Duncan McLean (writer)
Encyclopedia
Duncan McLean is a Scottish
novel
ist, playwright
, and short story
writer.
and has lived in Orkney since 1992. While based in Edinburgh
in the 1980s, he started writing song
s, stand-up
routines, and plays
for the Merry Mac Fun Co, a street theatre
and comedy
act with agitprop
tendencies. The Merry Macs won various awards, and were twice nominated for the Perrier Comedy Award.
In 1992, McLean published his first book, a collection of short stories called Bucket of Tongues
, and since then has published several more books, including the acclaimed coming-of-age novel Blackden and a collection of plays, entitled Plays:One. Around this time, he also set up and ran the Clocktower Press, a small but influential publishing house, which helped bring a new generation of Scottish writers to wider attention. In 1995 he published the novel Bunker Man and in 1998 his travelogue Lone Star Swing was published, which saw McLean tracing the roots of country music precursor Bob Wills
.
In recent years, he has divided his time between writing, music
, and selling wine
. In 2006, he won the prestigious trade award, UK Restaurant Wine Supplier of the Year, and in 2007 founded the annual Orkney Fine Wine Festival, to date the only wine festival in Scotland.
Recent literary work includes a translation of Aalst
, a Belgian
play by Pol Heyvaert
, which toured the UK and Australia for the National Theatre of Scotland in 2007. McLean leads a western swing band called the Lone Star Swing band, which in 2009 and 2010 toured Scotland in a new McLean play, "Long Gone Lonesome." Telling the story of the reclusive Shetland musician Thomas Fraser, the play was produced by the National Theatre of Scotland
, and directed by Vicky Featherstone.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
ist, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, and short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
writer.
Life and works
Duncan McLean was born in FraserburghFraserburgh
Fraserburgh is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland with a population recorded in the 2001 Census at 12,454 and estimated at 12,630 in 2006. It lies at the extreme northeast corner of Aberdeenshire, around north of Aberdeen, and north of Peterhead...
and has lived in Orkney since 1992. While based in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
in the 1980s, he started writing song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s, stand-up
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a comedic art form. Usually, a comedian performs in front of a live audience, speaking directly to them. Their performances are sometimes filmed for later release via DVD, the internet, and television...
routines, and plays
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
for the Merry Mac Fun Co, a street theatre
Street theatre
Street theatre is a form of theatrical performance and presentation in outdoor public spaces without a specific paying audience. These spaces can be anywhere, including shopping centres, car parks, recreational reserves and street corners. They are especially seen in outdoor spaces where there are...
and comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
act with agitprop
Agitprop
Agitprop is derived from agitation and propaganda, and describes stage plays, pamphlets, motion pictures and other art forms with an explicitly political message....
tendencies. The Merry Macs won various awards, and were twice nominated for the Perrier Comedy Award.
In 1992, McLean published his first book, a collection of short stories called Bucket of Tongues
Bucket of Tongues
Bucket of Tongues is a collection of short stories by the Scottish writer Duncan McLean. Published in 1992, it was McLean's first book....
, and since then has published several more books, including the acclaimed coming-of-age novel Blackden and a collection of plays, entitled Plays:One. Around this time, he also set up and ran the Clocktower Press, a small but influential publishing house, which helped bring a new generation of Scottish writers to wider attention. In 1995 he published the novel Bunker Man and in 1998 his travelogue Lone Star Swing was published, which saw McLean tracing the roots of country music precursor Bob Wills
Bob Wills
James Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
.
In recent years, he has divided his time between writing, music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, and selling wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
. In 2006, he won the prestigious trade award, UK Restaurant Wine Supplier of the Year, and in 2007 founded the annual Orkney Fine Wine Festival, to date the only wine festival in Scotland.
Recent literary work includes a translation of Aalst
Aalst (play)
Aalst is a play by the Belgian stage director Pol Heyvaert. Based on real-life events that took place in the town of Aalst in 1999, the play recounts the murder of two children by their parents. It was originally performed in 2005 by the Ghent-based theatre company Victoria...
, a Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
play by Pol Heyvaert
Pol Heyvaert
Pol Heyvaert is a Belgian stage director and designer with long-standing ties to the Ghent-based theatre company Victoria.Pol Heyvaert has a long-standing relationship withVictoria...
, which toured the UK and Australia for the National Theatre of Scotland in 2007. McLean leads a western swing band called the Lone Star Swing band, which in 2009 and 2010 toured Scotland in a new McLean play, "Long Gone Lonesome." Telling the story of the reclusive Shetland musician Thomas Fraser, the play was produced by the National Theatre of Scotland
National Theatre of Scotland
The National Theatre of Scotland is a theatre company established in February 2006. The company performs in a wide range of venues including theatres, halls and found spaces across Scotland....
, and directed by Vicky Featherstone.