The Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (Scottish CND) has criticised as “outrageous” a stunt filmed for a TV programme which saw an operational nuclear-powered attack Royal Navy submarine surface in Scottish waters to ‘pick up’ civilian passengers.

The stunt saw British adventurer Bear Grylls surprise Hollywood actor Benedict Cumberbatch take part in a James-Bond like “mission extraction” aboard the Astute class nuclear submarine after it had surfaced off the Isle of Skye. 

The “extraction” was filmed for a new episode of survival skills reality TV series, ‘Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge’, which sees Grylls, a former special forces soldier, bring a different celebrity along on his adventures across the globe. 

In the episode, which aired in the US on Sunday on National Geographic TV, Cumberbatch and Grylls descended sea cliffs and faced waterfalls on a two-day excursion across Skye, before Grylls told the Sherlock star he had “one final little surprise that felt fitting for a Cumberbatch”.

Cumberbatch’s grandfather, Henry Carlton Cumberbatch, was an officer of the Royal Navy who served as a submarine commander before and at the start of the Second World War.

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The pair paddled off shore when they were picked up by a patrol boat which took them to the surfacing submarine, which they then boarded.

In an interview with USA Today, Grylls revealed that he wrangled the nuclear submarine for the episode ending after he was able to “call in a favour with the British Royal Navy”.

“It was hard”, Grylls said of the wrangling, which saw him work his contacts as an Honorary Colonel in the Royal Marines. "I put a call through to the head of the Navy and said, 'Do you think they could ever help?'"

The adventurer said the request was sent through formal Ministry of Defence channels, before it was ultimately authorised by the Ministry of Defence and Royal Navy top brass - in the form of First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Ben Key KCB CBE.

"I never thought we'd get it. But the timing was right," Grylls said, as the submarine was already heading to the area after a three-month patrol.

Production crews for the TV show were reportedly given specific timings of when the submarine would surface along with latitude and longitude points off Skye.

USA Today also reports that Grylls and Cumberbatch were granted ‘rare civilian access’ to the submarine, with Grylls saying the actor was blown away by “the reality of nuclear submarine life”.

Responding to the TV stunt, which USA Today dubbed a “nuclear submarine Uber lift”, Lynn Jamieson, Chair of Scottish CND, told The Herald: “It is outrageous to use Skye and a Royal Navy sub to support a macho stunt.

“Scotland carries the lion’s share of the risks of accidents and incidents presented by the Royal Navy’s nuclear-powered submarines. 

“Our coastline and seabed host war-fighting infrastructure that will be targeted in conflict, our waters are routinely used for sub manoeuvres to the endangerment of fishing vessels and our lochs carry the legacies of their discharges. 

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“Their missions are usually secret and yet is it possible for operational details and location to be shared in this way? If the slogan ‘Take the toys from the boys’ sometimes seems too simplistic a response to the military industrial complex, not this time.”

A Royal Navy Spokesperson said: “Running Wild was covered by a commercial contract and utilised a submarine which was programmed to be in the area.

“Whilst we do not discuss submarine operations, the area is routinely used for naval exercises.”

In October 2010, an Astute-class Royal Navy submarine from the same fleet as the vessel which took part in the stunt ran aground on a shingle bank off the Isle of Skye close to Skye Bridge.

The £1.2 billion HMS Astute, described at the time as the stealthiest ever built in the UK, was being put through sea trials and was not armed.

An official inquiry into the incident concluded that the flagship Royal Navy submarine ran aground because the officer on the bridge was not using the right radar, did not have a chart and was unused to navigating in the dark.

A crew transfer from the shore to the submarine was being carried out when the incident happened.

The report also said that the commanding officer failed to act on three separate requests from other officers to reduce speed and alter course, during an exercise in transferring personnel by boat to and from the submarine.

Speaking at the time, local lifeboatman Ross McKerlich expressed his amazement that the submarine went ahead with a crew transfer where it did. 

National Geographic TV have been contacted for comment.