East Wemyss actor set for Outlander debut

Ryan Ralph Gerrard (21) plays the role of Giles McMartin, a 16-year-old who finds himself thrust into the battle of Culloden - and he told the Mail that filming in the third series was “truly magical”.

“It was like being sent back in time; the art department are phenomenal at creating historically accurate costumes and set pieces,” he said.

“One of my scenes took place in a sort of barn; the attention to detail blew me away.

“My time on set was rather surreal - I had never worked on anything historical before so being transported from the 21st century to 1746 was incredibly eye-opening and strangely, had a sense of realism about it.”

The Battle of Culloden killed almost 2000 Jacobites and Ryan said his job was to give a voice “to the children who found themselves in battle that day”.

Ryan, who began his journey in drama as a teenager at Buckhaven Youth theatre, added that working with Sam Heughan and Grant O’Rourke was a real honour.

He added: “As an actor, you are constantly learning and reinventing yourself, so being able to have first hand experience along-side two wonderful leading actors, was a blessing.

“I can safely say that I walked away a more confident person and a stronger performer, purely by being in their presence and watching their work.

“What’s beautiful about Outlander is the family-like atmosphere.

“Everyone from the cast to crew bonded very quickly and it was clear from the beginning that everyone was there to make a piece of art they were passionate about. Being able to spend time with everyone off-set, back at the hotel was also really special and added to my experience.

“Usually, you would want to finish work, go to the pub and drown your sorrows, however, it was clear that everyone loved the project so much that chatting about the job was a pleasure - there’s a real hype that follows the show and everyone revels in it.”

Ryan, who advises all would-be actors to “go for it” and follow their dreams -is currently half way through filming CATALYST, alongside Jack Bence (Bad Education, Sherlock) and Dean-John Wilson, who starred as original Aladdin on London’s West End.

“I like to live in the moment and organically find new challenges,” said Ryan.

“A good role in BBC drama would appeal to me but until then, I plan to develop my ability even further. For me, everyday is a school day.”

Outlander series 3 airs on September 10 on Amazon Prime.