Alexander Edwards Morton (24 March 1945 – 14 April 2026) was a Scottish actor. He is known mainly for his role as Golly Mackenzie, the ghillie in the BBC television series Monarch of the Glen, who he played between 2000 and 2005.
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Acting career
Glasgow-born Morton trained in London at the Central School of Speech and Drama from 1965 to 1968 and is well known for his roles in several leading drama series, such as Taggart, Second Sight, Between the Lines, Minder, and Casualty; movies such as Croupier and London to Brighton; and single dramas The One That Got Away (1996), Looking After Jo Jo (1998), and The Man-Eating Wolves of Gysinge (2005).
Morton is best known for playing the ghillie Golly Mackenzie in the BBC TV series Monarch of the Glen (2000–2005, appearing in all 64 episodes), and before that made regular appearances throughout the 1980s and 1990s as the evil Andy Semple in the Scottish soap Take the High Road. From 2012 to 2015, Morton played criminal Billy Kennedy in Scottish soap opera River City. He appeared again as Billy Kennedy in the 20th anniversary episode of the show in 2022.
Highlights of his stage career include his work with Raindog Theatre Company in the early 1990s, of which he was a founding member, along with Robert Carlyle, Caroline Paterson, Stuart Davids, and others. Leading roles with Raindog included his Scots rendition of Shakespeare's Macbeth and R.P. McMurphy in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, both directed by Robert Carlyle. Morton also worked regularly with theatre companies 7:84 and Borderline, and has appeared at the Traverse, the Lyceum, the Bush, and the Royal Court. He has appeared in pantomime as well, notably at the Eden Court Theatre in Inverness with Andy Gray, and at Glasgow's King's Theatre.
In 2006, Morton played the Prince of Darkness in the BBC Radio adaptation of Dracula (Voyage of the Demeter, 2006). He was also the first actor to play Detective Inspector John Rebus in the BBC Radio 4 adaptation of Ian Rankin's Rebus series of books. He also provided voices for video games, including Heavenly Sword, Viking: Battle for Asgard and as Zoltan Chivay in The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings along with its sequel The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. He was the narrator on three albums by the Swiss Celtic / Melodic Death Metal band Eluveitie.
Personal life and death
Morton was married three times, and had two children from each of his first two marriages. His first wife was Pam Scotcher; his second was Denise; and his third is Jane, whom he met before filming for Monarch of the Glen got underway. She was his landlady while he was doing television work in London. Jane's son and Morton's stepson is actor Leo Woodall.
Morton died from heart failure on 14 April 2026, at the age of 81.
Film and television credits
Morton's credits include:
1971: Get Carter (film) Hubert – directed by Mike Hodges
1971: Manipulators (TV) written and directed by Mike Hodges
1979: Play for Today (TV): Ploughman's Share – Dave
1980–1994: Take the High Road (TV) – Andy Semple
1981: Play for Today (TV): The Good Time Girls – Alec Park
1984: Minder (TV): Windows – Alex
1985: Taggart (TV): Dead Ringer – David Balfour
1986: Waiting for Elvis (TV) Ike Morrison – directed by Hal Duncan
1987: Extras (TV) – Frank Riley – directed by David Andrew
1987: Bookie (TV) – Ross
1989: Winners and Losers (TV) – Ross
1990: Silent Scream – Don Winters
1992: Rab C. Nesbitt (TV) – Police Inspector Mccrae
1992–1994: Firm Friends (TV) – D.I. Hogg
1993: Between the Lines (TV) – Superintendent Tyrell
1993: Taggart (TV): Death Benefits – John Fraser
1994: Jolly a Man for All Seasons – Police Sergeant Watson
