Internationally admired Scottish Gaelic singer Kathleen MacInnes has released a Christmas single, Santa Take Me Home. Written during a real-life travel nightmare, the song transforms a frantic, snow-stranded Christmas Eve into a warm, nostalgic and all too relatable festive story.
In December 2023, Kathleen was performing as the singer in the band of Max Webster’s acclaimed London West End production of Macbeth, starring David Tennant and Cush Jumbo. When the show finished on Christmas Eve, the Scottish cast and band faced a desperate, chaotic rush to get home, battling heavy snow, ice, flight cancellations and even a London cab strike.
Kathleen composed Santa Take Me Home spontaneously that same night. It combines the urgency of trying to make it home for Christmas with memories of past festive seasons alongside the central plea: a call to the busiest man on Christmas Eve, Santa Claus, to help bring her safely back to Scotland.
Produced by Edinburgh-based composer, arranger and sound artist Alan Penman, the single showcases Kathleen’s unmistakable Hebridean voice. It also features Edinburgh musician Luisa Brown on fiddle.
“This song came straight from that chaotic Christmas Eve, equal parts panic, hope and longing to be home with my family,” says Kathleen. “It’s a moment so many people will recognise, that pull to get back to the people and places you love most at Christmas.”
Santa Take Me Home is available on all major streaming and download platforms.