Series 3 Information


      SERIES 3
    • The Honourable Policeman
    • Deferred Sentence
    • The Lochdubh Assassin
    • The Good Thief
    • The Trouble With Rory
    • More Than A Game
    • Stone Of Destiny Part 1
    • Stone Of Destiny Part 2

      • HAMISH MACBETH
      A General Introduction to Series 3

       Robert Carlyle returns in the third and final series of Hamish Macbeth in the role which has won him the Scottish BAFTA and the Royal Television Society Award for Best Actor. Filmed entirely on the West Coast of Scotland and produced by Zenith for BBC Scotland, the hit series has built up a huge following around the world and attracted large numbers of Canadian and Australian visitors to tile picturesque village of Plockton, the real-life home and beat of the laid-back policeman.

      Hamish Macbeth is responsible for administering the law in Lochdubh, a village so remote that it is a law unto itself. He is assisted in his duties by the multi-faceted TV Join (Ralph Riach), whose second sight and housekeeping skills make him an indispensable right-hand man.

      Macbeth’s quest for the quiet life was rocked in the last series when he found himself caught in a love triangle. Despite having set up home with his old flame Alex (Valerie Gogan), he was increasingly drawn to the dark-haired local reporter Isobel Sutherland (Shirley Henderson). When Alex died in a tragic road accident and Isobel moved to Glasgow to pursue her career as a journalist, Hamish was left in Lochdubh, alone with his guilt and grief, and viewers were left wondering if Isobel Would ever return.

      The third series opens (Episode 1: The Honourable Policeman) with a new young woman entering Macbeth's life. When the overzealous trainee WPC, Anne Patterson (played by Sharon Small), is posted to Lochdubh, Hamish is obliged to play the model policeman. But his performance is too convincing - Anne is swept off her feet, and Hamish has to decide whether or not to yield to temptation...

      In Episode 2 (Deferred Sentence) Hamish meets the troubled Laura McDuff, played by Caroline Patterson, while holidaying with Wee Jock on the island of Laggan-Laggan. He is intrigued by her allegations concerning the death of tier mother twenty years ago, bill is his interest in her simply that of a policeman who suspects the cover-up of a serious crime? Isobel returns to Lochdubh in Episode 3 (The Lochdubh Assassin) with two young Glaswegian friends who are on the run from a gang of ruthless villains. How will Hamish react to her return - and how will he deal with the more pressing problem of the Reservoir Dogs who are running amok in Lochdubh?

      Love is in the air throughout the series for the other inhabitants of Lochdubh. In Episode I (The honourable Policeman) the lonely local laird, Major Maclean (David Ashton), sets tongues wagging when he returns from a foreign holiday with a glamorous young fiancee, Serena St Claire (Sally Dexter). Serena is crazy about the Major - but is it his animal magnetism or his Highland estate she finds so irresistible?

      Lachie Junior (Stuart Davids), now successfully pursuing his newfound vocation as a funeral director, follows his Daddy's advice and makes advances towards Isobel's friend Jean Foley (Sandy McDade) who takes refuge in the funeral parlour with her young nephew Frankie (Episode 3: The Lochdubh Assassin). It seems the attraction is mutual ...

      Village grocer Rory Campbell (Brain Pettifer) and the voluptuous schoolteacher Esme Murray (Anne Lacey) are still Lochdubh’s most romantic couple, until Esme attracts the attentions of the local fire brigade, that is (Episode 5: The Trouble With Rory).

      And romance is even on the cards for Lachlan Senior (Billy Riddoch) in Episode 6: More Than A Game. The "lady with tractor" (Morag Hood) who replies to his lonely hearts advertisement is undoubtedly exciting, but his ideal partner is far more down to earth in tile shape of the Major's housekeeper Edie (Mona Bruce).

      The series ends with a compelling two-part story (Destiny, Parts I and 2) in which the villagers of Lochdubh wrestle for the very soul of Scotland. Will adversity cement Hamish and Isobel's troubled relationship, or drive them further apart? And should TV John’s premonition of the death of someone very close be taken seriously? After all, lie has never been wrong before ...




      The Honourable Policeman

      Writer: Daniel Boyle & Dominic Minghella
      Director: Jonas Grimas

      Tongues are set wagging in Lochdubh when the lonely local laird, Major Maclean, returns home from holiday with a glamorous fiancee - but is it his animal magnetism or his Highland estate that Serena finds so irresistible? Hamish is to be best man at the wedding, but he already has his hands full coping with Anne Patterson, tile overzealous WPC trainee who's been posted to Lochdubh. His convincing performance as the model policeman sweeps Anne off her feet. Will Hamish resist tier undoubted charms - and will he discover the true identity of the Major's fiancee before the marital knot is tied?


      Deferred Sentence

      Writer: Daniel Boyle
      Director: Nicholas Renton

      Holidaying alone oil the island of Laggan-Laggan, Hamish is drawn into a twenty-year old mystery which has poisoned the community. Why do the islanders shun Hamish’s hosts, the Catholic priest, Father McPhail and his Protestant sparring partner, Enoch McDuff? Anxious to avoid being caught in their inter-dominational crossfire, Hamish pretends to be Jewish. He is intrigued by Laura McDuffs allegations concerning the mysterious death of her mother all those years ago, but is his interest in her simply that of a policeman Who Suspects foul play?


      The Lochdubh Assassin

      Writer: Daniel Boyle
      Director: Nicholas Renton

      A gang of ruthless villains descends on Lochdubh, hot on the heels of young tearaway Frankie Bryce and his Aunty Jean, Isobel's best friend in Glasgow. Isobel brings them to Lachie Junior's funeral parlour where Lachie is happy to shelter them - especially once he claps eyes on Jean. Hamish, however, has a big problem. He knows Tam Flood and his henchmen are dangerous, but he can do nothing until they do something. Ignoring Hamish’s warnings, TV John takes pre-emptive action, the villagers close ranks, and the old local legend of Wee MacPhee raises its ugly head.


      The Good Thief

      Writer: Daniel Boyle
      Director: Jonas Grimas

      Esme has discovered that young Frankie Bryce has an unexpected musical talent and the villagers are pinning their hopes and staking their bets on Frankies angelic voice winning them the Willie McGraw Trophy for treble singing, the hard-fought annual contest between Lochdubh's Stag Bar and the Dunbracken Arms. But trouble arrives in Lochdubh in tile shape of Tusker Gray, Frankie’s best friend from Glasgow. Tusker’s disruptive behaviour threatens to sabotage the contest and undermine Frankie’s will to win. Will Hamish discover Tusker's secret before its too late?


      The Trouble With Rory

      writer: Stuart Hepburn
      Director: Mandie Fletcher

      When fire destroys part of Lochdubh Primary School, Esme is horrified to learn not only that the council intends closing the school for good, but that her lover Rory Campbell has been party to their plans all along. Strong passions are aroused by Esme’s ensuing media campaign and with Isobel returning as a TV reporter, Hamish battles to keep the peace. He forms a surveillance unit to track down a suspected arsonist; but there is another mystery ill Lochdubh - what is the trouble with Rory?


      More Than A Game

      Writer: Stuart Hepburn
      Director: Mandie Fletcher

      Lochdubh prepares for tile annual shinty match against Dunbracken with a ruthless Lachlan coaching the village team. Last year was Dunbracken’s nineteenth win in a row; a twentieth will award them the trophy forever and there’s high tension in the air. The Lochdubh players are amazed when star goalie Lachie Junior walks out on the team, then Lachlan turns into a love-sick Romeo besotted with a voluptuous, leather-clad female biker. Hamish however suspects that all is not what it seems, and the villagers hatch a plot to overcome foul play at the match.


      Stone Of Destiny Part 1

      writer: Daniel Boyle
      Director: Nick Renton


      TV John's long-lost brother, the one-eyed, one-legged, one-armed Kenneth McIver, is Sprung from a South American gaol by millionaire Torquil Farquar McFarquar. Ex-patriate McFarquar has a passion for all things Scottish and has heard that Kenneth knows the whereabouts of the real Stone of Destiny, coronation stone of the ancient Scottish kings. Scenting a fortune in the offing, Kenneth sets off for Lochdubh, accompanied by mysterious hypnotist Ava Grimm. Meanwhile, TV John has had premonitions of the impending death of someone very close. How can the villagers convince him it's all in tile mind?


      Stone Of Destiny Part 2

      writer: Daniel Boyle
      Director: Nick Renton

      Concludes the two-part story. Kenneth and Ava have stolen the Stone of Destiny, and TV John is missing. Hamish, Isobel and a posse from Lochdubh embark on a death-defying trek across mountain and moorland in order to rescue their friend and save a treasured symbol of the nation’s heritage. As adversity brings Hamish and Isobel closer together, myth begins to merge with reality and the ghosts of Scotland’s past appear to help them on their way, but ultimately there's no salvation without sacrifice.


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