Bunhill: Cameron is the cat's whiskers from the West End to Mallaig

THERE IS at least one place where people agree that the millionaire theatrical producer Cameron Mackintosh is the cat's whiskers, in spite of his bringing Andrew Lloyd Webber's feline musical to the stage.

In the fishing village of Mallaig in the Scottish Highlands, the Cats producer is fast becoming a patron saint. His latest display of community spirit has been to give the village a shopping centre.

A plot of land in the centre of the village went up for sale last summer. Mr Mackintosh bought it, because he knew the village needed more shops.

It is no isolated example. When villagers were trying to raise funds for a swimming pool, they wrote to Mr Mackintosh at his London office in the hope that he might make a donation. He did - back came a cheque for pounds 100,000.

So what is the attraction of a village where the rush hour consists of the fishing boats coming home for a man who is constantly jetting around the world to check on his endlessly running shows?

Well, as often as possible he visits the croft that belonged to his late aunt. It sits above Loch Nevis just outside Mallaig and has no phone, no electricity, no television and only a wind-up gramophone - in short one of the few places in the world where you can't hear the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

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