0:00:02 > 0:00:04Mr Andy Stewart! APPLAUSE
0:00:04 > 0:00:06# When the pipes are ringing and the kilts are swinging
0:00:06 > 0:00:10# And your heart is singing as you gaily march along
0:00:10 > 0:00:13# You hear the story that is brave and roary
0:00:13 > 0:00:16# In the tunes of glory of an old Scots song
0:00:16 > 0:00:19# If you're standing near them and you ever hear them... #
0:00:19 > 0:00:23Andy Stewart is arguably Scotland's greatest ever entertainer.
0:00:25 > 0:00:31He was the...biggest thing... in Scottish music after Harry Lauder.
0:00:31 > 0:00:35He just was a complete Scottish minstrel.
0:00:35 > 0:00:39Entertainer in Scotland? Numero uno.
0:00:39 > 0:00:46# ..In the tunes of glory! #
0:00:46 > 0:00:47Hey-hup!
0:00:58 > 0:01:02Andy Stewart was born in Glasgow in 1933
0:01:02 > 0:01:04and moved to Arbroath aged 12.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06Well, we were a very close family.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10You must remember that I was seven when the war began,
0:01:10 > 0:01:14and it was like living in a bubble, four of us together.
0:01:14 > 0:01:18We were very close, a very, very close family.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21My father was a...a musician
0:01:21 > 0:01:23and, er...he was a bit of a show-off as well.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28We all had a bit of the histrionic touch.
0:01:28 > 0:01:31We had no inhibitions right from a very early age.
0:01:31 > 0:01:35He enjoyed singing and performing, and my father encouraged him.
0:01:35 > 0:01:36Even at school,
0:01:36 > 0:01:40Andy showed that he had a talent for entertaining and mimicry.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42I was only belted three times at school,
0:01:42 > 0:01:45and twice it was for doing impressions.
0:01:45 > 0:01:46I can remember being caught
0:01:46 > 0:01:49doing an impression of our mathematics teacher.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52And he it was whom I heard doing the classic,
0:01:52 > 0:01:55"Now, boys, this is a very difficult proposition,
0:01:55 > 0:01:57"watch the board while I run through it."
0:01:57 > 0:01:58LAUGHTER
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Andy's parents supported his ambition to perform,
0:02:01 > 0:02:05and in 1951, he went to the Glasgow College of Dramatic Art,
0:02:05 > 0:02:08where he met a fellow student called John Cairney.
0:02:08 > 0:02:13He was a wee cheeky fellow from Arbroath,
0:02:13 > 0:02:17and I was a skinny element from Parkhead,
0:02:17 > 0:02:21but funnily enough we got on well right from the start.
0:02:21 > 0:02:22We met at drama college,
0:02:22 > 0:02:26and it was one very late night we were going home,
0:02:26 > 0:02:28and he was standing at one side of the street,
0:02:28 > 0:02:30and I was standing at the other,
0:02:30 > 0:02:33and that was the first time ever I heard Andy sing,
0:02:33 > 0:02:37and he sang The Bonnie Lass Of Ballochmyle.
0:02:37 > 0:02:43I think she was my girlfriend first, Sheila, and he stole her from me.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46Andy married Sheila in 1955
0:02:46 > 0:02:48after they had both graduated from drama college.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53Despite being trained as a serious actor, Andy fell into the role
0:02:53 > 0:02:56of an entertainer and mimic on stage and radio.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58LOUIS ARMSTRONG SINGS
0:02:58 > 0:03:02HE MOUTHS
0:03:02 > 0:03:05# Be-bop-a-lula, she's my granny
0:03:05 > 0:03:08# Be-bop-a-lula She's my mammy's mammy... #
0:03:08 > 0:03:13- (AS BRUCE FORSYTH) - Good evening and welcome to Sunday Night At The London Palladium.
0:03:13 > 0:03:18He was essentially an actor and he acted the part of a comedian.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22While working on a radio show at BBC Scotland,
0:03:22 > 0:03:26Andy had a chance meeting that would change his career for ever.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30I was booked for The White Heather Club in the gents' toilet here.
0:03:30 > 0:03:32The gentleman who was producing, Iain McFadyen,
0:03:32 > 0:03:33was producing me in radio,
0:03:33 > 0:03:36and he said, "I'm starting this show called The White Heather Club,
0:03:36 > 0:03:39"and I'm afraid there's no place in it for you."
0:03:39 > 0:03:42I was an impressionist at that time.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45He said to me, "I know you do comedy voices and all the rest of it -
0:03:45 > 0:03:48"what we're looking for is somebody who can do bothy ballads."
0:03:48 > 0:03:50Now, I know there are all these apocryphal stories,
0:03:50 > 0:03:53when you go for a part in a Western, they say, "Can you ride a horse?"
0:03:53 > 0:03:56And whether you've never seen a horse in your life, you say yes!
0:03:56 > 0:03:59But I, in actual fact, with a great deal of veracity,
0:03:59 > 0:04:02said, "Well, I can sing some bothy ballads."
0:04:02 > 0:04:04He said, "Sing one for me now."
0:04:04 > 0:04:07And my goodness me, there were people in cubicles
0:04:07 > 0:04:10who had forgotten what they went in there for.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14And I sang a wee...perhaps unsuitable for a gents' toilet,
0:04:14 > 0:04:17I sang a song called The Muckin' O' Geordie's Byre.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19LAUGHTER
0:04:20 > 0:04:23Whereupon we passed around the shovels and the sawdust,
0:04:23 > 0:04:24and I got the job.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34Good evening and welcome to the opening of The White Heather Club.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38I'm quite sure, if you'd care to stay with us, you'll enjoy it too.
0:04:38 > 0:04:42So come on inside and hear Ian Powrie and his band
0:04:42 > 0:04:44playing The Gay Gordons.
0:04:44 > 0:04:45Come on in!
0:04:52 > 0:04:57We would like to pinpoint a town or district in Scotland.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00I'll give you a clue.
0:05:00 > 0:05:02Have you guessed? Ha-ha, Arbroath!
0:05:02 > 0:05:06And we'd also like to pinpoint a personality from Arbroath,
0:05:06 > 0:05:08and here he is, Andy Stewart.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10# When I want tae lauchin' I think on the scene
0:05:10 > 0:05:12# When a'body roun' cam' ower tae clean
0:05:12 > 0:05:14# And clairted themsel's richt up tae the e'en
0:05:14 > 0:05:16# At the muckin' o' Geordie's byre
0:05:16 > 0:05:18# Wee Robbie the Rockie and Willie the Doo
0:05:18 > 0:05:20# The auld wife herself and Teeny McCrew
0:05:20 > 0:05:22# And a'body else that could labour the pleugh
0:05:22 > 0:05:24# At the muckin' o' Geordie's byre... #
0:05:24 > 0:05:28After only a year, the now kilted Andy took over as host
0:05:28 > 0:05:32and turned The White Heather Club into a hit network show,
0:05:32 > 0:05:34drawing millions of viewers.
0:05:34 > 0:05:39# Come in, come in It's nice tae see you
0:05:39 > 0:05:42# How's yoursel'? You're looking grand
0:05:42 > 0:05:46# Tak' your ease We'll try tae please you
0:05:46 > 0:05:49# Man, you're welcome Here's my hand
0:05:49 > 0:05:52# In the land called Caledonia
0:05:52 > 0:05:56# There are certain words you say... #
0:05:56 > 0:05:59In his other TV shows of the time, Andy was able
0:05:59 > 0:06:02to show off his skills as a mimic and character actor.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04Three and a half hours late.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Maybe she's missed her bus.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10I've never been in here afore.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12It's fine, but strange to see
0:06:12 > 0:06:17and no' at all the way it looks when you see it on TV.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20I met Andy on The White Heather Club.
0:06:20 > 0:06:22# The sweetest hours that e'er I spent
0:06:22 > 0:06:25# Were spent among the lasses-o... #
0:06:25 > 0:06:28That's what I was hoping you'd say.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30Andy was a very introspective person as well, you know.
0:06:30 > 0:06:35He was very well-read, Andy, and very erudite and he...
0:06:35 > 0:06:39Because he knew I was interested in books as well, we had conversations,
0:06:39 > 0:06:43but he amazed me, first of all, with his knowledge of Burns.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46As sure as three times three maks nine
0:06:46 > 0:06:48I see by ilka score and line
0:06:48 > 0:06:51This chap will dearly like oor kin'
0:06:51 > 0:06:53So leeze me on thee, Robin.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Poetry was never far from Andy's mind,
0:06:57 > 0:07:01and he wrote down ideas for songs and poems on his many travels.
0:07:01 > 0:07:02He was always creative.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05I mean, the guy obviously had a really good brain
0:07:05 > 0:07:07and he was creative all the time.
0:07:07 > 0:07:12And he was just writing stuff, you know, lines for songs,
0:07:12 > 0:07:16and scraps and pieces which he would obviously collate later,
0:07:16 > 0:07:20collate at a later date into either a poem or a song.
0:07:20 > 0:07:25In 1960, Andrew began as a recording artist for Top Rank International.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28His first release of Donald Where's Your Troosers?
0:07:28 > 0:07:29didn't sell that well,
0:07:29 > 0:07:32but the follow-up was a very different story.
0:07:33 > 0:07:37Andy Stewart actually got me chucked out a pub,
0:07:37 > 0:07:42because, sadly, not everybody shares my taste in music.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46I went into a pub and I saw one of these digital jukeboxes,
0:07:46 > 0:07:50and joy of joys one of the artistes who was on it,
0:07:50 > 0:07:53next to Chumbawamba and Labrinth or whatever,
0:07:53 > 0:07:55was Scotland's very own Andy Stewart.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59And I just put on his haunting ballad, A Scottish Soldier.
0:07:59 > 0:08:01And, er...if only I could say
0:08:01 > 0:08:04that we all just kind of gathered, arms in the pub,
0:08:04 > 0:08:08and everybody just humming along to A Scottish Soldier.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11Sadly, I got chased out of the place by a guy with a pool cue.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15A Scottish Soldier was not just a hit in the UK.
0:08:15 > 0:08:19It was number one in Canada, Australia and New Zealand
0:08:19 > 0:08:22and stayed in the US top 50 for over a year,
0:08:22 > 0:08:26something that today's recording artists can only dream of.
0:08:26 > 0:08:27I wish I could say
0:08:27 > 0:08:30that that was written somewhere in pensive solitude.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33It was written in a pub in Byres Road,
0:08:33 > 0:08:38and this night I sat down, and the tune of The Green Hills came to me,
0:08:38 > 0:08:42and the line came to me, one can only say an inspiration, I suppose,
0:08:42 > 0:08:44as I think all song-writing is.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47And I wrote down, "There was a soldier, a Scottish soldier,"
0:08:47 > 0:08:50and wrote two verses and sang it the next day.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54# They are not the hills of home... #
0:08:56 > 0:08:59Of course, we were watching the White Heather show,
0:08:59 > 0:09:02and this song came on, Andy singing Scottish Soldier,
0:09:02 > 0:09:07and I remember thinking, "Oh, my God, that's going to be a monster,"
0:09:07 > 0:09:12- and sure enough...- It was. - It was phenomenal.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15And it took off not only in the UK but all over the world.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18And what do you think's the secret of this phenomenal success,
0:09:18 > 0:09:20- A Scottish Soldier?- Oh...
0:09:20 > 0:09:24I think if I could tell you that and you could bottle it,
0:09:24 > 0:09:26we could make a fortune selling it.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29I don't think you can tell what is the secret of success,
0:09:29 > 0:09:31ever, in so many words.
0:09:31 > 0:09:32I think it's an intangible thing.
0:09:32 > 0:09:36He...was fortunate, if you like,
0:09:36 > 0:09:38early on in his career to have the hit record,
0:09:38 > 0:09:42but he was only fortunate because he wrote the thing.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46- Don't you ever get tired of A Scottish Soldier?- No, no. I don't.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48I hear that lovely money falling all around!
0:09:48 > 0:09:51It's amazing to think that only 25 years ago,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54before the great Puritan revival of 1971,
0:09:54 > 0:09:56certain television performers
0:09:56 > 0:09:58actually appeared on the screen wearing kilts.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03Andy Stewart's naked knees were featured regularly.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05The one time I did Andy Stewart
0:10:05 > 0:10:08was the one with the ever-lengthening kilt,
0:10:08 > 0:10:12and that went down very, very well.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14Arthur Blake at the piano!
0:10:14 > 0:10:18And yes, it was very, very funny, and I think it was the...
0:10:18 > 0:10:22# There was a soldier A Scottish soldier
0:10:22 > 0:10:26# Who wandered far away and soldiered far away
0:10:26 > 0:10:29# There was none bolder with good broad shoulder
0:10:29 > 0:10:31# He'd fought in many a fray
0:10:31 > 0:10:33# And fought and won
0:10:33 > 0:10:37# He'd seen the glory He'd told the story
0:10:37 > 0:10:40# Of battles glorious and deeds victorious
0:10:40 > 0:10:44# But now he's sighing His heart is crying... #
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Yes, that was a wicked take-off, really.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53Another show breaking new ground at the time was Tonight.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57Good evening. One of the big awkward questions which everybody...
0:10:57 > 0:11:00The Tonight programme, for those who can remember it,
0:11:00 > 0:11:01was THE magazine programme,
0:11:01 > 0:11:05and it set standards, I think, which have never been surpassed.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08And now, let's finish up with something a bit brighter,
0:11:08 > 0:11:11Robin Hall and Jimmie Macgregor, Football Crazy, I think.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15# Oh, you all know my wee brother... #
0:11:15 > 0:11:18Robin and I sung on it five nights a week for about four years,
0:11:18 > 0:11:21and we used to sit in the green room,
0:11:21 > 0:11:23The White Heather Club would be on, we'd turn the sound down.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25The Tonight programme was run
0:11:25 > 0:11:29by really highly sophisticated people, all Oxbridge,
0:11:29 > 0:11:32and absolutely top-notch journalists.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35They'd come from paper journalism into television.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39And they just thought The White Heather Club was a big joke.
0:11:39 > 0:11:43They thought it was so couthie and old-fashioned and archaic and comic.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46And they used to sit in the green room with the sound switched off
0:11:46 > 0:11:48and kind of have a giggle
0:11:48 > 0:11:52at Andy twirling his kilt and stuff, stuff like that.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55And I have to confess that Robin and I joined in.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59# There's the swirl of the kilt and the skirl of the pipes
0:11:59 > 0:12:01# And the lilting accordion... #
0:12:01 > 0:12:04Andy eventually gave up hosting The White Heather Club
0:12:04 > 0:12:06to concentrate on touring,
0:12:06 > 0:12:10giving Jimmie Macgregor an awkward decision to make.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12Andy had become really big,
0:12:12 > 0:12:15and suddenly we were offered the job as hosts!
0:12:15 > 0:12:16Of The White Heather Club,
0:12:16 > 0:12:20of this programme that we had been sitting giggling about.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23But it was a tremendous gig, The White Heather Club.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26I mean, it had huge viewing figures in England,
0:12:26 > 0:12:29and when it was off the air in the summer,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32we took it out as a touring variety show
0:12:32 > 0:12:37and we filled theatres from Brighton to Shetland it was fantastic.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39Incredible support it got.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42After the success of The White Heather Club,
0:12:42 > 0:12:44in spite of me, it was a success,
0:12:44 > 0:12:47and I was asked down to London to make some programmes.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55# I've just come down from the Isle of Skye
0:12:55 > 0:12:57# I'm no' very big and I'm awful shy
0:12:57 > 0:13:01# And the lassies shout when I go by "Donald, where's your troosers?" #
0:13:01 > 0:13:05As his television career made him a household name in the UK,
0:13:05 > 0:13:08it was his touring that made him a global star.
0:13:08 > 0:13:12The massive Scottish diaspora, many of whom were desperately homesick,
0:13:12 > 0:13:16flocked to see Andy's sell-out shows all over the world.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23In 1964, Andy bought the business of White Heather tours
0:13:23 > 0:13:25and turned impresario,
0:13:25 > 0:13:28as well as still being a regular performer himself.
0:13:28 > 0:13:32He ran the hugely successful touring shows for 18 years,
0:13:32 > 0:13:36hiring Scottish artists such as Joe Gordon and Sally Logan,
0:13:36 > 0:13:39the Alexander Brothers and Stanley Baxter.
0:13:39 > 0:13:43The last time I saw Andy, I was working for him.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46He had taken over the White Heather tour,
0:13:46 > 0:13:50and I had decided to do my final tour of Canada and America,
0:13:50 > 0:13:54largely because I heard that we'd be playing Carnegie Hall.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57And I thought, "Oh, that I've got to do."
0:13:57 > 0:14:01So when Andy turned up, I said, "What are you doing here?"
0:14:01 > 0:14:03He said, "Well, I run The White Heather Club now."
0:14:03 > 0:14:06I said, "Oh, you've done awfully well."
0:14:06 > 0:14:08Later that year, while performing
0:14:08 > 0:14:11in a run of shows at His Majesty's Theatre in Aberdeen,
0:14:11 > 0:14:16Andy hit the headlines when he and Sally Logan agreed to perform
0:14:16 > 0:14:18at the World's Fair in New York.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22Wonderful experience, outdoors, thousands of people there.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25And we went for a day, basically.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28A car came for us to the theatre in Aberdeen
0:14:28 > 0:14:32after the show on the Saturday night
0:14:32 > 0:14:34and drove us to Prestwick.
0:14:34 > 0:14:39We arrived at the airport, I think it was called Idlewild Airport,
0:14:39 > 0:14:43- and I think it became JFK.- JFK.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46We were then taken by car to the venue,
0:14:46 > 0:14:49and I did about 20 minutes of an act,
0:14:49 > 0:14:52and Andy went on and did an hour of an act.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55Then he came offstage, and everything was packed for him,
0:14:55 > 0:15:00and we just got in a car again and drove to the airport,
0:15:00 > 0:15:04back on the plane and arrived at Prestwick.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07The car took us to Aberdeen, and we were on stage that night.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11I do remember feeling quite odd when I was on stage that night.
0:15:11 > 0:15:16I think it was about '64, '65, we did the tour in North America
0:15:16 > 0:15:20with Andy, and he was so good to us, because he allowed us
0:15:20 > 0:15:23to close the first half, which is a prime spot, you know.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27And the business was phenomenal.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30- He was so huge.- Och!
0:15:30 > 0:15:33He was so well liked, you know, unbelievable.
0:15:33 > 0:15:38We played the Carnegie Hall two nights, complete sell-out.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40Andy was...
0:15:40 > 0:15:42He was on top of the world, really,
0:15:42 > 0:15:43because he was touring New Zealand
0:15:43 > 0:15:46and he had to come back and do Canada and America.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49He was on the road, he wanted to go...
0:15:49 > 0:15:54He loved meeting people, he loved going to the different countries.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57# Oh, Campbeltown Loch I wish you were whisky
0:15:57 > 0:15:59# Campbeltown Loch, och aye
0:15:59 > 0:16:02# Oh, Campbeltown Loch I wish you were whisky
0:16:02 > 0:16:03# I would drink you dry... #
0:16:03 > 0:16:05Andy had frequent health issues,
0:16:05 > 0:16:08which were often picked up in the press.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11Despite this, his schedule would regularly involve
0:16:11 > 0:16:14spring, summer and autumn tours
0:16:14 > 0:16:18of Canada, America, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21How are you, your health? We heard some strange stories.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24Did you get the latest story from Australia?
0:16:24 > 0:16:28The whole tour was cancelled, that was published in Scotland.
0:16:28 > 0:16:30We phoned the family home about...
0:16:30 > 0:16:33I was taken to Brisbane General Hospital...not the general hospital,
0:16:33 > 0:16:37one of the hospitals in Brisbane, and I had to be...
0:16:37 > 0:16:40I had to have my plumbing temporarily sorted out.
0:16:40 > 0:16:45And the report went back to Britain that I was stricken once again
0:16:45 > 0:16:48and that I wouldn't be probably...
0:16:48 > 0:16:50I'd probably be coming home encased in lead
0:16:50 > 0:16:52or something like that.
0:16:52 > 0:16:57But no, I can't honestly say that I'm 100% certain
0:16:57 > 0:17:01of what my...interior's going to do next,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04but I'm fairly healthy apart from that.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07One way to sort of cut down the wear and tear would be
0:17:07 > 0:17:10to knock off this strenuous touring you seem to go in for?
0:17:10 > 0:17:11That's right, it would be,
0:17:11 > 0:17:14but on the other hand, it's a terribly satisfying way of life.
0:17:17 > 0:17:18Is that the time? Already?
0:17:18 > 0:17:20Well, it must be because that's the song,
0:17:20 > 0:17:23and when you play that song, then it's time.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27Back in the UK, Andy was now synonymous with Hogmanay
0:17:27 > 0:17:30and for over 20 years, he brought in the bells
0:17:30 > 0:17:34with a TV audience of up to 30 million viewers.
0:17:34 > 0:17:35I'm away for a pint.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38Oh, well, I'll join you and then I'll go straight home.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41To me, Andrew Stewart was just part and parcel of growing up.
0:17:41 > 0:17:46As a wee guy, every Hogmanay, I can rarely listen to Andy Stewart
0:17:46 > 0:17:51without almost smelling the froth fae my da's can of Tartan Export,
0:17:51 > 0:17:53because they would be the parties. As a wee boy,
0:17:53 > 0:17:57you'd get a wee fly drink at your da's fresh can of beer,
0:17:57 > 0:18:01and invariably it would be Andy Stewart that was on in the background.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05# And we all gather round the old fireside
0:18:05 > 0:18:10# And the old mother kisses her son... #
0:18:10 > 0:18:13We used to be allowed to go to bed and then get up
0:18:13 > 0:18:17and watch The Hogmanay Show after we'd had a bit of a sleep
0:18:17 > 0:18:21and stay up for a fizzy drink and watch him on television.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25That's probably the earliest memory I have.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28He wasn't really a family man, was he?
0:18:28 > 0:18:31Well, he had a big enough family. I think he had five kids.
0:18:31 > 0:18:32Do you know what I mean when I say that?
0:18:32 > 0:18:34He wasn't one for being with the family all the time.
0:18:34 > 0:18:38Although he was there obviously a few times.
0:18:38 > 0:18:39THEY LAUGH
0:18:39 > 0:18:41Yes, Jack.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Five daughters and one son. And proud of their dad, no doubt.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47I never really ask them.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50You've heard of Scots love, you know...
0:18:50 > 0:18:54we don't go about asking, "Are you proud of me?"
0:18:54 > 0:18:55Not till they say, "We're proud of you."
0:18:55 > 0:18:57Was he a good dad?
0:18:57 > 0:19:01Yes, when he was there. A lot of the time he wasn't there.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04So, that's not such a good dad. So, there's a balancing out.
0:19:04 > 0:19:09My dad was away all the time - all through our childhood.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13My dad was away from the family home.
0:19:13 > 0:19:19He used to write to us all, and we'd get our blue airmails through.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22It was quite nice, really, because his writing was so bad
0:19:22 > 0:19:26that we had to spend weeks literally deciphering what he said.
0:19:26 > 0:19:31I think it was just what dad did. That was his job.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35People used to ask what it's like having a famous father.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37We didn't know anything different.
0:19:37 > 0:19:38Many of Andy's children
0:19:38 > 0:19:43and grandchildren have followed in his footsteps onto the stage.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46There were five of us within six and a half years.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49There was Tara, Andrew, Debbie, Lindsay and Melanie.
0:19:49 > 0:19:54A big gap of 14 years, and my little sister, Magdalene, was born.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58I think I would have been a dancer whatever,
0:19:58 > 0:20:03because my mother was absolutely determined that was what I would do.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07She decided I was going to be a ballet dancer very early on.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10I wasn't really interested in acting to start with.
0:20:10 > 0:20:15The stage and variety was what I wanted to do first, yeah.
0:20:15 > 0:20:19I used to love singing and I still do.
0:20:19 > 0:20:24And, when I was 16, he was working at Ayr,
0:20:24 > 0:20:27in Ayr Gaiety. And he asked if I wanted to go along
0:20:27 > 0:20:32and sing a spot. So, I did, just for a couple of shows there,
0:20:32 > 0:20:34and that was really the start of it.
0:20:34 > 0:20:37That's what I really wanted to do, I thought, at the time.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40Quite a few of the grandchildren are entertainers.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46I'm in a band called White Heath.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49I'm not sure if I would say that it's in the blood.
0:20:49 > 0:20:51Some people would say these things are,
0:20:51 > 0:20:55but I think it's probably more to do with the fact that he was such
0:20:55 > 0:21:01a huge presence and sort of influence, in a way,
0:21:01 > 0:21:03as an elder statesman in the family
0:21:03 > 0:21:08that's led to so many of his children and grandchildren.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11There are lots of grandchildren. I think probably half or more
0:21:11 > 0:21:17of them dance, sing, make music, act.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20So, I think that he's sort of paved the way
0:21:20 > 0:21:22for that being an accepted thing to do.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24# Oh, it's nice to be a grandpa
0:21:24 > 0:21:26# When you're getting kind of older
0:21:26 > 0:21:30# For there's bonnie bairns to cuddle and stories to be told... #
0:21:30 > 0:21:34We were all conscious, as time passed, that dad -
0:21:34 > 0:21:39his punishing schedule, which it really was - was taking its toll.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42And often he had spells in hospital.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46But, although he would pay lip service to retiring
0:21:46 > 0:21:51and taking it easy, he only had to be asked to do something
0:21:51 > 0:21:52and he was right there.
0:21:52 > 0:21:57Leaving hospital early often to go start and working again,
0:21:57 > 0:22:01never giving himself a long enough time for recuperation.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04I remembered going to visit him
0:22:04 > 0:22:08and my granny in their house in Arbroath when I was quite young.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11I remembered just spending time with him in the house,
0:22:11 > 0:22:14just chatting and having a laugh.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17And I remember quite often when we went to visit,
0:22:17 > 0:22:21he was in quite poor health. Quite often.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25But I remember being told, "Go and see him upstairs, go and say hi."
0:22:25 > 0:22:28When I went up, he was always... No matter how ill he was,
0:22:28 > 0:22:31he was always completely sparkling and life and soul.
0:22:31 > 0:22:33Just great to be around.
0:22:33 > 0:22:40I did hear that when Andy was very, very ill indeed...
0:22:40 > 0:22:45he was...tubes up his nose, I mean, terribly ill and in hospital.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47And he had a show to do.
0:22:47 > 0:22:51He'd get up, pull out all the tubes and things, and go and do the show.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54That's how daft performers are.
0:22:54 > 0:22:59Andy retired from regular touring in the 1980s and was surprised
0:22:59 > 0:23:01by a public campaign in 1989
0:23:01 > 0:23:04to re-release one of his earliest records.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07'It is the most happening record at the moment. This is Andy Stewart.
0:23:07 > 0:23:09'Donald Where's Your Troosers?'
0:23:09 > 0:23:10# I've just come down... #
0:23:10 > 0:23:13"I just can't believe this," I said.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17"It's quite flabbergasting.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20I said, "My flabber has never been so gasted, in fact.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24"I just can't believe this is happening to me."
0:23:24 > 0:23:26# ..Donald, where's your troosers? #
0:23:26 > 0:23:28I love it because...
0:23:28 > 0:23:30it's the only record of its kind.
0:23:30 > 0:23:32The atmosphere on it is so good.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35It's so funny and it's such an uplifting record.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40# ..Let the wind blow high Let the wind blow low... #
0:23:40 > 0:23:42By the 1990s, despite poor health,
0:23:42 > 0:23:47Andy continued to fulfil periodic concert and charity commitments.
0:23:47 > 0:23:51# Amazing Grace
0:23:51 > 0:23:56# How sweet the sound... #
0:23:56 > 0:24:00One typical occasion was in 1993, when Andy was asked to star
0:24:00 > 0:24:04at a charity event at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08That evening, we sat in our dressing room for ages and ages, talking.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12It was the longest and the deepest conversation I had with him.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15I really warmed to the guy a lot on that occasion.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17I was shocked by how he looked.
0:24:17 > 0:24:21The Usher Hall came for us to appear at.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24We knew it was Andy who was the star of the show,
0:24:24 > 0:24:27but we didn't know how many people were going to be in the show.
0:24:27 > 0:24:28It was a huge show.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31Of course, we all knew he'd been ill for ages
0:24:31 > 0:24:34and been warned by the doctors to stop touring.
0:24:34 > 0:24:38People used to say to me, "Why does he keep doing that?
0:24:38 > 0:24:41"He's ill, he knows he's ill, he obviously doesn't need the money.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44"Why does he keep to it?" I said, "Because that's who he is,
0:24:44 > 0:24:46"that's what he is."
0:24:46 > 0:24:48There's no way he can just stop. You can't do it.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51But, anyway, we did the show,
0:24:51 > 0:24:53and Andy went on as top of the bill -
0:24:53 > 0:24:56absolutely slaughtered them.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58Absolutely slaughtered them.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02He'd total dynamism and energy - gave 101%.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05We picked up the paper in the morning, and he died a few hours later.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08Went home to bed and died.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10It was quite a shock.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13Performing made him more satisfied than not.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16So, he would have been very frustrated if he couldn't have gone
0:25:16 > 0:25:18and done it when he promised to.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22That's what kept him driven to perform when he said he would, yes.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26It wasn't a complete shock, actually, at all. Far from it.
0:25:28 > 0:25:33It was the end of a long kind of anticipation.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35There was always this sense that we knew
0:25:35 > 0:25:38that his time was limited, really.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41He'd had two bypass operations.
0:25:41 > 0:25:46And nobody really would have presumed to try and tell him
0:25:46 > 0:25:49what to do.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51I was in New Zealand when it happened.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56And it broke my heart, of course.
0:25:56 > 0:26:02Because I was so sorry that his total promise was never realised.
0:26:02 > 0:26:07Of course, his superficial promise as an entertainer
0:26:07 > 0:26:09was immediately recognised.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13His skill as an actor was there, in those performances.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17But he would have given Scotland another dimension
0:26:17 > 0:26:19to the character actor status.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22I know he would have done. And who knows?
0:26:22 > 0:26:26His writing might have extended, and he might have written his own play.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30If he got to my hoary age that I am now,
0:26:30 > 0:26:32he might have written a masterpiece.
0:26:32 > 0:26:36But in himself, he was a masterpiece,
0:26:36 > 0:26:39because he was a total work of art.
0:26:39 > 0:26:45From his wee snub nose to his cheeky little voice, he was a work of art.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49And I'm glad to have known him.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53# I returned to the field of glory
0:26:53 > 0:26:58# Where the green grass and flowers grow
0:26:58 > 0:27:02# And the wind softly sings the story
0:27:02 > 0:27:05# Of the brave lads of long ago... #
0:27:05 > 0:27:09My dad was, I think,
0:27:09 > 0:27:14very much epitomises a particular time in our social history.
0:27:14 > 0:27:18There's part of me that's really proud of that, but part of me
0:27:18 > 0:27:21that wants to defend what is sometimes seen
0:27:21 > 0:27:25as a kind of kilt and heather sort of image.
0:27:27 > 0:27:30Andy Stewart, philosopher.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34Singer.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37Impersonator.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40Comedian. Songwriter.
0:27:40 > 0:27:41Genius.
0:27:41 > 0:27:46We're very, very proud to have known him
0:27:46 > 0:27:49- and to have worked with him.- Mm-hm.
0:27:49 > 0:27:54- He was just a marvellous entertainer.- He sure was. Andy.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57Warm, generous.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00Flawed. You know.
0:28:00 > 0:28:06No doubt, I think his drive into the theatre was too encompassing
0:28:06 > 0:28:09to be entirely good for your health.
0:28:09 > 0:28:11# Sleep in peace
0:28:11 > 0:28:22# Now the battle's o'er... #
0:28:36 > 0:28:38Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd