Scottish Actor Alexander Morton Dies at 81

Scottish actor Alexander Morton, best known for his role as the loyal ghillie Golly Mackenzie in the BBC series Monarch of the Glen, has died at the age of 81. The Glasgow-born performer, affectionately called Sandy, passed away recently, with the news shared by his son Jamie, though details on the cause or exact date were not disclosed.

Morton enjoyed a prolific career spanning more than five decades across film, television, theatre and radio. He trained at London's Central School of Speech and Drama from 1965 to 1968, launching his professional journey in the 1960s. His early screen credit came with an uncredited appearance in the 1971 crime thriller Get Carter, starring Michael Caine and Britt Ekland. A breakthrough followed in 1980 when he took on the role of Andy Semple in the STV soap opera Take the High Road, portraying the character for 14 years until 1994.

Morton gained widespread recognition for his portrayal of Golly Mackenzie, the gamekeeper at the fictional Highland estate of Glenbogle, appearing in all 64 episodes of Monarch of the Glen from 2000 to 2005. More recently, he played Billy Kennedy in the BBC Scotland soap River City from 2012 to 2015, reprising the...