Jonathan Miller's links to Moray
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
SIR Jonathan Miller, who died yesterday aged 85, was once a frequent visitor to Archiestown where he owned the Old Manse.
The theatre director, actor, humourist and television presenter bought the building in the 1970s and would come up to Moray every summer with his family.
A book published last year by William Miller revealed his dad, who besides all his other interests was also a qualified doctor, had something of a complex relationship with life up here.
The younger Miller writes: "One day we all went to Scotland to visit Dad, who was making a film there. In a nearby village called Archiestown, Mum pointed to a big house and asked us: ‘Do you think we should get Dad to buy it for us as a holiday home?’
This was exciting, though we’d all heard his speeches about how ghastly everyone is in the countryside. When we went to collect him in our Morris Traveller, he had his angry face on.
‘Are you out of your bloody mind?’ he said as he squashed into the front seat, knees pressed against the dashboard. He started on a long list of reasons why buying a house anywhere outside London was a terrible idea.
Then he added: ‘You do know everyone’s either a Tory or an anti-Semite?’
Mum laughed. She pointed out that we needed a holiday home because it wouldn’t be long before our family was banned from every hotel in the country.
The horrid owner of the Rothes Glen Hotel, where we were staying, was already cross about us being rowdy and sliding down the banisters. And I knew Dad was worried he’d get a bill for repainting the dining-room ceiling after we flooded the bathroom above it.
In the end, my parents bought the house. It was so big that Mum hired a housekeeper and gardener.
Dad never really seems to enjoy family holidays. I think it’s the idea of being stuck in a house with children, with no chance of intellectual conversation.
But he did eventually find something fun to do: he set up a microscope and a set of tools for dissecting animals on the kitchen table. Now, every time we drive anywhere, he makes us look out for anything dead on the road.
A local newspaper has started announcing our arrival in Scotland. They always write the same thing: ‘Television personality Jonathan Miller and his family have arrived in Archiestown for their summer holiday.’
Dad once showed it to Mum and said: ‘Is that all they can say? What about: “Leading theatre director Jonathan Miller is taking a break from doing Chekhov to come and waste his time in Scotland”?’
One time, coming back from a visit to an old castle, we had to stop for petrol. The man who filled the tank stuck his head right into our car and said: ‘You were super on Parky. That’ll be a fiver.’ "
From 'Gloucester Crescent' by William Miller.
.
