Mackintosh home blaze 'deliberate'

The house was gutted in the blaze

The fire which destroyed the remote Highland home of theatre producer Sir Cameron Mackintosh was caused by a gas leak which seems to have been started deliberately.

A spokeswoman from Northern Constabulary said investigators have completed their six-month inquiry into the blaze.

They told police officials that a leak is the only possible explanation for the incident.

Investigators found no ignition source, she said, so the police say the incident seems to be criminal rather than accidental.

Sir Cameron was a regular visitor

The fire, last November, completely destroyed the isolated wooden cottage, named Torran Al Eannach, near Mallaig on the shores of Loch Nevis in Inverness-shire.

The police spokeswoman said: "The fire seems to have been caused by some sort of gas leakage which caused an explosion. But we have no evidence to explain how the gas leaked.

"Also, we have not found an ignition source, so deduction leads us to believe that this incident seems to be criminal rather than accidental.

"There is no indication that we have uncovered that this happened accidentally, and we have conducted a thorough investigation of the area."

Visited the property

However she said officers had been unable to trace any suspects and revealed that the on-going inquiry would soon be closed.

She said: "We have used a lot of technical people, including experts from Calor Gas, to help us out but we have not managed to trace a suspect."

"The fact the cottage was made of wood meant that the fire spread very rapidly, causing a great deal of damage to items we would have liked to have examined."

Sir Cameron, 54, has been a regular visitor to the area since he was young and visited the property, which was unoccupied at the time of the blaze, with friends.

Gala concert

The well-known producer has been behind some of the biggest musical successes of the last 30 years, including Les Miserables, Cats, Miss Saigon and Phantom of the Opera.

He decided on his career path at the age of eight after being inspired by the show Salad Days and is one of the richest men in Britain.

In 1998, a gala concert celebrating his remarkable career and featuring scenes from his hit shows was attended by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.

He bought the 13,000-acre Nevis Estate 10 years ago and is a regular financial contributor to the area.

Sir Cameron's agent said he was currently working in the US on the musical Oklahoma.

But officers have been unable to track down any suspects and the inquiry will soon be closed down.