Hollywood legend Donald Sutherland has been invited back to Arbroath for a fish supper after describing the local delicacy as the best in the world.
The veteran actor has been reminiscing about his love of the town’s fish and chips during promotional interviews for his latest film The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.
He believes there is no better place to enjoy a fish supper than the Angus seaside town and now he’s been urged to come back for a second helping.
In an interview with a national newspaper, Sutherland said: “The best fish and chips come from Arbroath. The best fish and chips I’ve ever tasted.”
The 77-year-old actor enjoyed a fish supper in Arbroath when he visited the town while touring with the Perth Repertory Theatre in the 1960s.
Arbroath councillor Donald Morrison said he hoped Mr Sutherland would take up his tasty invitation.
He said: “Arbroath has the best chippies in the North East. The smokie may be a world renowned delicacy but for our chippies to have an endorsement from such an iconic Hollywood star is a huge compliment.
“If Mr Sutherland is passing through Scotland I would invite him back to Arbroath not only to rekindle that wonderful taste he remembers fondly but also to sample a smokie supper.”
North East MSP Alex Johnstone said Mr Sutherland would be very welcome in Arbroath if he ever returns to the area.
“I am delighted that Donald Sutherland has such fond memories of Arbroath and Angus, but I’m not surprised that he found the fish and chips in the town to be the best he’s ever tasted.
“I regularly meet people who have gone out of their way to visit Arbroath for a fish supper, and it is a credit to local chip shops that their extremely high quality food keeps bringing people back for more.
“If Mr Sutherland fancies a return visit to the area, I know he’d be made very welcome indeed.”
Sutherland had been signed up by Perth Artistic director David Steuart on £8 a week after quitting the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.
He kicked off his season with the part of Heracles in The Rape of the Belt by Benn Levy and spent a year and a half in Perth.
“It was the first theatre I ever played where the audience actually laughed when I was being funny,” Sutherland said. “The response I got from audiences gave me confidence and security for the first time.”
After returning south, he landed a role on The Avengers and a series of low-budget horror films. In 1968, after the breakthrough in the UK-filmed The Dirty Dozen, Mr Sutherland left London for Hollywood.
Mr Sutherland found himself in demand as a leading man throughout the 1970s in films such as Kelly’s Heroes, Don’t Look Now and The Eagle Has Landed. Some of his better-known roles in the 80s and 90s included Backdraft, JFK and Space Cowboys in 2000.
He’s now back as a villain in the Hunger Games movie trilogy where he stars as President Snow, the despotic ruler of a post-apocalyptic country.