In the 2000s Briers was the curmudgeonly and extravagant father Hector MacDonald in the BBC television programme Monarch of the Glen (2000-05), appearing in series 1,2,3 & 7. He appeared in other programmes, see Later Career.
Word Origin and History for malleable Expand. adj. late 14c., capable of being shaped by hammering, from Middle French malleable and directly from Medieval Latin malleabilis, from malleare to beat with a hammer, from Latin malleus hammer (see mallet). Figurative sense, of persons, capable of being adapted first recorded 1610s.
Gold is the most malleable (something is malleable when it is easily beaten into a thin film) element there is. Just 1g of gold (the size of a grain of rice) can be beaten into a thin film covering 1 square metre.