Latest news with #IsleOfMull
BBC News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Banjo and Ro's Grand Island Hotel - New BBC Scotland series to follow the two designers as they transform a derelict mansion on a remote Scottish island
New six-part series Banjo and Ro's Grand Island Hotel sees interior designer Banjo Beale and husband Ro take on their biggest design project – turning a derelict mansion on the remote Isle of Ulva in Scotland into a stunning boutique hotel. Together, Banjo and Ro hope to transform the fortunes of the crumbling house and the island community. Banjo and Ro's Grand Island Hotel is a Hello Halo production for BBC Scotland with filming beginning in June. Situated 150 metres off the west coast of the Isle of Mull in Scotland, Ulva used to have a population of 800 but now just 14 call it home. At the centre of the island stands Ulva House, a once enchanting Regency home, the former residence of the first Governor of Australia, Lachlan MacQuarrie. However, in recent years, Ulva House has stood abandoned, falling into disrepair until the local community bought it in 2018. Banjo and Ro's Grand Island Hotel will follow the trials, tribulations, design dilemmas and community spirit it takes to bring Ulva House back to life and, hopefully, turn it into a must-visit getaway. Along the way, the couple - who have relocated to Ulva along with Grampa the dog as well as their chickens and pigs - will face the challenges of remote island life and a limited budget but these two dreamers are determined to transform the crumbling mansion into a stunning destination hotel. Says Banjo: 'This is my biggest project yet with an absolute nightmare of a client - myself. Ro and I have officially lost the plot. We're going to try and rescue a crumbling, abandoned manor on the wild and windswept Isle of Ulva. With 16 residents, no roads and no clue how we're going to pull it off, it's going to be my boldest and muddiest adventure yet. There'll be midges, madness, and hopefully a miracle or two.' Banjo's husband Ro adds: 'I thought we were just here for a quiet escape, next thing I know, I'm knee-deep in filth, chasing pigs out of the hallway, and somehow in charge of sourcing vintage chandelier crystals from 1855. Banjo calls it a vision; I call it grounds for divorce.' The Executive Producers on Banjo and Ro's Grand Island Hotel are Wendy Rattray and Joff Wilson for Hello Halo and Steve Allen for BBC Scotland. The series will be directed and produced by Joe Sharpe. Wendy Rattray, Executive Producer, says: 'An abandoned house, a wild, untamed landscape. No road access. No running water. Barely any electricity. Banjo and Ro may have lost the plot but have no shortage of dreams and schemes as they attempt the most staggering of transformations in one of the most magical parts of the UK. We're delighted to be joining Banjo and Ro on this real world, high stakes renovation as they attempt to turn around the fortunes of this once stunning mansion and breathe new life into the island.' Steve Allen, BBC Scotland's Executive Producer, adds: 'Banjo and Ro's Island Grand Hotel, the duo's biggest design challenge to date, will provide pure escapism for our audiences. Combining the nation's love of interior design and renovation, this series will be full of emotion, skill, and heart. Set amongst a stunning Hebrides backdrop, the weather might not always be warm but the welcome to Ulva will be.' Filming on Banjo and Ro's Grand Island Hotel begins in June through to October. The series is expected to air on BBC iPlayer and BBC Scotland in 2026. JM2
The Guardian
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘The fandom was rock'n'roll. Sophie Ellis-Bextor loved our rap song!'' How we made Balamory
After graduating from Rada I'd been a jobbing actor for 20 years. One day I was with my kids watching Play School, and thought: 'I could be a presenter on this.' So I became one, and then the BBC trained me up as a preschool director and I went on to be a freelance director and producer specialising in preschool. The BBC wanted to do a preschool drama centred around travellers in Ireland. It didn't get commissioned but it gave me the idea to create something set in a community. I had a health hiccup, which put me out of work but gave me downtime to think. Play School had been a new programme every day, so it had an immediacy. I thought: 'Why not make a preschool soap?' A year later, BBC had created CBeebies and had masses of airtime to fill and were looking for a programme that was about the world around us, so I pitched my idea. The commissioning editor said: 'How can you do a soap for preschool kids?' I said: 'Well, instead of the Queen Vic you could have a nursery school.' He said: 'That's quite a good idea.' I was made series producer and we had to film 126 episodes in 10 months, beginning in January 2002. I went down to the EastEnders set. They were very helpful and I came back with a formula. We were originally going to film in Kirkcudbright but that was too far from Glasgow, where we needed to film some of the indoor shots, so we moved it to Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, which is a child's dream with all its colours, water and hills. I'd already written the theme song: What's the Story in Tobermory? But there was a Womble called Tobermory, so a researcher in the Gaelic department came up with Balamory. It wasn't a nod to Oasis's (What's the Story?) Morning Glory, which I'd never heard of! We put out feelers for the cast, such as 'a child's dream nursery teacher' for Miss Hoolie. Lionel Jefferies, who'd played the grandfather in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, applied, but we weren't really looking for named actors, plus – it's terrible to say – I think I was too terrified to audition him in case I had to say no. Mary Riggans, who'd been in Scottish soap opera Take the High Road, wowed us, and we cast her as Suzie Sweet. We constructed our own school in Barmulloch, in the north of Glasgow. The kids would come in and believe it was their nursery, so they didn't have to act. Kids programmes aren't just for children. They're meant to be a shared experience. The characters we created all had their quirks. There was friction between [school bus driver] Edie McCredie and Suzie Sweet [who runs the village shop and cafe]. Miss Hoolie [nursery teacher] and PC Plum quite liked each other. I think the quirks made them seem more relatable. We created a community on this little island that felt realistic and had humour no matter what age you are. I think that's probably why people are so fond of the characters and the place. I'm not involved in the reboot, at least, not yet. I was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy at the age of two. It was amazing how many people thought my wheelchair was a prop. A small role in ITV drama Blind Ambition that centred on disabled athletes gave me the itch to act, although being disabled often means playing a character who specifically has a disability issue or medical problem. Eventually I found myself in a room with Brian Jameson and lots of other actors who were all being considered for the role of Penny. My disability was never openly discussed in front of me, which is what made the role so very important to me. Penny runs the village shop and cafe with Suzie Sweet. She's a bit of a maths wizard and likes organising. As the writers got to know me and realise how active I was, Penny went on to be the football and rowing coach. I spent the best part of three years filming up in Scotland, doing 14-hour days but having the best of times. Working on Balamory was such joy. I was surrounded by such a brilliant cast and crew. We laughed a lot! The scripts were funny but also sometimes surreal, like one about a party at the nursery when Penny and Suzie were dressed as Pearly Queens but nobody else was in costume. It was also emotional – I particularly remember the episode when Penny and Suzie went to Finland to visit Santa. I got to meet him and cuddle a litter of husky puppies – there were sobs! The Balamory fandom quickly grew. We were able to meet many of them when we performed live on the arena tours. It all felt a bit rock'n'roll. I remember Sophie Ellis-Bextor coming to the show and saying she loved Penny's rap song. For the first time my son started to think I was cool. I started to realise how popular the show had become when I went to St James' Park to watch Newcastle United play and the fans, in their thousands, all sang What's the Story? when they saw me. It gave me goosebumps, and still does, thinking about it.
The Sun
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
How cancer made Kate Middleton rewrite the rulebook as pal says ‘Will had to confront the possibility he could lose her'
PAUSING for a moment on the way back to their holiday cottage, William and Kate stood to admire the picturesque view. Wrapping their arms around each other, William leant in to give his wife a kiss as they looked out over the beautiful Isle of Mull in western Scotland. 7 7 They could not have looked happier in the photo issued to commemorate their 14th wedding anniversary last month – which is quite something, given the 'terrible' year they had in 2024, during which Kate faced abdominal surgery, followed by cancer diagnosis and treatment. From the brave video message she recorded among the daffodils last spring to announce she had cancer, to the joyful family video at the end of last summer when she'd finished chemotherapy, and the heartfelt message in January 2025 to say she was in remission, Kate has managed to remain upbeat while giving an insight into how tough it has been for the family. 'Life as you know it can change in an instant, and we have had to find a way to navigate the stormy waters and road unknown,' she said last year. But it was her husband's blunt assessment that this has been 'probably the hardest year in my life' that tells its own story, given the trauma he faced from a very young age with the acrimonious breakdown of his parents' marriage and then the death of his mother. So, how did the mum of three manage to survive through it all with her family? At the heart of this is the steel of the Princess of Wales, which may come as a surprise to some. Kate, at times, may look like a fragile wallflower, but the former Miss Middleton is made of tough stuff. Although she has borne the physical brunt of surgery and then chemotherapy, she has remained stoic, positive and always putting William, 42, and their children George, 11, Charlotte, 10, and Louis, seven, first. That's not to say she has come through her cancer journey unscathed. A close friend says: 'Last spring and early summer, things were really very tough. Catherine was very ill and William genuinely had to confront the possibility that he could lose his wife and his father [who has also been battling cancer]. Kate and Wills take seats at VE day concert to celebrate 80 years since WW2 'Keeping things as normal as possible for the 'kiddies', as Catherine calls them, was paramount. Her mum in particular was a tower of strength and support.' As the Princess has said herself, nature and the natural world has been key to both her return to physical health and mental stability. In a social media post to mark Mother's Day, she wrote: 'Over the past year, nature has been our sanctuary.' A visit with the Scouts to the beautiful wilderness of the Lake District in March also served to underscore this theme. Kate, 43, has always loved gardening, and any outdoor activity – be it sailing, skiing, tennis, fell walking, hockey, forest bathing, running or cycling – has been her go-to. At Anmer Hall in Norfolk, the Princess went for walks and swam in the sea as she rebuilt both her mental and physical strength during and after her cancer treatment. King Charles has shared with her a passion for wild mushroom foraging, and they have supported each other as they both navigate their own cancer journeys. Her illness, she said, has given her a new perspective – a 'very spiritual and very intense emotional reconnection' with the outside world. It is a personal revelation that she is now putting at the heart of her return to public life. What's really interesting in this new direction is how much the Princess is now willing to share of herself. The Princess has not rushed back to work. She's putting family first while they're still young. Always an intensely private person, we rarely heard from Kate on how she was feeling or what she was thinking. Now, we do, and she wants to use her deeply personal trauma to help others. 'The Princess herself has spoken movingly over the past 13 months of the power that nature has played in her recovery,' says a palace source. 'That is definitely a message of both her private life and her public work going forward.' From a Welsh community garden in February, to a visit in the Lake District with the Scouts as their President, her public engagements in recent months have almost all been held outdoors – chiming with her social media posts over the last year. The Princess has not rushed back to work – conscious that her time as Queen is nearing and thus wanting to put her immediate family unit first while they are still young. That was evidenced by her decision to break Easter traditions this year. In years gone by, the Wales' have dutifully trooped to St George's Chapel, before lunch back at Buckingham Palace with the King and Queen. 7 However, this year they spent Easter in the Norfolk countryside with the Middletons, attending church privately for a service on Sandringham Estate and leaving via the back door, despite a small crowd forming hoping to greet them. With their youngest, Louis, now seven, and the elder two siblings heading into their tweens, the Wales' focus is firmly on maintaining a strong family unit. Their parenting values are very similar, because William has always admired the way his parents-in-law, Carole and Mike, created such a happy and tight-knit family (in contrast to his own fractured childhood). While he was at the University of St Andrews, Kate's parents welcomed him into their home as a second son during the academic holidays. The Middleton way is lots of sport, outdoor activities, mutual love and respect, and lots of family time. The Wales children are expected to set the table, wash up and tidy their rooms. It's unlikely they have much screen time, let alone phones, because their father has spoken out so vehemently on the dangers of social media and big tech. Kate's passion for – and huge knowledge of – the patterns set in early childhood, have meant that George, Charlotte and Louis have had the most 'normal' childhood possible – if a royal childhood can ever be normal. Official portraits are shared for birthdays and occasional other significant dates, as both William and Kate acknowledge the public interest in their children, but fiercely guard their privacy. Catherine has always put a huge amount of pressure on herself, but she is now more forgiving. School choices are looming for Prince George, as he will move on to secondary school next September at age 13. Gordonstoun in Scotland was traditionally the royals' school of choice, but not for the Wales trio. Eton College, which his father attended, is a front-runner, but it's understood Kate would like to keep all three children together, so her old co-ed alma mater of Marlborough College in Wiltshire could be the preferred option. What has also been evident is that Catherine is now prepared to be more relaxed in how she appears in public. The way she has communicated directly, and from the heart, has certainly changed. 7 7 Where once she and her husband would only hold hands when they were off camera, now William is much more relaxed in public. Their candid home videos from last September, announcing that the Princess had successfully finished her chemotherapy, featured intimate, never-before-seen moments, including the couple kissing, lying side by side on the beach and Kate resting her head on William's shoulder as they embraced. In Scotland earlier this month, they were even more tactile than usual, happy to laugh with others and at each other. During a visit to a community hall refurbishment, which their Royal Foundation has paid for, the Princess playfully cajoled her decidedly less-artistic husband to join her painting a flower on a mural, and congratulated him with a rub on the back with her head leaning on his shoulder. When someone admired her prowess with a nail gun, and she revealed she'd been given a chainsaw for Christmas, an onlooker exclaimed: 'What can't she do?' William gave a theatrical sigh and admitted proudly: 'That always happens.' Although Kate has always viewed herself as the support act to William, the public reaction and widespread support to her during her illness, and the affection in which she is held, shows how crucial she is to the longevity and success of the monarchy. Yet her illness has made her realise that family is everything, and it must always come first. 'Some people who have a life-changing experience, it makes them realise they don't have all the time in the world,' says royal biographer Robert Jobson. 'Catherine has always put a huge amount of pressure on herself, but she is now more forgiving, not forcing herself to be the best all the time. 'A public engagement, a tour or a project has to be OK for her – to suit her – rather than she has to do something for appearance's sake or just because she's royal. 'It's more important for her to prioritise herself, whether that may be going to the gym or playing tennis. The reason for this shift is partly the cancer and partly because she's more comfortable in her role.' More than ever, William and Catherine have shown how they will do things their way – rewriting the royal rulebook to cement and celebrate their enduring love and happy family after the toughest of years.
The Independent
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Kate Middleton wore sunglasses from her favourite brand again — and you can still buy them
With the weather warming up and the sun coming out, now's the time to invest in new sunglasses. If you need inspiration for the pair to choose, look no further than the Princess of Wales, who was today seen sporting a pair of shades from eyewear brand Finlay and Co. Those who follow Kate's style closely will know that she's plumped for the brand before. She opted for the Henrietta light tortoiseshell sunglasses (£160, on a royal engagement in the Bahamas in 2022, before re-wearing them at Wimbledon and the Royal Charity Polo Cup. More recently, she was also spotted leaving a Finlay and Co store in January, bag in hand. As for the pair she wore today, which coincides with the Waleses' 14th wedding anniversary, she opted for the brand's Vivian design. She styled them with a brown blazer, blue shirt and brown trousers during an outing with William in Scotland on the Isle of Mull. We're surprised (and pleased) to see that they're still in stock, so keep reading for how to get your hands on them. The shades in question are available in three frame dimensions and a variety of colourways including forest green, cinnamon orange and butterscotch brown. Kate opted for them in classic marble, which has a tortoiseshell look. Designed in London and handmade in Italy, the lenses provide all-important, full UVA/UVB protection from the sun's rays. Whether packed in your summer beach bag or worn around as an everyday pair year-round, these are an elegant choice. Owing to Kate's sartorial status and her reputation for wearing items that then instantly sell out, if you like this pair, we'd recommend snapping it up before they're gone.
The Independent
12-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Kate refers to nature as her ‘sanctuary' in touching new video
The Princess of Wales has launched a video series to mark Mental Health Awareness Week. In the inaugural video, celebrating spring, Kate encourages society to "reconnect to nature and celebrate a new dawn within our hearts". The princess highlighted the vital "connection between humanity and nature", particularly in today's "increasingly complex and digital world". The video features never-before-seen footage of the Prince and Princess of Wales during their recent trip to Scotland 's Isle of Mull. Kate, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2024 and is now in remission, says 'nature has been my sanctuary over the past year'.
