Sam Heughan tells BBC Radio that his upbringing in rural Scotland shaped his career as an actor.

In a recent interview with BBC Radio’s “Saturday Live,” Outlander star Sam Heughan, who is returning to his role as Jamie Fraser for Season 8, talks about how his upbringing in rural Scotland contributed to his decision to become an actor.

“There were four people in my class at school—and I would say I was perhaps a bit of a loner in some ways—maybe just because you spend a lot of time on your own,” the hot Scot shared. “I was very fortunate to play in the forests or the grounds of an old castle where we were brought up and raised and I think that being alone and using your imagination really sparked something inside me. I think it perhaps also gives you the drive as well.”

Sam goes on to say that when he moved to Edinburgh when he was a teenager, the joy of exploration and not knowing what’s coming next really also benefited his career as an actor.

The host asks if that’s where the love of stravaigin comes from and when Sam explained what it meant it also explained how he possibly came up with the idea to create his unscripted travel series, Men in Kilts: A Road Trip with Sam and Graham.

“Stravaigin, I believe, means to go for a wee wander just as the sun is setting so you’re walking out in nature and enjoying that,” Sam says. “Just going for a walk, going for a wander. I’ve found myself all around the world stravaigin around. I think as an actor or a musician or as a model, you never know where your next job is coming from so, I think you take every opportunity that you can, and you try and enjoy that. I remember being in Chile with the gauchos in the Andes and I remember one of the gauchos was playing music the whole time.”

Sam is back to work on Outlander as the eighth and final season will return to production, but first, part two of Season 7 will air in 2024 on STARZ.