For years he has shared in the dream of returning the silver screen to the heart of his home town.
On Saturday, Hollywood actor and Birks Cinema patron Alan Cumming swept into Aberfeldy to attend a red-carpet event celebrating the cinema’s official opening.
Crowds of residents gathered to welcome the star, who flew into Scotland from filming the latest episodes of hit US TV series The Good Wife..embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; padding-top: 30px; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; height: auto; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
Cumming became patron of the cinema in 2009 and has since lent his support to the transformation of the derelict building into a modern cinema, restaurant and cafe bar.
Accompanied on the evening by his husband Grant Shaffer, a well-known graphic artist and illustrator, Scotland’s Machar and playwright Liz Lochhead and veteran Scottish actor Ralph Riach, his arrival in Aberfeldy brought a touch of Hollywood glamour to his place of birth.
The cinema’s supporters and funders gathered in formal attire to celebrate with the star, among them the project’s award- winning architect Robin Baker, whose work on the regeneration has earned the Birks a place on the shortlist for Scotland’s Building of the Year 2014.
Also joining the star on the red carpet was Charlotte Flower, a local chocolatier and a driving force behind the highly successful fundraising campaign.
Cumming said he had been honoured and delighted to be involved from the outset, but admitted he had been sceptical that the ambitious plan could become a reality.
He told those at the gathering, where he signed a special plaque to be displayed in the cinema foyer, that even they must have questioned if they would ever see its doors reopen to the public.
The actor said Aberfeldy should be proud to have such a cultural centre in its midst and praised all those who had been involved in the project.
“Just because you live somewhere that isn’t a metropolis, it shouldn’t mean you don’t have access to culture,” he said.
“Of course the internet enables us to go round the world at the click of a button and while that’s great, nothing can compare to the collective experience of being with other people something that happens less and less these days.”