Cumming hails 'extraordinary' first Out in the Hills festival

Actor and director Alan Cumming has praised the "extraordinary" atmosphere of the first Out In The Hills Festival.

The three-day event, which featured guests including actor Sir Ian McKellen, crime writer Val McDermid, screenwriter Russell T Davies and broadcaster Graham Norton, included a programme of theatre, music, film and dancing.

Organisers Pitlochry Festival Theatre said the festival "celebrated all things LGBTQIA+".

Performances included Sir Ian in Equinox, a rehearsed reading of the one-man play by Laurie Slade, and Cumming interviewing Graham Norton.

Television producer Russell T Davies, who worked on Doctor Who and Queer As Folk, talked to novelist Jackie Kay about her book Red Dust Road.

It also featured a panel discussion with Zander Murray, Scotland's first openly gay footballer.

Cumming, who hosts The Traitors US, became artistic director of the theatre in 2024.

He said the event "exemplified everything he could hope for as an artist and a Scot".

The actor, who received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame earlier this month, added: "The atmosphere in the building has been extraordinary - the love, inclusion, respect and joy have been unsurpassed.

"The festival's success, not only in ticket sales but, more importantly, in how it has made people feel supported and seen, underlines the importance of our work at Pitlochry Festival Theatre and signals a hopeful way forward for Scotland."