paul's next grand tour starts in the hills above Stathpeffer on the waters of Loch Ussie, famous for its connections with the Brahan Seer, who predicted future calamities. Here Paul meets musician Lauren MacColl who found inspiration in the legend of the seer. On a golf course above Strathpeffer, Paul discovers an unlikely connection between the conventional old Spa town below and the wickedest man in the world – Aleister Crowley.

In a nearby wood, the mysterious traditions of a clootie well are revealed to Paul by a member of the travelling community. On the shores of the Cromarty Firth, Paul visits a folly on a hill and discovers an ancient Pictish carved stone. At Tain, the oldest Royal Burgh in Scotland, he learns to blow glass before heading for the Dornoch Firth where he encounters a witch and a fairy bridge.

58 minutes

Credit

Role Contributor
Presenter Paul Murton

Broadcasts

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