2026 marks 40 years since Highlander first appeared on the big screen. Hear from creator Gregory Widen about the inspiration behind the cult classic, including how the story developed and its journey from an idea to the film audiences know today. Interviewed by the Royal Armouries’ Jonathan Ferguson, Gregory will share the film's origins and legacy.

Highlander has a special connection to the Royal Armouries. Gregory Widen's original inspiration for the story began with a visit to the Royal Armouries collection at the Tower of London. Surrounded by one of the world’s oldest armoury collections, he remembers wondering what it would be like to own the arms and armour and have worn it in battle. This idea helped inspire a franchise spanning multiple films, three television series, novels and comic books.

Forty years after Highlander first reached cinemas, join Gregory Widen at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds to look back at the story that started it all.