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The Old Man of Lochnagar
The Old Man of Lochnagar is a 1980 children's book written by King Charles III, at that time the Prince of Wales, and illustrated by Sir Hugh Casson. The story revolves around an old man who lives in a cave in the cliffs surrounding the corrie loch under the Lochnagar, a mountain which overlooks the royal estate at Balmoral in Scotland where the Royal Family spend much of their summer holidays.
The story of the Old man of Lochnagar originated as a bedtime story King Charles had told some years earlier to entertain his brothers, Andrew and Edward, when they were children. The book was published in 1980 in aid of The Prince's Trust charity.
The book was later adapted into an animated short film by the BBC in 1993, with Robbie Coltrane providing the voice of the hermit and Prince Charles narrating. The film was titled The Old Man of Lochnagar in the UK and The Legend of Lochnagar in North America. The book was also adapted into a musical stage play. In 1984, Prince Charles read the story on the BBC children's programme Jackanory. He has also read it in Welsh and Scottish Gaelic translations on television.
In 2007, National Youth Ballet of Great Britain received permission from the Prince of Wales to create a new ballet based on the story. With choreography by Drew McOnie and a commissioned score by Nigel Hess, the ballet received its première at Sadler's Wells Theatre, London on 14 October 2007 and was performed from 24 to 27 October at Leatherhead Theatre in Surrey.
The book comprises six parts.
The old man loses his grip while attempting to scale the Lochnagar cliff and falls into the loch, where he meets "lagopus Scoticus", a "freshwater variant of Neptune". The man and lagopus Scoticus converse using bubbles which display their thoughts in written text and go hunting for "Loch-haggis" in a "sea-rover" underwater vehicle. After the hunt, the old man "feast[s] on Loch-haggis and suffer[s] terribly from wind", before going to sleep beside the loch.
The old man wakes up with "a slight hangover", then sneezes so violently that the force directed into the ground shoots him up into the air. He ends up on top of Lochnagar but is then swept up by a golden eagle that carries him as far as Balmoral, where he bounces on a trampoline before coming to rest. He goes to the fountain and meets Mr Toad, who happens to have tenancy there. The toad offers help and agrees to take the man back to his cave. The man goes to sleep.
Having slept for "several days" the man wakes and goes to use his specially designed toilet. The toilet is so designed that bagpipes are played when it is flushed. On the toilet, the man reads books given to him by the Gorms – a race of "friendly little people" who live in "the stone cairns near Lochnagar" – in which they describe their world and promise to invite him to visit "when their research scientists ha[ve] discovered the right formula for a potion which, when drunk, would shrink the old man to the size of the little people". The man decides to go to Loch Muick and calls "twelve cock capercaillie" towards him. He harnesses them to a carriage and flies to the loch, landing his craft on the water "like a flying boat". He gives the birds "sugared daddy-long-legs" as a reward. The old man then gets two ospreys called "Skean" and "Dhu" to fish trout from the water for him. The capercaillie, ospreys and the old man all eat the fish together in the evening, exchanging stories until late at night.
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The Old Man of Lochnagar
The Old Man of Lochnagar is a 1980 children's book written by King Charles III, at that time the Prince of Wales, and illustrated by Sir Hugh Casson. The story revolves around an old man who lives in a cave in the cliffs surrounding the corrie loch under the Lochnagar, a mountain which overlooks the royal estate at Balmoral in Scotland where the Royal Family spend much of their summer holidays.
The story of the Old man of Lochnagar originated as a bedtime story King Charles had told some years earlier to entertain his brothers, Andrew and Edward, when they were children. The book was published in 1980 in aid of The Prince's Trust charity.
The book was later adapted into an animated short film by the BBC in 1993, with Robbie Coltrane providing the voice of the hermit and Prince Charles narrating. The film was titled The Old Man of Lochnagar in the UK and The Legend of Lochnagar in North America. The book was also adapted into a musical stage play. In 1984, Prince Charles read the story on the BBC children's programme Jackanory. He has also read it in Welsh and Scottish Gaelic translations on television.
In 2007, National Youth Ballet of Great Britain received permission from the Prince of Wales to create a new ballet based on the story. With choreography by Drew McOnie and a commissioned score by Nigel Hess, the ballet received its première at Sadler's Wells Theatre, London on 14 October 2007 and was performed from 24 to 27 October at Leatherhead Theatre in Surrey.
The book comprises six parts.
The old man loses his grip while attempting to scale the Lochnagar cliff and falls into the loch, where he meets "lagopus Scoticus", a "freshwater variant of Neptune". The man and lagopus Scoticus converse using bubbles which display their thoughts in written text and go hunting for "Loch-haggis" in a "sea-rover" underwater vehicle. After the hunt, the old man "feast[s] on Loch-haggis and suffer[s] terribly from wind", before going to sleep beside the loch.
The old man wakes up with "a slight hangover", then sneezes so violently that the force directed into the ground shoots him up into the air. He ends up on top of Lochnagar but is then swept up by a golden eagle that carries him as far as Balmoral, where he bounces on a trampoline before coming to rest. He goes to the fountain and meets Mr Toad, who happens to have tenancy there. The toad offers help and agrees to take the man back to his cave. The man goes to sleep.
Having slept for "several days" the man wakes and goes to use his specially designed toilet. The toilet is so designed that bagpipes are played when it is flushed. On the toilet, the man reads books given to him by the Gorms – a race of "friendly little people" who live in "the stone cairns near Lochnagar" – in which they describe their world and promise to invite him to visit "when their research scientists ha[ve] discovered the right formula for a potion which, when drunk, would shrink the old man to the size of the little people". The man decides to go to Loch Muick and calls "twelve cock capercaillie" towards him. He harnesses them to a carriage and flies to the loch, landing his craft on the water "like a flying boat". He gives the birds "sugared daddy-long-legs" as a reward. The old man then gets two ospreys called "Skean" and "Dhu" to fish trout from the water for him. The capercaillie, ospreys and the old man all eat the fish together in the evening, exchanging stories until late at night.