Gaining this many viewers is a large step in the right direction for the newly-formed channel. Head of BBC Alba Margaret Mary Murray went on record saying that this was “an excellent start”.

While the interview is neither long nor particularly deep, it is still worth a read, if only as an opportunity to get to know the language’s new ambassador slightly better.

Describing the series as “Anglo-centric”, broadcaster and historian Alastair Moffat went on to say:

The BBC seems to have ignored 3,000 years. It’s a pity to let the Romans tell the story of Scotland; couldn’t the Scots have told it?

The series, produced at a cost of £2m, begins with the defeat of the Picts by Roman general Agricola in AD 84. The first episode will be shown on 9th November at 9pm on BBC 1.

More information on the series — and the rest of the BBC’s cross-media initiative titled “Scotland’s History” — can be found at the Scotland’s History microsite.

Many hope that the channel will become available on Freeview, otherwise it will very difficult for the channel to meet the ambitious target of gaining 250,000 non-Gaelic-viewers on a weekly basis set by the BBC Trust. As mentioned in the previous post on the subject, there is demanding set of criteria in place that the channel must meet before it can reach this goal.

Unfortunately, the service is currently not available on Freeview, and will have to meet fairly demanding conditions to achieve this. It is not yet available on the iPlayer either. At present, the only option open to those wishing to watch BBC Alba is to tune in via Sky on channel 168 or Freesat channel 110.