2001: A Space Odyssey is one of the most beloved and well-known films of all time, and if you haven't seen it you will likely have at least heard of it.
Directed by Stanley Kubrick, the seminal 1968 science-fiction epic is regarded as one of the best and most influential films ever made. Many famous directors, including Steven Spielberg and Christopher Nolan, have been inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey, while other films and television shows continue to reference it to this day.
With all that in mind, it may surprise you to learn that some of the scenes in the movie were in fact filmed in Scotland.
The story of 2001: A Space Odyssey sees a group of astronauts, as well as their sentient supercomputer HAL, sent to Jupiter to investigate an alien monolith. During the mission, HAL shows increasingly strange and hostile behaviour, endangering the lives of the crew.
One of the most iconic scenes in the film, the 'Star Gate' sequence, occurs towards the end. It sees protagonist Dr David Bowman pulled into a vortex of coloured light while on Jupiter as colourful and kaleidoscopic imagery is displayed on-screen.
When deciding where to shoot the psychedelic sequence, Kubrick settled on the Scottish Hebridean Isle of Harris. Consisting of the southern and more mountainous part of Lewis and Harris, its rugged and dramatic landscapes were the perfect stand-in for the planet.
In the film, colour filters and distortion effects were used to make the scenery appear more alien and otherworldly. However, if you know the area well, its topography will still be instantly recognisable.
Specifically, Loch Airigh on the island's rocky coast was one of the locations used for the sequence. It is situated on the east of Harris, offering stunning and varied views—even without psychedelic colours.
If you head to the loch yourself, you will quickly see why it was chosen for the film. The baron landscape almost feels more like something you would find on the moon than planet Earth, which no doubt influenced the director's decision.
Next time you watch 2001: A Space Odyssey, or if you're checking it out for the first time, pay particular attention to the end of the film to see what a small Scottish island looks like as Jupiter.
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