It's hard to imagine the showbiz world without Sam Heughan.
The Scots actor has risen to international fame since his role as the dashing lead in hit Starz series Outlander.
But before he became one of the world's biggest stars, he was a jobbing actor honing his craft just like any young thespian with a big dream.
As fans face another Droughtlander after the conclusion of the much-anticipated Outlander Season six, Jamie Fraser obsessives across the globe are waiting in suspense for what will happen next.
They'll be delighted with the news then that Sam is set to release his first autobiography, Waypoints, which was announced in March.
Sam's book will follow him along the West Highland Way to explore his life and reflect on the personal 'waypoints' that define him.
So we're taking a trip down memory lane to see how far Balmaclellan-born Sam has really come over the years on his journey to success.
Early days and stage career
Sam spent his teenage years in Scotland's capital and attended the Edinburgh Steiner School.
After graduating from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) in Glasgow - where he was a star pupil - in 2003, he bagged his first TV role in WW2 miniseries Islands at War.
When he started out, Sam was known predominantly for his theatre work and was even nominated for Most Promising Performer at the prestigious Laurence Olivier Awards.
He would spend years in the theatre in his early days, including a role in Romeo and Juliet at the Dundee Repertory Theatre.
Sam even had to bare all as he had to take his kit off for his performance in David Greig’s play, Outlying Islands, in the role that would bag him his Olivier nod.
Recalling the experience recently, he said it was actually cathartic as he'd been plagued by nightmares about being naked in front of people.
In a recent interview with InStyle, he revealed he would have recurring dreams about performing naked.
Sam admitted that the only way he was able to conquer his nightmare was by actually getting his clothes off on stage. “I actually had to be naked on stage for a show and then never had that dream again,” he revealed.
At the time of his performance, Sam was just 22 and was in his first year of studying.
The experience was even more validating for him, after one of his university tutors brutally told him he couldn't act.
He's revealed in the past that in his early career, he questioned whether or not he should continue to pursue acting as he struggled to find roles, but luckily he persevered or Outlander wouldn't be as we know and love it today!
River City
Sam got his first taste of TV stardom when he made his debut in Scots soap River City in 2005.
He played Scottish Premier League footballer Andrew Murray.
His storyline centred round a love story with his on-screen girlfriend and Glaswegian local Kelly-Marie Adams (played by Carmen Pieraccini).
He married the fan favourite and whisked her away to Monaco to live out her dream of being a WAG to its fullest potential.
However, the high-profile success soon got to him and Andrew couldn’t stop cheating on Kelly-Marie, which forced her to return to Glasgow.
Eventually, Andrew gave his wife an ultimatum, and she chose to stay in Scotland which bruised his ego and saw the end of Sam's time in Shieldinch.
But he has happy memories.
He told the Sun: "River City has its own fan base and I had a great time on it. It was a learning curve for me.
“I remember walking down the street and this guy hung his head out of his car and shouted, ‘W***er!’
"At least in Scotland they tell it like it is.
"I’m prepared for people at home to let me know exactly what they think of the show.”
Rise to the top
After his stint in River City, the actor moved on to a number of made-for-TV movies between 2006 - 2009 including the BBC's A Very British Scandal in 2007.
He also made appearances in a number of UK TV series including Rebus and Midsomer Murders, while treading the boards across the UK in various stage performances.
In 2009 Sam got his first major break, landing a role in daytime TV soap Doctors.
Again the part was worlds away from Jamie Fraser, the role which would make his name, but it was first to put him really on the map.
Starring as nurse Cherry Malone's boyfriend Scott Nielson, he was nominated for a British Soap Award.
The next few years were busy for the young jobbing actor, and he'd star in a range of film and TV roles.
While working odd jobs in the UK, he would be back and forth to the U.S. for auditions.
He has admitted he would pretend to be an American in order to get roles Stateside because he was so broke.
He would also make up stories about his background and family history when he was penniless and living in Los Angeles.
But despite pretending to be American or Canadian when introducing himself at auditions, he always ended up slipping up and speaking in a Scottish accent.
He said: "For me LA is about identity and I never knew what my identity was there because I was trying to fit into what they wanted.
"There were times I was pretending to be American or Canadian or a mix of those."
He admitted thinking casting directors would be put off they thought he would have to put on an accent to play roles.
"I was trying to walk in and guess what they wanted rather than going in and doing what I wanted to do.
"It was miserable because I didn't have any success because I was trying to please everyone."
Sam had moved to the States in a bid to launch a Hollywood career but was unsuccessful.
He ended up returning to the UK and worked in a bar before landing the role of Jamie Fraser in Outlander which catapulted him to fame.
Sam started work on A Princess for Christmas in 2011, a Hallmark Channel original which starred Roger Moore.
Sam was nominated for Most Inspiring Performance in Television at the 20th Annual Grace Awards for his efforts, but the role would go on to be forgotten until last year, when the movie was relaunched.
He also followed in the footsteps of big names such as Christian Bale and Michael Keaton by playing caped crusader Batman- on stage in the Batman Live show in 2011.
The action-packed arena production took place at Glasgow's SECC for five dates.
Sam is now one of the most well known faces on the planet.
Recent roles have included 2018 action comedy The Spy Who Dumped Me, opposite Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon, Bloodshot with Vin Diesel and Michael Sheen and SAS:Red Notice.
This year will see the release of rom-com Text For You, which Sam stars in with Priyanka Chopra and Celine Dion.
Tennent's advert
He came to the attention of the public again with his portrayal of Hugh Tennent, Tennent's Lager founder, in a series of award-winning adverts for the Scots lager giant.
Sam addressed his iconic role in the adverts in 2020 when he was reminiscing about the job in the ten-year anniversary year.
Sporting a moustache in a throwback snap with former Hollyoaks star Tim Downie, he took to Instagram to share a decade old image for his fans.
The campaign was to coincide with the firm's celebration of 125 years as Scotland's top lager brand.
Sam can be seen with a curly moustache and a quirky dress sense as he acted out the historical skit.
Outlander
Sam was cast as the character who would change his life forever in 2013.
Opening up recently on This Morning about how he felt when he got the role of Jamie Fraser, he admitted he hadn't been hopeful for the upcoming Starz series based on Diana Gabaldon's best-selling books of the same name.
As he spoke to ITV hosts during a promotional interview for season six last month, Sam spoke about his first year filming the Starz hit and why he doubted it might be so successful.
“Yeah I think when I first signed on, I said to my driver, ‘It won’t last more than a year, one season,’ and here are six seasons in,” Sam said.
“I just think maybe I trying to trick myself into not thinking about the road ahead but it’s just been such an amazing journey, six seasons, eight years and here we are.”
Sam has also revealed in previous interviews that he is so "thankful" for the role.
He said: "I didn’t know it was a series of books. I went out, bought a book, read it. The rest is kind of history. It changed my life. It’s given me so much opportunity I’ve learned a lot. Here I am now, I couldn’t be more thankful.”
But it's no secret that Outlander author Diana Gabaldon originally had other people in mind before Sam was cast as her character Jamie Fraser in the hit show.
She's since happily changed her mind, and only has glowing praise for her star, stating that Sam's transformation into Jamie during his audition was 'astonishing', and now like most fans it's probably hard for her to imagine anyone else in the role.
That wasn't always the case though, with the author making no secret of the fact when she saw his original casting pics (Sam was the first person picked for the original cast) she was less than happy, going as far as to describe him as "grotesque".
In 2015, she revealed to the List Magazine : “With Sam, he was the first person cast.
“They sent me his audition tape and they said, 'we think we’ve found Jamie'.
"This is four days after they started looking. I was amazed, because we thought it would take six months.
"They said they were sending me the audition tapes, but I was on the road, so I googled him on my iPhone as we were driving. At this point, he had relatively little film work and just a series of extremely bizarre still photos.”
The popular author, who first released her Outlander books in the early 90s, had someone like a young Liam Neeson (due to his role in Rob Roy) or Sean Connery in mind for Jamie.
Hilariously, she stated that after she had a look through Sam's photos she text the showrunners exclaiming: “This man is grotesque, what are you thinking?”
The photo in question shows a young Sam with his trademark chiselled jaw line sporting dyed black hair and a v-neck T-shirt.
Thankfully, it's now become a running joke between the pair who have developed a very close bond over the six seasons of the Outlander TV show, with Diana even having a cute nickname for Sam.
She's since said she is "immensely grateful" about his casting.
She added: "That man is a Scot to the bone and Jamie Fraser to the heart. Having seen Sam Heughan not just act, but be Jamie, I feel immensely grateful to the production team for their painstaking attention to the soul of the story and characters."
Sam and co-star Caitriona Balfe, who he has a famously close relationship with, have both assumed the additional role of producers on the show at times.
The pair are great friends off-set and regularly share witty exchanges with each other on social media - much to the delight of their army of fans.
Heartthrob
Sam quite simply drives his fans wild with his portrayal of hunky 18th-century Scotsman Jamie Fraser.
Over the past decade he has built a huge personal fan base, the likes of which is usually reserved for boybands, The Beatles or Beyonce.
Fans are called Heughan's Heughligans and they are a wide-ranging group of women (and men) who are loyal to their idol (or Laird as they call him).
Sam was announced as the first Global Brand Ambassador for the English clothing label Barbour in 2016.
He released several collections since his initial autumn/winter line in 2017, all of which he co-designed.
Celebrity pals and fans
It would probably be easier to provide a list of celebrities who are NOT fans.
Sam's famous followers include Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jenna Dewan, Drew Barrymore and Susan Sarandon to name a few.
Earlier this week we reported Samuel L Jackson has revealed he is a massive Outlander fan - and he dreams about Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe.
During an interview on The Today Show, Samuel told the hosts how his wife can't get enough of the raunchy hit Starz show - branding it her "Scottish porn".
And he's got into the historical fantasy series himself as a result.
Snakes on A Plane actor Samuel said his wife, actress LaTanya Richardson Jackson, is among the superfans tuning in and she gets "so hyped for Sundays".
William Shatner is also an admirer.
The Captain Kirk star, who has a long running Twitter bromance with Scots actor pal Sam, has a long standing love affair with Scotland after playing Henry V at the Edinburgh festival back in 1956.
But his most recent connections have been via his friendship with the popular Scots actor.
Shatner was speaking as his new novel Zero G was published.
He told the Daily Record: “I liked the show and then heard about this tall handsome guy whom everyone was talking about as the next 007 and I got to Tweeting about him a little, and he picked up on it finally because I think he had seen some of my work.
“I met him and took him to lunch. he was great, he brought his girlfriend along, we had lunch, laughed and I run a charity here called Hollywood Charity Horse Show and he sent me some stuff to auction, including a sweatshirt with his sweat on it.
“His pheromones floating over the airways meant we got five thousand dollars for charity. So it has been a wonderful long distance relationship Sam and I have.”
The Star Trek legend, who has over 2 million twitter followers, now regularly posts messages to Sam much to the delight of fans.
Clanlands and Men in Kilts
Back in June, the Outlander actor and his co-star Graham McTavish announced a follow-up to their incredibly popular Clandlands book, Clanlands Almanac.
The two Scottish stars wrote their original book Clanlands as a companion to their hit show Men in Kilts, during the first lockdown after they were forced to take a break in filming.
It proved to be incredibly popular when it was released ahead of the first series of their adventure travel show and fans will be delighted to know that he follow up is due to be released in November this year.
Men In Kilts saw the pals travel across Scotland to delve into their heritage by exploring the countries rich and complex history - they cover everything from ghosts, fashion, food and drink.
The series was renewed for a second season which Sam and Graham are filming in New Zealand.
The Almanac will see Sam and Graham once again turn tour guides once again to bring readers more epic tales in this "seasonal meander through the wilds of Scotland".
Looking at customs and traditions from First Footing to Samhain throughout the year, alongside Scottish legends and whisky lore the dynamic duo will share stories and tips for Scots and Non-Scots alike.
They've also confirmed that a partnership with Barnes & Noble in the US, Indigo in Canada, and Waterstones in the UK, will see a limited edition version of The Clanlands Almanac: Seasonal Stories from Scotland will be available and will feature never-before-seen images of Sam and Graham on their adventures.
Whisky
Sam first announced his Sassenach whisky in 2019, before launching it in the US in March 2020 through the Great Glen Company, which he founded.
It's named with a nod to the hit TV show and is award-winning.
The Sassenach is available in the UK and select US states and earned a double gold medal at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition
He debuted his tequila brand, The Sassenach Select Double Wood Reposado, in December 2021, and was met with widespread praise and acclaim as he is already sweeping the awards for that too.
Heughan joined forces with El Tequileño Master Distiller Antonio ‘Tony’ Salles to create the limited edition Sassenach Select Tequila.
James Bond
Sam has emerged as one of the top contenders to play the iconic spy James Bond after Daniel Craig stepped down.
It comes as Craig, 53, who first took on the role for 2006's Casino Royale, left the franchise after five films.
Discussing James Bond with with the Sunday Times, Sam, 41, admitted that he actually auditioned for the role in 2006 back when Daniel Craig was hired.
Sam told the publication he thinks the next film in the franchise will go “back to where it all began”, but he would love to throw his kilt in the ring.
“I think any British actor would. What would I bring? Scottish charm and a slight humour.”
Speaking on Alex Zane's podcast Just The Facts, Sam admitted it would be 'amazing' as he discussed the internet speculation and hype around him joining MI6 in the next Bond flick.
He told the podcast: "It's all media and it's all just... there's no weight to it at all, there's no truth to it. But having said that, you can't help but then think 'God, it would be amazing".
"I have been up for Bond, I went up when they did Bond 21.
"It was an amazing experience and I was completely out of my depth. But I think now I feel the right age for it, I feel capable enough to do it, I'd love the opportunity to throw my hat in the ring. Definitely."
Sam previously told Scottish Field magazine that he would "jump at the chance to play a character like that" when asking about playing 007.
Future
Sam has revealed he'd like to dip his toe into directing his own work, instead of being the star of the show.
“Ooh, yeah. Good question. Well, I suppose you know, creating Men In Kilts - really enjoyed that process," Sam told Forbes.
"We’ve been working on a couple other producing projects, so I’d like to do more."
Legacy
Sam recently announced that he will be funding a 10-year programme to allow aspiring artists to follow in his footsteps at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where he graduated with a BA in Acting in 2003.
There will be three annual scholarships for undergraduate students in the School of Drama, Dance, Production and Film.
Outlander season 6 is now streaming on STARZPLAY in the UK and STARZ in the US.
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