While the animal stars of a new BBC Scotland nature series were battling to stay alive in some of the harshest wintry conditions on earth, its movie star narrator was struggling to keep cool.
Ewan McGregor was so hot recording the soundtrack to Stormborn, he had to pause between takes to pour buckets of water over his head.
Lockdown restrictions meant the Hollywood star had to lay down his voice remotely from a trailer on an LA movie lot in the middle of a summer heatwave.
But documentary producers Jackie Savery and Nigel Pope praised the actor for his professionalism.
Jackie, 46, who runs Maramedia films with husband Nigel, said: “It’s ironic Ewan was recording the voiceover for a series about animals living in one of the coldest places on earth in one of the hottest.
"It was so hot in his trailer, he had to keep dumping buckets of water over his head.
“We have worked with Ewan on five different nature documentaries and we usually go to LA and work alongside him in a studio but because of the lockdown we couldn’t. Ewan never ceases to amaze us.
"Normally, he can see the footage but this time he couldn’t. He watched some of the programme in advance and was able to imagine it in his head.
"Despite this, he was able to connect with the animals and built up the drama with his warm, emotive voice.”
The Trainspotting star said the series, which follows charismatic and tenacious animals surviving and thriving on the northern edges of the Atlantic Ocean, made him yearn for his homeland.
Ewan, 49, who grew up in Crieff, said: “It’s special for me to do work that focuses on Scotland’s majesty and with Norway and Iceland included, too, it makes for such cinematic drama.”
The series features Arctic foxes, orca, otters, grey seals, puffins and reindeer in the remote lands of Scotland, Norway and Iceland.
Producer Nigel, 59, said: “For several stories our camera teams had to camp and endure the same storms and temperatures we have tried to capture on screen.”
Stormborn is on BBC One Scotland on Monday, November 30, at 9pm.
