BBC Alba adventure series Dàna to return to screens for third run
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A THIRD series of BBC Alba’s flagship adventure show Dàna/Scotland’s Wild Side is to return to the channel in the autumn.
Coinneach Rankin is set to bring viewers more high-octane climbs and rambles.
The 27-year-old, from Plockton, loves tackling adrenaline-pumping and exhilarating thrills across Scotland and the new series is no different.
The first two seasons were widely celebrated, with series two winning the Factual Entertainment (Screen) award at the 2023 Celtic Media Festival, while new director and cameraman Hamish Macleod was nominated alongside esteemed company for an RTS Scotland Award 2023 in the Camera (Craft) category.
Filming is currently ongoing ahead of the programme returning in autumn, but four exhilarating programmes are in the offing where Coinneach will:
- Tackle the Old Man of Stoer, a breath-taking 200ft seat stack of Torridonian sandstone, which stands tall in The Minch off the coast of Sutherland.
- Travel to Shetland, offering some of the most remote, wild and challenging climbing in the country, which many climbers never get to experience.
- Complete a multi-day climbing and scrambling expedition in the Cairngorms, navigating the challenges of living in a mountain environment for days on end.
- Challenge himself against winter weather conditions as he attempts a high-altitude climb in Torridon, following Scotland’s long tradition of winter mountaineering dating back to the 19th century.
Coinneach sees each climb as a privilege, enabling him to explore these incredible locations and, in turn, give people a unique view of Scotland’s landscape along the way.
Moreover, Coinneach’s command of the Gaelic language is a linguistic treat for audiences.
He and young Gaelic-speaking director Hamish Macleod have a deep and natural bond which clearly translates on screen, providing linguistically rich, instinctive and entertaining content.
Coinneach said: “This series of Dàna features some of our biggest challenges yet.
’Scotland offers infinite possibilities for big adventures and, over the four episodes, we travel to some of our country's most iconic landscapes. Hopefully these snapshots provide real inspiration for people watching.
"A huge highlight was topping out on the Diamond Face Route on the Old Man of Storr. Perched alone on this lopsided needle of sandstone 60 metres above the Minch – what a ridiculous situation to find yourself in!
"As always, the people you bring with you are a huge part of what makes a trip, and I was fortunate enough to share these experiences with four great friends who each added enormously to what makes each programme special."
BBC Alba Commissioning Executive Calum McConnell said: “We are delighted to be bringing the thrilling adventures of Coinneach and Co back to screens this Autumn.
“The effort made by the whole team to bring this stunning series to life, for a third time, is a huge asset and source of pride for BBC Alba.
“With Dàna now an award-winning series, we can’t wait to see how the third instalment tops what has come before.”
BBC Alba HD is available on the following platforms: Sky 117 (Scotland)/Sky 169 (rest of UK); Virgin Media 120 (Scotland)/Virgin Media 161 (rest of UK); Freesat 109; BBC iPlayer.
BBC Alba SD is available on Freeview/You View 7 (Scotland only).
