BBC Radio Scotland Highlands and Islands

Time Travels

Factual: History

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Susan Morrison explores the rich and sometimes murky depths of Scotland's past.

Time Travels: Series 3

Time Travels: Episode 5: Global Scots and Gilbert's Mistresses

Episode 5

Episode 5: Global Scots and Gilbert's Mistresses

Global Scots and Gilbert's Mistresses

BBC Radio Scotland - Time Travels, Global Scots and Gilbert's Mistresses

Susan Morrison crosses centuries in our new Scottish history series.

Susan Morrison is shocked to discover what 18th century Edinburgh bankers could get up to and she meets some famous historical faces in a new portrait gallery exhibition.

Susan Morrison marvels at the complicated life of Gilbert Innes - an Enlightenment banker and pillar of the community who secretly had at least thirty mistresses and acknowledged 32 illegitimate children (67 made a claim on his estate on his death). As Dr Katie Barclay reveals, Gilbert's 18th century alternative lifestyle came at a terrible price for the women involved, whose voices we can hear through their letters to him. What a surprise his sister Jane got when she sneaked into his office and read those letters... 

Plus a new exhibition at Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh 'The remaking of Scotland: nation, migration, globalisation 1760-1860' explores how Scotland was undergoing massive change - venturing to all corners of the world abroad and rapidly industrialising at home. But it's a chequered history - as senior curator Dr Lucinda Lax explains, colourful characters, innovation and adventure are offset by troubling stories of slavery and imperialism.

And in our regular WW1@Home series we'll be exploring revolutionary socialist James Connolly's Edinburgh roots.

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