A little over a month ago, I found a new (old) show on Amazon and began watching it. It's a Scottish drama series filmed on location in the highlands of Scotland, and the show's name is Monarch of the Glen. It's a modern or present-day drama with a large estate or manor house as the centerpiece and all the family members, MacDonald, who have lived in the estate for about 400 years. The current family is not all one group, but a mix of family, workers, friends, and hangers on. The house is called the Big House, or Glenbogle House.
My first impressions were that it would be fun, it would be interesting, and it would keep my mind occupied. I've just finished writing one book, "Stratford," and I've not yet picked up the pace on writing the next one, "The Grange." Oddly enough, my next book takes place in modern times in Scotland as well, but not in the highlands, and certainly not in a large manor house, but in a family crypt at a cemetery just south of Edinburgh's City Centre.
Monarch of the Glen, or MOTG, as it is referred to online, was fairly entertaining, if not predictable, exhaustively British, and of course, we can't forget the accents. I could go all day listening to most Scottish people speak, but there were a few I was thrilled to see leaving the glen; I won't go into too much about it, but the writing was incredibly cheesy at times, and the casting could have used some work. It's not a great series by any means, but if you just need to numb your mind for a while, it works.
Before I go further, let me say there is NO WAY under God's heavenly skies that I could have done better. I am not an actress; I would never say I was, and I could never begin to imagine being a part of that life; we'll let that stand where it is. Still, as a customer, viewer, watcher, and/or would-be fan, I can say that it was decent. It ranks up there with Quincy M.E. when it comes to storylines and less-than-beautiful people as the main characters. I love that about Quincy. I love that about MOTG - most British shows have average-looking actors and actresses. Here, in the US, there's a completely different way of doing things; again, we'll let that stand.
One of the things I LOVED about MOTG was the location, the view, the landscapes, the loch, the crofts, hills, animals, and skyscapes. I loved the nature, and I loved the genuine attempt that the actors made to make the series work - it was the writing that suffered and caused the rotten tomatoes to be brought out, especially toward the end. The writing was so very jumpy, almost as if the scripts had ADHD, show after show, forget about the time spans between each season, or series, as they call them in the UK. American audiences would never stand for the gaps and unexplained concepts that apparently the Brits don't mind.
I noticed throughout the series (and with Heartland, as well, another "drama" show that can virtually be compared to MOTG but from a Canadian point of view), is that the characters can't say what they feel or mean; they get tongue-tied so often, it leaves the audience screaming obscenities at the television; just giving their favorites advice! I can't tell you how many times I threw a rolled-up pair of socks at one or the other of these people who just couldn't be bothered to stand up for themselves, at the risk and sometimes expense of true love.
Well, MOTG is 7 series long, and again, it may be a British thing, but the seasons only have a few episodes each. I don't get that; it's nothing like it is here. I suppose that could be good, depending on whatever else is on the telly to watch. I became rather bored after the 6th series and wanted more action. I also wanted to shove a few characters down the mineshaft or lock them in the wine cellar for good. It's crazy how I never knew the show was even a thing - until 2025, or close to it. Christmas Eve was the first time I found it.
Anyway - it's a good show to watch if you have watched all your regular shows and need something to watch while waiting for the others to come back -- who was my favorite on the show? Well, it wasn't Lexie; I can tell you that. I would say it was Molly; I couldn't stand Hector, Kilwillie, Dorothy, Heromine, or Zoe -- Yes, it was Molly or Susan Hampshire if we're talking real names.
Second would be Golly, played by Alexander Morton, and in third place, Duncan MacKay, played by Hamish Clark. It's worth watching, don't let me sound negative. I just had it in my head that they could have reupholstered the dining room chairs with a little money they would spend on stupid things like wild wolves. Yes, you heard me. That's where my mind went. Caging the wolves was a really dumb thing to do, and "Gee gosh, I wonder what could happen?" It's that predictable.
Photo Credit: Pinterest.com (a photo of the fictional "Glenbogle House," which is really called Ardverikie near Inverness.
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