My life, my work in the Highland of Scotland - Robert McClymont.
After spending time in the forces and the music business I returned to Kinlochleven Scotland in 1977. The stunning scenery took my breath away the first time I visited the family home in Kinlochleven as a very young lad in the early 60s.
Kinlochleven's future was about the change in the late 80s with the impending closure of the largest employer, the bread & butter of Kinlochleven. the aluminium factory where I worked for a short time before taking odd jobs that lead to me setting up my own business "R McClymont Group" but my love for the area soon got me involved in trying to save part of the aluminium smelter after I achieved a patent for an "one piece automobile steering column" I planned on producing with the metal from the Kinlochleven aluminium plant, but the aluminium plant closed a great loss to Kinlochleven community and the end of the big wages. New challenges is something I love and I soon realised there was great money in land and I wanted to help the community of Kinlochleven, so I worked with local agencies did voluntary work joined community groups before becoming involved in an organisation called "Association of community enterprises Highland & Islands" (ACE-HI) where I worked with some of the most respected people throughout the Highlands & Islands this lead to the formation of "Kinlochleven community company" that the people of Kinlochleven wear not shore about and approached with caution, after all from the day Kinlochleven was born from a croft to factory so the story goes. The people of Kinlochleven never needed or had to learn about community companies (community enterprises) as for other communities throughout the Highlands & Islands community enterprise just happened as a way of life and in most cases was the only way for Highland communities to survive, so ACE-HI was born from this way of life but it was not for Kinlochleven, the community company folded in a very short time but I was not giving up hope I knew that a community company was best for the future of Kinlochleven so I went back to ACE-HI officials for a crunch meeting to try to get a 2nd funding package together to re-form Kinlochleven community company, with success and there was a lot more interest but some years later KCC again folded and today 2005, acres of land in and around Kinlochleven that the community was offered control of remains with the aluminium company. I continued to work with the aluminium industry recycling aluminium drinks cans across Scotland with food supermarket group WM Low's that was based in Dundee Scotland until the company sold out to Tesco's. I continued recycling drink cans that raised lots of money for community groups, village halls, schools etc across Scotland. Recycling involvement was from cans to aircraft until 1998 that saw me working on jobs such as recovery and disposal of Lockerbie Jumbo jet flight 103.
TV broadcasting 1999 - 2000 I worked at Sky TV customer services/ Technical advice call centre in Dunfermline Scotland, and trained on installations, part time at weekends returning to Kinlochleven in the week to work.
Film Business it's 2005 and crofting is in the media spotlight and I get my first dream break to become a film extra on the BBC drama TV programme "Monarch of the Glen" I play a crofter in the final series 7 ep 6 who has meetings with other crofters that leads to a community buyout announcement at Glenbogal church (Location North of Roy Bridge on A86) this announcement saves Glenbogal estate and the Macdonald family and crofters live on forever. Within weeks after the Monarch set had left Monarch country I received a call to return for filming of "The Queen" where I play an estate worker. I started writing screenplays in 2005 and working in Monarch country lead me to write "Crofters of the Glens" that is aimed at being an off-spin of "Monarch of the Glen"
Future Living in one of the most scenic areas of the world, The Highlands of Scotland is the ideal location to expand further into the film world. The Highlands of Scotland has much to offer the film world and after my experience on the "Monarch of the Glen" set, that I miss, I will continue to build my film and television business and work with the global film industry. I hope to work with cast and crew from Monarch of the Glen in the future.
Robert McClymont.