Perthshire native Alan Cumming has told how he experienced ‘prejudice’ in London, with assumptions made about his intelligence because of how he speaks.
The X-Men star said that he experienced anti-Scottish sentiment after moving to London which left him feeling “worn down”.
Speaking on White Wine Question Time podcast, Alan Cumming, who is originally from Aberfeldy in Perthshire, spoke about his experience living across the UK.
He said that often in London assumptions were made about Scottish people and their education.
“Being Scottish in London, there is subliminal and also sometimes not subliminal racism about that and sometimes I think it’s a class thing as well.
“But assumptions are made about your intelligence, your education, your worth because of how you sound.
“It’s other people, not just Scottish people, of course, but I have definitely felt it. It was definitely there and it wore you down.
“All my life I had always felt that Scottish-ness was a little less than – that was what the world told me,” he told the podcast, hosted by Kate Thornton.
When I went to New York, all the things that I had been kind of reminded of in London…I was celebrated for
Alan Cumming
But he added that after moving to New York, he found that his Scottish-ness was actually celebrated.
“When I went to New York, all the things that I had been kind of reminded of in London, my Scottish-ness, my difference, the way I sounded, in a negative way, I was celebrated for.
“So that made me feel like I had a place at the table,” he explained.
Alan Cumming tells life story in new memoir
It comes as his new memoir, Baggage: Tales From A Fully Packed Life, is released. In it, Cumming opens up about his life and experiences growing up in Perthshire and his life on screen.
He also charts his journey, which included a spell at the magazines department at Dundee’s DC Thomson before his success on the red carpet.
Interview: Alan Cumming on Dundee mischief, lockdown obsessions and Baggage
