The book world already has a term for Scotland-set detective novels – Tartan Noir. There’s an increasing need for similar to describe the emerging genre of glossy BBC domestic thrillers set north of the border. Trust Me, The Replacement, The Victim, The Cry and now The Nest… all miniseries, all stories about women, all set against the dramatic backdrop of the highlands and the steel-glass shine of regenerated city centres and architect-designed residences.

Visit Scotland Noir, maybe? Minted-Lassie Thrillers?

The Nest’s minted lassie is Emily (Sophie Rundle), a Glasgow music teacher married to local-boy-done-good Dan (Martin Compston). They live in a dream loch-side house and appear to have it all. Love, money, a devoted marriage and quite definitely, a place in the world. What they don’t – and can’t – have, is a child.

We meet Emily and Dan having exhausted their IVF options and midway through a surrogacy arrangement with his sister Hilary (Fiona Bell). Once that pregnancy fails and Hilary decides the toll on her own family is too great to try again, the couple are left with one remaining frozen embryo and in search of a womb.

Enter, Kaya. An 18-year-old who literally falls into Emily’s path, Kaya (Mirren Mack) susses the situation and makes Emily an offer. If they need a lassie to carry their baby, that’s her. It’s not about the money, she says. This was meant to be.

Fate is one of several reasons Kaya gives for why she wants to do this. Others are: recently emerged from a children’s home, she wants folk to care about her not as part of their job remit. Having spent her life required to be grateful, she wants someone to be grateful to her for once. Why would she go to college or work in “some other zero hour pish” when she could do something amazing. And, there’s a wee voice in her head saying “Kaya, you can do this. Do this.”

Whether the voice in Kaya’s head is the one we all hear, or the other kind of ‘voice in your head’ is a delicately played ambiguity in episode one, helped by the intensity of Mirren Mack’s performance. She’s terrific casting here, compelling to watch and skirting the border between earnest and unhinged. The scene in which she and Compston go head to head like tennis pros as Dan and Kaya verbally battle out their positions is the episode highlight. Those two share chemistry as well as a dialect and background. Dangerous stuff.



The Nest’s thriller side, the part that’ll keep viewers coming back for the next four episodes, rests on how dangerous Kaya may or may not be, and what her real motivation is for doing this.

⇒ The Nest - Season 1 (Complete Episode)

⇒ The Nest - Season 1 - Episode 1

⇒ The Nest - Season 1 - Episode 2

⇒ The Nest - Season 1- Episode 3

⇒ The Nest - Season 1- Episode 3

⇒ The Nest - Season 1- Episode 3