Outlander fans have been left bereft during the Droughtlander with no new episodes of the Starz series on the horizon. Nonetheless, many have been re-watching the show with some curious about the figure of Colum McKenzie (played by Gary Lewis), the uncle of Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan).
Colum was introduced in season one of Outlander when Claire Fraser (Caitríona Balfe) arrived at Castle Leoch and learned about the mysterious men who’d rescued her from the clutches of Captain ‘Black Jack’ Randall (Tobias Menzies).
The character was a clan chieftain or Laird of the MacKenzie Clan but heavily relied upon his brother younger Dougal MacKenzie (Graham McTavish).
Colum was revealed to suffer from a painful and degenerative condition known as Toulouse-Lautrec Syndrome or Pycnodysostosis/Pycnodysostosis/PKND/PYCD, which made it difficult for him to walk.
According to the charity Metabolic Support UK, Pycnodysostosis is a condition caused by gene mutations, which creates an enzyme to breakdown substances likes bone proteins and types of collagen inside the body.
Usually, these substances will be reabsorbed back into the body, but those who suffer from this condition will not have these materials completely broken down.
Over time, they will cause a build-up in the body and become toxic which in turn affects both cells and tissues in the body.
Some of the more common symptoms include a shorter stature, a high forehead, abnormal pelvis bone and an abnormal collarbone, among other things.
Pycnodysostosis is an inherited condition, but carriers of the gene don’t have it because their other genes are working normally.
Therefore, Colum is likely to have inherited the gene from his parents if they carried the gene even though they didn’t have the condition.
There had initially been questions over whether Colum should lead the clan given his condition, however, he was chosen over Dougal to be the Laird.
This is a storyline likely to play out in the prequel series Outlander: Blood of My Blood, which will be airing later this year.
Despite the agony caused to his legs, Colum did use wine for pain relief and even paraded around the castle as a show of power.
In Outlander, Claire euthanised Colum after the pain became too much for him before the Battle of Culloden.
He had grown sick and the pain was too much to bear with Claire helping him with her medical knowledge.
Esteemed acting heavyweight, Lewis, 66, portrayed Colum across seasons one and two of Outlander before his character met his tragic demise.
Lewis was no stranger to screens before his role in Outlander, perhaps best known as playing the miner father to Jamie Bell’s titular Billy Elliot. He also had roles in Gangs of New York and Eragon, and Joyeux Noël.
Since leaving Outlander he’s starred in the likes of His Dark Materials, The Bay, The Level, One of Us and Frontier.
Most recently he’s appeared in Franklin, Vigil, Granite Harbour and Disney+’s A Thousand Blows in the role of Jack Mac.
According to IMDb, he will next be starring in North Pole: 90° North, I Feel Fine and The Undertow.