The Monarch of the Glen by Compton Mackenzie was first published in 1941. I think the first thing I have to say about this one is that if you were a fan of the TV programmme then you will probably be disappointed with this book. I only saw a few bits on TV which was obviously updated to comtemporary times. It looks like they just took the character of the laird with his eccentricity, his lady wife is certainly nothing like the sophisticated and beautiful Susan Hampshire.
The laird, Donald MacDonald of Glenbogle Castle, otherwise known as ‘Ben Nevis’ is hopeful that his eldest son will persuade a rich female American guest to marry him and so solve any money problems the estate has. Kilwillie, his neighbour (in the next estate) is hopeful that he will be able to offload a very remote castle that he owns onto some other guests that Ben Nevis has staying with him.
Meantime a large group of hikers, both male and female has decided to camp out on Glenbogle land – right beside a NO CAMPING sign. The only thing that Ben Nevis hates more than campers and hikers is people wanting independence for Scotland! He’s furious and takes the law into his own hands by rounding them all up and sticking them in his dungeon!
There’s a lot of silliness, some laughing at the choice of outrageous tartans by Americans and Scots and of course some romance. The setting is the 1930s or even earlier, and although this book was published in 1941 there’s no mention of war, I suspect it was actually written in the late 30s. It’s mildly amusing but not nearly as funny as Keep the Home Guard Turning, Rockets Galore or even Whisky Galore.
This was one of my 20 Books of Summer
As soon as I saw the title of your post, the question immediately came to mind about the similarities of the book with the tv series. I really enjoyed the series years ago, but I didn’t realize it was loosely based on a book. I suppose if I ever read the book, at least now I have a better idea what to expect.
.
.
Paula,
It’s an enjoyable read as long as you don’t expect it to be like the TV series. Some years ago we stopped off for a break from driving in the Highlands and when I hopped down the embankment by a loch to stretch my legs I immediately recognised the scenery and the wooden pier that I had seen Richard Briers standing on in one of the episodes.
That’s a neat story! I have always enjoyed Richard Briers after becoming a big fan of Good Neighbors, a series that my husband I still watch occasionally. It was fun to see him in a very different role as an older man.
Paula,
I wonder if Good Neighbours is what we call The Good Life. I’ve been watching him recently in something called Ever Decreasing Circles on TV, it’s from the 1980s and is worth watching if you can see it.
I enjoyed the TV series although I think I saw it when repeated and did not catch every episode. I have loved Susan Hampshire since the Forsyte Saga and then the Pallisers. I wonder if there are other dramas she was in that I should look up?
You must have very good eyes to have recognized a wooden pier!
Americans are always abused in books for wearing/wanting tartans that don’t belong to them. It made me unwilling to even buy a scarf or two in Edinburgh!
Not sure I like the red and green together in this one: https://clan.com/design/3069-Martin/
Constance,
It was the surrounding scenery that I recognised I think, also a lodge house which was used in the programme, which is right on the roadside. The area is signposted ‘Glenbogle’ a bit further on and no doubt the gift shop mentions it. I think it’s also a Harry Potter area for filming too.
Susan Hampshire was also in the Barsetshire Chronicles, I have the DVDs and watch it again from time to time. She also did theatre work and wrote a few gardening books, I have one of them, she apparently has also written children’s books and does charity work to help highlight dyslexia.
There’s no nonsense nowadays about tartan, lots of people just wear one that they like the look of. There are over 5,000 different tartans and new ones designed every year. Football teams have them and there’s even a new Ukraine tartan. We bought one called Spirit of Scotland for our son’s school prom, just because purple is his favourite colour, and he wore it to his wedding. When I hopped around doing Highland dancing as a youngster I wore a hunting MacLeod tartan, just because I liked it, I have at least three family tartans I could have chosen though!
Pingback: 20 Books of Summer | Pining for the West