Sally Kellerman's adopted daughter Claire Kellerman has sued a Scottish community-run cafe, claiming she was discriminated against after her assistance dog was refused entry.
Claire Kellerman, the adopted daughter of late MASH actress Sally Kellerman, has become embroiled in a bitter legal dispute on a remote Scottish island after suing a community-run café over her Australian cattle dog, Tarkina, which she says is an assistance dog. The case has left two local community organisations facing mounting legal costs. Kellerman, 62, moved to the Hebridean island of Great Bernera in 2023, seemingly seeking a quieter life after a difficult personal history. Great Bernera, located off the western coast of the Isle of Lewis, is home to around 250 people and is known for its white sandy beaches, remote landscape and ancient history. Kellerman describes herself as a mystic healer and songwriter. She says she moved to the island because she wanted peace and hoped to use her skills in Celtic mystic healing to help others. “I live here because I am a songwriter, and have skills in Celtic mystic healing of trauma, and I can help facilitate people's healing,” she told the Daily Mail. “I have only moved here in peace and to share the joy.” However, her relationship with the small island community has deteriorated dramatically.
Dispute began over her dog
The conflict centres on Tarkina, Kellerman’s Australian cattle dog. Last summer, Kellerman attempted to take the dog into a cafe operated by the Bernera Community Association (BCA) in the island’s main settlement of Breaclete. She claims she was confronted by staff because dogs were not permitted inside the café. “They were screaming at me, ‘Get out! We can't have dogs in here. It says no dogs allowed on the cafe door’,” she said. Kellerman maintains that Tarkina is an assistance dog and that she should therefore have been permitted to enter. After the dispute, she brought a legal action under the Equality Act 2010, claiming she had been discriminated against because of her disability. The case is expected to be heard at Stornoway Sheriff Court next year. Kellerman says she has been disabled since October 27, 2015, but has declined to publicly disclose the specific nature of her disability, describing it as connected to severe childhood trauma. “A person doesn't have to look disabled to be disabled,” she said. She also rejected claims that she has used her dog to intimidate local businesses. “I have been targeted. I have not weaponised my dog, my dog is there to support me,” she said.
Community groups face legal bills
The dispute has expanded beyond the cafe itself, with two local community organisations now facing financial pressure over legal proceedings. Kellerman’s lawyers initially pursued the Great Bernera Community Development Trust, which she says was involved in the dispute but was not the correct defendant. The trust successfully defended itself and was left with a reported £7,500 legal bill. However, because Kellerman has legal aid, the organisation was unable to recover its costs from her. The Bernera Community Association has also become involved in the wider dispute and has launched an appeal for financial assistance. Its fundraiser has reportedly raised more than £20,000, although a source claimed the organisation could require at least £60,000 in legal costs if it wins and potentially twice that amount if it loses. The situation has prompted concern among local politicians. Scottish Labour MSP Donald MacKinnon has called on the Scottish Legal Aid Board to review the decision to grant Kellerman legal aid, describing the case as potentially devastating for the small community organisation. “This absurd case is putting the survival of their organisation at risk,” he said. The Scottish Legal Aid Board, however, said Kellerman’s application had been handled “in line with all legal aid rules and guidance”.
Kellerman says she is the victim
While some island residents have accused Kellerman of behaving aggressively, she strongly disputes their characterisation of her. Speaking to the Daily Mail, she described the campaign against her as a “witch hunt”. “I've been attacked in church and on the streets,” she claimed, recounting encounters with residents who questioned her disability and her decision to remain on the island. She also rejected suggestions that she is bullying members of the community. “The narrative says I'm aggressive, because I am 5ft 10in and I am loud,” she said. “You know, that feels threatening to someone who's trying to break the law.” Local shopkeepers, however, have offered a very different account, describing her as “rude”, “aggressive” and “threatening”. One shopkeeper said they were frightened by the prospect of further legal action. “I’m just petrified of her, I’m petrified of what she is capable of doing, legally wise,” the shopkeeper said.
Her connection to Hollywood actress Sally Kellerman
Kellerman’s background has added another unusual dimension to the story. She is the adopted daughter of the late actress Sally Kellerman, best known for playing Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan in the original 1970 film MASH. However, Sally was actually Claire’s maternal aunt. Claire was born to Sally’s older sister, Diana, and Scottish academic Ian Graham. Diana later gave up contact with her daughter, agreeing not to see Claire until she turned 18. Sally eventually adopted Claire after Ian became seriously ill with Parkinson’s disease and could no longer care for her properly. Ian died in 1976, shortly before Claire’s 11th birthday. Sally later wrote about Claire’s difficult childhood in her 2013 memoir, Read My Lips: Stories of a Hollywood Life, describing how loss had shaped her young life.
A privileged Hollywood upbringing
Despite the trauma she says she experienced as a child, Claire grew up in a financially comfortable Hollywood household. Her younger stepbrother Jack told the Daily Mail that Sally and her husband took care of all three children and provided them with a privileged upbringing. He recalled family trips, including skiing holidays in Sun Valley, Idaho, and said the family even flew Claire’s boyfriend out to join them. “They were there for all of us, no matter what,” he said. He also recalled Claire as being spiritual, interested in nature and focused on health, but said her relationship with her adoptive parents was complicated. “We are not close. We don't speak much,” he said. Jack said he had not been in contact with Claire since she moved to the Hebrides but was not surprised by the latest dispute. “She’s always been the kind of person who likes to make small issues into big ones,” he said.
Claire says she has found healing
Kellerman’s life before moving to Great Bernera included a variety of careers and interests. She reportedly spent time working with dogs belonging to Hollywood celebrities, including Julie Andrews, experimented with opera and worked in land management in Hawaii. She also developed an interest in spirituality and what she describes as Celtic mystic healing. She says therapy has helped her process the abandonment she experienced as a child, as well as several deaths within her family. “I was five. Like I was bonded to this woman, and she just left. Never wrote. Never called. Never postcarded,” she said of her biological mother. Kellerman says she was angry for years but now views her mother’s actions with compassion. “I was angry for 20 years, but now I see her pain and her trauma through my own lens of my healing and I have nothing but compassion for all of them,” she said.
A quiet island home turns into a legal battle
Kellerman insists she has no intention of leaving Great Bernera. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said. For the small island community, however, the dispute has become far more consequential than a disagreement over whether a dog should be allowed inside a cafe. With legal proceedings still ahead and community groups raising money to cover their costs, the clash between Kellerman and her neighbours is now set to continue in court.
