Katie Morag (TV series)
Television adaptation of Mairi Hedderwick's books about a Scottish island girl.
Katie Morag (Ceitidh Mòrag in Scottish Gaelic) brings Mairi Hedderwick’s book series to the screen. The show centres on a girl living on the fictional Scottish island of Struay, where her days involve jealousy, bravery, and rivalry. Her world includes a bothersome younger brother, parents who run the local shop, a flawlessly perfect best friend, and two grandmothers who seem to know everything. Move On Up produced the series, with support from BBC Scotland. It was primarily a CBeebies series, though CBBC aired repeats or later series, and it also appears on BBC Alba and BBC One Scotland. Don Coutts directed, Margaret Matheson produced, and Lindy Cameron executive produced and edited. Episodes remain available on BBC iPlayer for over a year.
- Field
- Children's television
- Nationality
- Scottish
- Known for
- Adaptation of Mairi Hedderwick's books; won multiple BAFTA Children's Awards
- First aired
- 3 November 2013
- Network
- CBeebies, CBBC, BBC Alba, BBC One Scotland
Lore & Background
The series was shot on the Isle of Lewis between May and August 2013 at BBC Alba's studios in Stornoway and on location around the island. It comprised 26x15 minute episodes (6 of which were part of a sub-series called Grannie Island's Ceilidh) and began its run on CBeebies on 3 November 2013. Some episodes were repeated on BBC One Scotland in a Sunday afternoon slot between April and May 2014. In June 2014, it was announced that Katie Morag would be returning for a second series. Series two was filmed once more on Lewis, between 21 July and 13 September 2014, and comprised 3x15 minute episodes, 9x20 minute episodes and 1x30 minute episode. The first episode of series two aired on CBeebies on 1 December 2014.
Reader's Guide
Katie Morag is significant as a television adaptation that brought Mairi Hedderwick's beloved children's books to life, capturing the essence of island community life. The series was critically acclaimed, winning multiple awards including two British Academy Children's Awards for Best Drama (2014 and 2015) and Best Performance for Cherry Campbell. It also won Best Children's Programme at BAFTA Scotland, the Freesat Free TV Awards, the Royal Television Society Scotland Children's Award, and a Peabody Award in 2016. The series was noted for its authentic portrayal of Hebridean landscapes and its handling of serious themes such as death, loss, and rivalry. It was also dubbed into Scottish Gaelic for broadcast on BBC Alba, beginning on 7 January 2014.
Did You Know?
- The series was shot on the Isle of Lewis, though the fictional island of Struay is based on Coll in the Inner Hebrides.
- The lead role was won by seven-year-old Cherry Campbell from Glasgow, whose grandmother was born and still lives on Lewis.
- The series was scripted using a method called Team Writing For TV, requiring all writers to be present at all storylining sessions.
- Katie Morag won a BAFTA Children's Award, with judges noting it 'deals honestly and gracefully with death, loss, rivalry and other serious themes.'
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