monarch of the glen

I've been obsessed lately with an amazing Scottish television show, "Monarch of the Glen." It's campy, it's sooooo 2000, and yet it's filled with astute social commentary on the clash of modern Scotland with it's traditional past. Originally, it aired on BBC Scotland, and now thanks to the wonders of Netflix, I can watch it in my robe on my laptop each evening.


See the above segment where the aging old laird of the Glenbogle castle & his aristocratic neighbor friend, Kilwillie, (played by fantastic Oscar winning writer/actor Julian Fellowes) try to consume a 30 year old cask of single malt whisky that they'd tucked away in the 70's.


The young Laird, Archie, is trying to modernize the property (not to mention, keep the place from drowning in debt) so he's hidden the cask from his father so he can sell it to Sotheby's after learning it went for about $600 a bottle (20 bottles in the cask.)


The kind of RIDICULOUS caper Kilwillie & Hector go on (or launch the cask on) all while Archie trying to interview new ranger candidates is just such a delight. Oh, the leisure classes. It's literally like the cask has a mind of it's own. I particularly like all the foley treatment gurgling sound effects they've added as the scotch barrel rolls all over the Highlands. Amazing.


If you love some quirky screwball Scottish comedy (juxtaposed with those tough culture-at-a-crossroads kinds of questions) then you might love "Monarch of the Glen" as much as I do :)