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Sam Heughan: Scot to the bones! Scot's actor Sam Heughan opens up about his Scottish heritage, his beliefs and values, and his love for nature
By Angus Wilson from “Scotsmen” (November 2025)
Sam Heughan certainly knows how to make a grand entrance, appearing in front of me as he parks his beloved black and gold special edition Triumph Street Twin motorcycle in the busy streets of Edinburgh.
The Scottish actor takes off his helmet, fixes his hair and smiles at me, affably.
He wears dark jeans that have been washed too many times, a gray sweater, and a cream-colored Montgomery coat. The cold November wind seems unfazed him.
A true highlander.
-Do you like it?- he asks, and his gaze softens. He’s almost in reverence for his bike. -I bought her in 2021. It’s beautiful, isn’t she? I drove from Glasgow in just fifty minutes on this beauty-.
Sam and I have met before, but the last time I was able to interview him for “Scotmen” was way back in 2017, when the third season of “Outlander” had just ended, the historical drama TV series that brought the actor to success and global fame.
Since then, many things have changed.
It's been a busy decade for Heughan, no longer that bairn from Galloway.
Or no longer James Fraser anymore.
His hair is strawberry blond, but not quite the fiery red of Jamie Fraser. His eyes are deep blue and seem to read you every time Sam looks up at me.
The 45-year-old actor shakes my hand, a firm grip as I remember, and leads me to the entrance of one of his favourite restaurants “The Kitchin” in Leith, where we are greeted by his good pal Tom Kitchin.
It's a late Wednesday morning, the sky is cloudy and the restaurant is not very crowded.
They make us sit at a table at the back of the room.
Sam doesn't even scan the menu, it's clear that he's a regular at the place. He orders salmon with a side of rice and asparagus.
-Order whatever you want- he tells me -Tom is amazing, every kind of food he cooks is delicious-.
He is calm and relaxed.
I follow his advice and order a scampi risotto, hoping that the actor, who used to live in Edinburgh but now prefers Glasgow, will be able to give me good advice.
When our dishes arrive, I try to extort from him the ending of “Outlander,” scheduled for next spring, but the actor counters by saying that he doesn’t even know exactly what the final scene will be.
-Outlander is… oh sorry…- Sam corrects himself, his face looking into the distance as if he lost in memory lane - it was an intense job, but I learn a lot. I've been with Jamie Fraser for twelve years and we get along very well. He is a good, vulnerable man. I've spent practically a third of my life in the shadow of the perfect man- he jokes.
Thanks to the 1700s Highlander Heughan launched his acting career and won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Cable Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actor and the Saturn Award for Best Actor on Television, and received a nomination for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series.
I try again and Sam shakes his head, amused. He's probably used to it by now. Diana Gabaldon herself, the author of "Outlander" has defined the actor as the perfect Jamie Fraser: "a Scotsman to the bones!".
What role does Scotland play in your life?
This is a question from a thousand and one nights. Sam Heughan becomes incredibly serious, his gaze changes.
-Are you kidding? I'm blessed. I feel very fortunate, having grown up in that incredible landscape. Being in the outdoors, exploring and losing myself in these amazing woods and mountains of Scotland… it helps me relax or reflect on the journey that I'm on in my life and to slow down a bit and I think we all need that. We all need time to reflect. As a child I imagine myself as King Arthur and played in the Gallowey countryside and I think that period was very formative for me as a human being and as an actor. Even now when I feel overwhelmed by something or a particular situation I seek refuge on the moors and the paths behind the house-.
Born and raised in Gallowey in rural Scotland, he was twelve when he and his mother packed up all their belongings and moved to Edinburgh for the rest of their lives, where the teenage Sam discovered his love of theatre.
-I think I have what I always wanted that teenage boy dreaming of being an actor and telling stories and entertaining. I want to have fun- Heughan says, pouring a generous portion of Guinness into his glass – but you know… being an actor has also allowed me to deal with other themes, to expand the horizons of my work. I feel very lucky right now because I am living the dream-.
And speaking of dreams, Heughan fulfilled another one in December last year, ticking it off his bucket list: he climbed Mount Everest.
When I mention it to him, it's clear as day that Sam can't contain his excitement.
He looks like a kid in a candy store.
-We had an excellent local Nepali team and the brilliant @mountainworld as guides. Trip of a lifetime-.
He enthusiastically tells me about the whole experience of climbing the mountain, the physical effort, the freezing nights – Nothing compared to the Scottish cold! – jokes Sam, and he dishes on a special dehydrated yak cheese the locals like to chew on while climbing.
-It was an incredible experience. Physically it was very enriching. I'm forty-five and I try to stay in shape. When I got to the top I couldn't believe it. It was a catharsis. Oh, and be sure to write that I thank my wife for once again allowing me to fulfill one of my greatest dreams. Cat managed the house, work and children by herself for about a month. Amazing is an understatement-.
Because this Scotsman has not only achieved success on a professional level through films, theatrical performances and promotional and charity campaigns, but also and above all on a personal level.
His partner in crime, his Cat as he affectionately calls her, Irish actress Caitriona Balfe has been his wife for six years now.
-We met twelve years ago on the set of “Outlander” and it took me two years to convince her to give me a chance- Heughan recalls with a toothy grin. -I'm stuck with her till the end. She's the best thing that's ever happened to me-.
There is a special sparkle in his eyes when he talks about his wife. His face lightened up when he heard the words wife or Caitrìona. Although he himself is notoriously private about his private life and prefers to keep it, precisely private, away from the spotlight.
I tease him and venture that, according to practically every single famous person I've interviewed, Heughan is the ideal husband.
He looks at me in surprise and bursts out laughing.
-Ideal husband? I'm not Jamie Fraser, man! You can write whatever you want- is the answer, direct and without frills. Sam shrugs, feigning indifference. - I try to be a good man, but I'm sure I've pissed off my wife a few times-.
Our plates, meanwhile, have been completely gobbled up. Sam insists on ordering chips with ketchup to share.
-Today is my cheat day. I go to the gym three times a week, I try to eat healthy. It's not an obsession, but a lifestyle that everyone should adopt. We are not eternal and I want to live as long as possible for my family, live a healthy life full of different experiences. Unfortunately I can't sit still, but I consider it an advantage. I rarely get bored-.
The actor has for years been a coach and active participant in My Peak Challenge, a global campaign that inspires its members to live healthier, happier and more balanced lives whilst raising funds to change the lives of others.
-We have to make changes and to save us and the planet, we are late. I love Greta Thunberg, you have to follow her. We should all leave a better world, especially for our children- concludes Sam, when even the last chip on the plate has been devoured.
Then he suddenly grabs his iPhone and unlocks it, revealing a photo of his bairns: Allister, seven years old, and Astrid, four. Just like every proud parent he still has a photo of his kids as his wallpaper.
Both children are wearing jumpers with their names on and they are posing happily and smiling in the garden of what I assume is the Heughan – Balfe house. Allister has a toothless smile, strawberry blond hair, sky blue eyes. Astrid has a lively look, big blue eyes and unruly dirty blond curls.
-They look so much like their Ma'- Sam smiles, full of pride. -Even though she claims otherwise. In fact, List is practically identical to me. My mother says she feels like she's dealing with me as a little boy when Allister is at her house-.
The actor doesn't share much about his kids. He's a stickler for privacy.
I point out that, years ago, his iPhone wallpaper was a photo of his famous, award-winning whiskey brand, The Sassenach, which earned him a double gold medal at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
-How the tables have turned eh? Aye! I have to admit I was skeptical about settling down on a personal level. I was afraid that giving in and enjoying the moment in a romantic relationship meant that something was bound to go wrong. Bad things happen. But boy, was I wrong. Cat and I come from completely different backgrounds… maybe that’s why we work as a couple. Or because I want to do all the things with my kids that I couldn’t do with my dad. You know, the little things? Being there all the time. Since List and Star were born I’ve always taken jobs in the U.K. to be around them all the time, or productions that work during the summer months-.
Over the years he has tried to distance himself from the very prominent and predominant role of Jamie Fraser.
-A lot of times I feel like Jamie is still inside me, somehow. I have his whole outfit locked in my closet: boots, uniform, hat. Sometimes I get nostalgic and I wear it in front of the mirror. It's my way of honoring him and thanking him for everything he's done for me. But over the last year I've learned to let him go. That's why I've played several characters, all very different from each other. I don't want to get stuck on just one thing, that would be stupid-.
In the years since “Outlander,” Heughan has successfully proven himself to be a multifaceted actor. His most notable roles have been a whirlwind of different characters: in 2014’s “Emulsion,” he was a man haunted by the ghost of his wife; in the 2016 independent film When the Starlight Ends, which premiered at the Other Venice Film Festival, he was Jacob, an eccentric writer; in 2023, Heughan starred in the rom-com “Love Again” alongside the beauty Priyanka Chopra-Jonas; and in 2023, he was the enigmatic Denny in the thriller TV series “The Couple Next Door.”
But who Sam Heughan really is?
His full name is Samwise Roland Heughan, and when I repeat it out loud the actor blushes all the way to the tips of his ears.
-Only my mother calls me Samwise- he says, embarrassed as his gaze momentarily drops to the list of desserts. -And sometimes my wife does it too, but when she calls me by my full name I know it’s because I’ve done something I shouldn’t have done-.
He was a child of separated parents, raised by a single mother who worked a thousand jobs to support him and his older brother Cirdan. His father met him only briefly.
-Being a man is being responsible toward your loved ones- Sam says, firmly convinced – I am trying to teach that to my children. I have had several male role models in my life who did not make me miss my father at all. My uncle Trevor, my grandfather Stanley… oh and more recently Graham-..
In November 2020, Heughan published a travelogue titled “Clanlands: Whiskey, Warfare, and a Scottish Adventure Like No Other with Outlander” co-star Graham McTavish. The book became a bestseller, reaching No. 1 on the New York Times' Best Seller Lists for hardcover nonfiction and for combined print and e-book nonfiction and #1 on the Publishers Weekly Bestseller List for hardcover nonfiction, among other lists. Clanlands serves as a companion to “Men in Kilts: A Roadtrip With Sam and Graham,” an eight-part television series conceived by and starring Heughan and McTavish that premiered on the Starz channel in February 2021. The first season was set in Scotland, the second in New Zealand.
Will there be a third one?
-Nah, the bairns are so wee and tiny. You know? I used to tease my brother when he said, “You’ll see when you have a bairn!” but it’s so damn true. When Lister was born my chest swelled with happiness, and when my little princess Astrid was born, my heart almost exploded. I can’t thank Cat enough for giving me a daughter. Astrid is the first Heughan girl in almost fifty years-.
He may be an incredibly devoted, almost adoring family man to his wife and children, but Sam Heughan is never really silent.
Luckily Tom Kitchen saves me and brings us the desserts: vanilla ice cream.
I take this opportunity to ask to the Scotman a couple of point-blank questions.
What is your hidden talent? Something few people would suspect about you?
-Easy. I can play the trumpet. I started when I was about 18. I'm looking at it right now, and it's got a lot of dust on it. I need to get back to it, I love jazz music and the blues. My grandfather had bought me a metronome for my music. He and I were very close, and when he passed away, it had been sitting on a shelf for maybe five or six years. It hadn't been touched in all that time, it was totally still. And after he died, suddenly, it started to tick –.
What was it like working with your wife? You and Caitriona Balfe worked together for years. Do you plan to do it again?
-It's Heughan- he points out -Caitriona Heughan, but don't worry people will continue to get it wrong. She and I are always willing to collaborate and compromise. We always push each other, literally and figuratively. I'm grateful to have shared this experience with her. We always joke at home about working together again, maybe in a rom-com, something more chill than Jamie and Claire's troubled love story. I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon, but never say never-.
You're a Scot through and through... so you're a Brexit supporter?
-When I make a political comment on the networks, they tell me to shut up. I think they are wrong: it is impossible for a human being not to have an opinion. I was against Scotland becoming independent from the U.K., but after brexit change of opinion: it is better to separate to continue in the E.U.-.
Future projects? You have been tied to a single TV series for over a decade and have played various roles in films of all genres. And after that?
-Next spring I will finally be back to my first love, the theater. I've wanted to do it for a while but I kept telling myself it wasn't the right time. Then last summer I auditioned for a couple of productions and they took me. I'll be in "MacBeth" and I’m so over the moon, because since I was a wee bairn I've always being a Shakespeare fan. I’ll play Macduff-
The Christmas holidays are coming soon. How will you spend them?
-Last Christmas Cat and I went crazy and put our two families under one roof. There were about forty of us, fifteen of which were kids. It was great, all the bairns had a blast. We're going to do it again this year. I love my mother-in-law's mince pies, and my brothers-in-law are very competitive when it comes to board games. Our favorite is drunken Monopoly-.
What gifts did you ask Santa Claus for?
-Nothing too demanding. Last year I made the mistake of giving him carte blanche and he brought me a t-shirt that said “I like my coffee how I like my wife: hot and Irish”. It was definitely my wife’s favorite gift!- . He can’t hold back a laugh and scratches his chin. -This year I played it safe and asked for a new watch. My wife asked for a trip to an exotic place. Lister asked for a new dirt bike and Astrid asked for a girls punching bag to practice. I started teaching her some kickboxing moves. She's a tough girl like her mama-.
Any New Year's resolutions?
-Both Cat and I want to do Veg-anuary-.
And future projects?
-In addition to the theater, for the next few months I will be busy promoting my new book “The Cocktails diary”-.
Yes, because in “The Cocktail Diaries: A Spirited Journey - With Recipes” released just two months ago in September 2025, Heughan takes us around the world to taste cocktails, passing from the United Kingdom, to New Orleans, to Paris and Prague.
A metaphor for the thousand journeys and numerous adventures of the actor himself.
-So, was it good?- Sam asks me, when he sees that I have pressed the “stop” button on my voice recorder.
-What?-
-The food- he tells me candidly, and takes the receipt in his hand. -You're my guest today. Tom is my friend and I love him, but eating here costs an arm and a leg-.
I am speechless. It is the first time I find myself in a similar situation.
Sam Heughan is an anti diva with zero ego. Before paying he asks the chef for one more favor.
A minute later Tom comes out holding two tubs of his famous vanilla ice cream and gives the Scotsman a friendly pat on the shoulder.
-Cat, Lister, and Star are crazy about Tom's vanilla ice cream- Sam explains to me. His eyes are still sparkling, even though two hours have passed and he has mentioned his wife and kids only a few times during the interview. -I can't wait to get home to give them this little surprise-.
We say goodbye in front of his motorcycle. The rain has turned into fresh sleet.
-Good, it will keep the ice cream cold- Sam says cheerfully. And he shakes my hand.
I have one last question for him.
What are you most proud of?
He went from being a child raised by a single mother in the Scottish countryside to being an acclaimed actor.
Sam has the answer ready, of course.
-Knowing I didn't waste the best years of my life chansing someone else's version of success. I made mistakes, plenty of them, but I owned them. I learned from them, I kept going. And I am living right now a life that it's mine, not always easy but real. At forty-five years old I am finally happy. I'm finally enjoying the moment. And I hope the best is yet to come-.