Budget boost as more than 40 hit shows and movies filmed in Argyll last year

The data showed the industry brought more money into the economy than the year before - but the region may no longer have the most independent cinemas in Scotland.

An update on the screen industries in Argyll and Bute, and how the council’s Film in Argyll service is attracting investment, was presented to councillors on the Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee on March 20.

The report said that from January to December last year, the council had received 87 film enquiries, and 40 productions had been filmed. This led to an estimated local production spend of £1.4million, just up on 2023’s figure of £1.3million.

The council listed examples of productions in 2024, beginning with a political drama series called The Diplomat, which filmed in Inveraray in February, and  Outlander: Blood of My Blood, a prequel series to the popular tv series Outlander, in and around Luss at the end of May and into June.

Several more series filmed in June, including The Undertow, a seven part drama starring Jamie Dornan as identical twins, shot over 13 days on Mull, and The Buccaneers, a period drama based on Edith Whartons unfinished novel of the same name, recorded at Geilston Gardens near Helensburgh. Karen Pirie 2, an ITV crime drama based on the novels by Val McDermid, also filmed in Helensburgh.

Later on in the summer, a BBC adaptation of the classic film “The Railway Children”, titled The Primrose Railway Children (BBC Film), was also shot around Luss, and in October Kilcreggan Pier was dressed up to double for a pier in Shetland, in the feature film Borges & Me, an adaption of Jay Parini’s memoir covering a road trip he took across the Highlands with Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges.

The report concluded: "Argyll and Bute continues to reap the rewards of its geographical position in relation to the Central Belt and the number of film studios and productions using Glasgow/Edinburgh as a base. This means that more productions can use Argyll and Bute for location filming which has significant economic benefits for the area."