BEST AUTHOR BEST : SAM HEUGHAN [ 2 ]

.-  Do you have a favorite travel writer?

Anthony Bourdain was the greatest.

.-  What books are on your night stand?

For “Embassy,” the TV show that I’m shooting, I have a few true-life military accounts ["Soldier 'I,'" "Break Point"], and books by Andy McNab ["The Rescue," "Seven Troop"].

Also a couple of books on Everest and the Himalayas, following my trip there, including a battered copy of "The Ascent of Everest," by John Hunt, that I found in a secondhand shop in the Swiss Alps.

.-  Tell me about Scottish writers who deserve to be better known.

We obviously have a number of well known contemporary Scottish writers from Ian Rankin to Irvine Walsh.

I also love the artist and writer Alasdair Gray. Years ago I did a live reading of script based on one of his many novels most recently, '' Poor Things '' was adapted for film and won multiple Oscars.

.-  Do you listen to audiobooks while hiking or exercising?

I can't get into audiobooks. I prefer to imagine the characters or voices myself. I have voiced a few books [ mine included ] and know how hard and time-consuming it is.

When hiking I like to enjoy the view and soak up the surroundings. I'd hate to miss out on the real experience.

.-  Where will you be watching the last episode of '' Outlander '' ?

I'm traveling from Cologne to New York for the season premier but will only be there briefly as I'm working. It will be great to watch the first episode with my castmates [ who are now family, whether they like it or not ] and the fans, who have mostly all read Diana Gabaldon's books.

What's exciting and nerve-racking is that we have had to deviate from the books and create our own ending.

.-  You're organizing a literary dinner party. Which three writers dead or alive, do you invite?

Shakespeare. A man who clearly loved a drink and a good story, who loved and lost.

Perhaps an astronaut [ Buzz Aldrin seems fun ] or Prof Brian Cox [ I'm fascinated with the science around our perception of space and time.]

The Scottish writer Val McDermid clearly has a vast creativity and understanding of Scotland's history and culture.

We would create a historical crime series together.

The World Students Society thanks The New York Times.