I am a big film fan and Local Hero is one of my favourite movies. I first saw Local Hero, together with Gregory’s Girl, as a teenager back in the 1980s and they have played an important part in my life. Local Hero is actually one of the reasons I came to live on the Banffshire coast eighteen years ago. 

In 2005 I moved up to Scotland from the South for work and I visited Pennan, excited to see the location where Mac made his phone calls to Houston from the red telephone box. As I called my friends back in London from the now-famous phone box they immediately responded by making the sound of a noisy motorbike passing! 

For me, the film continues to hold its own and is as relevant now as it was when released over 40 years ago. The fictional characters from Ferness can still be found here in the coastal villages and the sharp but understated north east humour is alive and well. It’s a very special place to live, especially when the Aurora Borealis is active in our beautiful coastal skies.

Rachel. 31.03.23