December 2013 - The Diary

December saw me begin rehearsals in London for the Sell-A-Door Theatre UK tour for 2014. I am playing my hero, Alan Breck and now learning to wield the Highland broadsword for the brilliantly co-ordinated fight scenes.

I am delighted to have joined such a talented cast for this show and it has been a thrilling and utterly exhaustingly intense rehearsal period. Adding the movement sequences and singing and live music and we have a brilliant show to take to over 60 venues in 2014.

The show previews in the Greenock Beacon Arts Centre on January 16th before touring the UK until 6th June. Hope to see you all there!

Kidnapped - UK Tour 2014

Delighted to announce that I shall be playing Alan Breck Stewart, another of my heroes from history, in Sell-A-Door Theatre Company's production of 'KIDNAPPED', touring the UK in 2014. Directed by Anna Fox, this will be an exciting and thrilling retelling of the Robert Louis Stevenson classic novel.

The following dates and venues have just been released. I have performed in a few of these theatres before and really looking forward to playing in so many lovely venues with this excellent show and superb cast. Hope to see you there..!

16 Jan | Greenock, Beacon Arts Centre

17-18 Jan | Buxton Opera House

21-22 Jan | Newbury Corn Exchange

23 Jan | South Shields, Customs House

28 Jan | Uppingham Theatre

29 Jan | Liverpool, Capstone Theatre

30 Jan-1 Feb | Croydon, Fairfield Halls

4 Feb | Wellingborough, Castle Theatre

5 Feb | Grantham Guildhall

6 Feb | Stamford Arts Centre

7-8 Feb | Halifax, Victoria Theatre

10-12 Feb | Windsor, Theatre Royal

13 Feb | Leeds Carriageworks

14 Feb | Richmond, Georgian Theatre Royal

15 Feb | Welwyn Garden City, Hawthrone Theatre

18 Feb | Braintree, Arts Centre

19-20 Feb | Guildford, Yvonne Arnauld

22 Feb | Monmouth Savoy

24 Feb | Llandudno, Venue Cymru

25-26 Feb | Horsham, Capitol Theatre

3-5 Mar | Birmingham, New Alexandra Theatre

6-8 Mar | Swansea, Grand Theatre

10 Mar | Bathgate, Regal Theatre

11 Mar | Glasgow, Eastwood Park Theatre

12-13 Mar | Dunfermline, Carnegie Hall

23 Mar | Margate, Theatre Royal

27 Mar | Medway, Brook Theatre

28 Mar | Hexham, Queens Halls

29 Mar | Chesterfield, Pomegranate Theatre

30 Mar | Bracknell, Southhill Park Arts Centre

7-9 April | London, Greenwich Theatre

10 April | Dundee Rep

11 April | Musselburgh, Brunton Theatre

12 April | Ayrshire, Gaiety Theatre

13 April | Motherwell Theatre

6 May | Andover, The Lights

8-10 May | London, Hackney Empire

16 May | Peterborough, Key Theatre

17 May | Tewkesbury, Roses Theatre

20 May | Maidenhead, Norden Park Arts Centre

21 May | High Wycombe, Town Hall

23 May | Epsom Playhouse

24 May | Wolverhampton, Arena Theatre

26-31 May | Coventry, Belgrade Theatre

November 2013 - The Diary

November brought my London stage debut at The Lost Theatre and six excellent performances of THE MERCHANT OF VENICE which were well received and a wonderful experience all round. A cast trip to The Globe as well as further auditions & meetings made this a very successful trip south! Then back to Glasgow and the second day of filming on RUN with the Silly Wee Films team at Ruchill Park.

More castings and then The 48 Hour Film Festival in Glasgow. Our genre was 'buddy movie' and we got cracking on 'DIAL-A-BUDDY' straight away with writers Fraser Coull, Mark Harvey & the Creative Talent Connections team. We shot the film in a few hours and it was screened as part of the festival at the wonderful Glasgow Film Theatre on the 27th November.

I finally got to play James Bond in this funny wee short film, another career highlight! You can watch the film here:Dial-A-Buddy (2013) I also recorded the 'comedy' voice-overs and the film went down well with the audience of fellow film-makers. This is the third year in a row I have done this competition and relish the challenges it brings, trying to film a short of 8 mins in only 48 hours, as well as edit, sound and music composition. Great fun!

Delighted also with the first readthrough of my new play, RESTING by the cast of Attune Theatre Company, which Stewart Schiller will be directing in January 2014. It was thrilling to hear my words come to life, and especially in the hallowed halls of the Glasgow Citizens Theatre rehearsal studio.

October 2013 - The Diary

More travel and exciting auditions and commenced rehearsals for my role of The Duke in THE MERCHANT OF VENICE with Attune Theatre. Directed by Stewart Schiller the show has been truncated and set in 2013 Las Vegas. Our first preview night was on 28th October at Stereo in Glasgow

Now the show moves to The Lost Theatre in Stockwell, London. Great to be back on stage after 6 years in film & television and delighted to once again return to Shakespeare after a gap of 17 years!! Really looking forward to my London stage debut now as well and it's a cracking venue

In between a football trip to Vienna with the Scotland Writers FC and rehearsals for 'Merchant' I managed to squeeze in an episode of the BBC/Shed Productions WATERLOO ROAD in which I play a Pawnbroker in a nice little scene. Lovely to see so many familiar faces working on the show from the past and a really nice experience working again with Shed. Having tried out a few times for the show I was so pleased to finally work on it and return to my old family 'seat' of Greenock!

Pro - Celebrity Football

Football has always been a huge part of my life and I am loving being back playing in my 40s for the Scotland Writers FC and have taken part in numerous pro-celeb matches during my career. Most memorable include a Dukla Pumpherston v High Road Select XI at Almondvale Stadium many years ago, in which I scored against my old hero Alan Rough! In 2008 I was invited to play in goals for a Scotland XI v England XI as a curtain raiser to the U-16 international at Wembley Stadium!

We were managed by Peter Mullen and beat Sir David Frost's Anglo side 2-0 with superb goals from Darren Jackson and Martin Compson. Here's the lads just before kick-off..and before 25000 fans arrived. Thanks to Joe Miller for adding me to the squad...We are the first Scotland team to win at the new Wembley!!

In 2012 writers Alan Wilson and Doug Johnstone started an international team to represent Scottish writing talent and I was honoured to join them, once again in goals! We beat the England Writers FC 4-2 on the anniversary of the first ever international and played at Hamilton Crescent, Partick, site of the ancient battle, to lift the inaugural Hamilton Crescent Cup. This was subsequently lost in January in a murderous 0-5 drubbing at The Somme,Chelsea...!

In October 2013 we were the guests of the Austria Writers FC in Vienna and in an epic match defeated them 3-1 and had an absolute ball in this great city. We look forward to the Scottish return matches against Sweden, England & Austria in 2014. I was mercifully replaced in goals, but still managed to give away a (soft) penalty...!

September 2013 - The Diary

Busy month this! More tv castings and then a welcome meeting with Attune Theatre and a part in THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, an old favourite of mine. This time I am playing The Duke and delighted to get back onstage for the first time in 6 years! We also half completed RUN, another excellent supernatural short film penned by Mark Harvey & Fraser Coull. We aim to complete this in November.
                                         

August 2013 - The Diary

Back to BBC London for a couple of really exciting auditions early August, before the terrible waiting game of waiting to hear if you had landed 'the big one'. I usually give it a week, then assume it's a no. In this case I was correct unfortunately! But good contacts made & delighted with the chance to try out for big tv shows, so all pretty positive. Pleased to make the cover of ONE YEAR LATER which has

gone down really well at various film festivals over the summer! So am now hitting the gym hard every day to get into 'Game Of Thrones' shape in the hope of getting seen for OUTLANDER, which promises to be the biggest thing shot in Scotland since Braveheart/Rob Roy and Trainspotting in the 90s. I have been devouring the novels recently. Episode 1 is based on Cross-Stitch, which I have reviewed on my 'Reading List' page. Stirring stuff!

Get Shirty

My writing and directorial debut was filmed in July 2013 as part of the Virgin Media Shorts scheme.

I was lucky enough to inherit a stellar cast of young Scottish talent to appear and a tightly-organized crew who thrive under pressure and work really well collaboratively.

Ryhs Williams and Mark Wood,along with Nico McKeown were superb in this twisted little comedy.

Shot this one in 6 1/2 hours and many thanks to Blackfriars Bar and to Sharon for allowing us to use their properties for the world of GET SHIRTY. A second project for Thistlewood Film Studios. Huge thanks to Fraser Coull and the crew at Silly Wee Films for their help and support and thrilled to have my directorial debut!

July 2013 - The Diary

Off to a flying start this month with 3 short film roles for the Virgin Shorts scheme. First up was THE WHITE LIGHT CO. directed by Julie D Dunn in which I play a slightly malevolent Doctor..

We set out to shoot three films in 2 days. Next up was Drew Taylor's VANILLA. Again I brought a slightly diabolical air to my character of the Ice Cream Seller. Great fun shooting these 2mins 20 secs shorts in and around various locations in Glasgow.

And then it was my turn to direct my own script of GET SHIRTY with the same excellent crew. I played the part of George, one of the lead character Tommy's friends as he meets the girl of his dreams...A good start to the month. Then it was back to the audition trail to London.

Writing

I have completed the feature film screenplay THE CLANSMEN and submitted to the BBC Writer's Room in March 2013. Recently completed the 2nd draft of THE YOUNG PRETENDER, a theatrical musical and my comedy play RESTING, which has been entered into the Verity Bargate Award at the Soho Theatre, London.
My first script GET SHORTY, a short film with a wicked twist has now been filmed and with me directing! This is a co-production between Thistlewood Film Studios and Silly Wee Films, backed by Creative Talent Connections in Glasgow. GET SHIRTY is my entry for the Virgin Shorts Scheme in July 2013.

June 2013 - The Diary

Decided this month to give up my full-time job and devote the rest of the summer to getting myself Acting work in London. A brave or foolish choice..? Time will tell...Meantime, more film work in Glasgow with Silly Wee Films and THE INTERROGATION for the Virgin Shorts competition.

Then, audition pieces from Richard III learned and off to London for a succession of meetings. Quite a lot happening now and looking forward to dusting off the old RP and getting stuck in to some meaty parts!

May 2013 - The Diary

Another tough month of travel, but managed to get away to Greece for a week's holiday..much needed! Straight back to work though with some excellent short films, starting with some filming in Fulham on DEVIL'S FUGUE which was top fun and really good cast and crew. Some interesting work which will hopefully do well in the various film festivals around the world.

Back to Scotland for some corporate voice-over work with Fraser Coull and a short horror film entitled 6TH SENSE shooting up some zombies and finishing off a really productive little month with a music video for Henrietta DeFreitas. Quite a varied range of projects and keeps you on your toes!! bring on the summer...Check out Red Ink Media and Silly Wee Films websites for updates on this month's projects.

Been getting stuck back in to a stage script adaptation I have been working on for 6 months but it's tough going. writing requires such time & discipline but I have broken the back of it all now, so onwards and upwards. Have high hopes for this badboy!

So 5 months in (and now 40 years old!) I am pretty happy with the way this year is going work-wise and really pleased with the range of diverse projects I'm grafting on. Really enjoying being part of the company that Silly Wee Films have put together this year and looking forward to working with them again in June for their entry into the Virgin Shorts scheme... Good to see Jason Isaacs' CASE HISTORIES back for a second series as well. Hopefully Kate will write some more mayhem for Paul Bradley to create in a future series!

April 2013 - The Diary

A month of travelling, auditions and filming. Signed up with Billboard Personal Management and delighted to join Daniel's band of actors! Well worth suffering a 0-5 drubbing at the England Writers FC hands in our international at Chelsea as Dan was in the England team!

Did some more voice-over work as well as playing a Doctor in ONE YEAR LATER with an excellent cast and crew. Got high hopes for this one! Again lots of travelling up and down the UK in search of work but well worth it...

Biography 1973 - 2013

1973 - 1983 I made my first appearance into the world on the 5th of May 1973 and grew up originally in Hardgate, just outside the Glasgow city boundary. My big cousins Christian & Nick lived nearby and we had an excellent few years there. Hardgate had a wee village feel to it and rolling hills behind. We moved to Scotstounhill and a new large group of friends & playmates. It was here I think I first showed signs of a theatrical bent as I was dressed as a different character every day.We formed our own army,a football team and I vividly remember the 1978 World Cup as well as long car journeys to Cornwall for holidays in the summer. One day we found a dead body in wasteground beside our house. I ran to get the police and my Dad who is a police surgeon.Later that day a police Murder Caravan was set up and I was given a police hat by one of the investigating officers. I wore a hastily put together police uniform, my outsized hat and stood guard outside our house til bedtime.I was convinced the police was the career for me...alongside professional football. And the army. Little did I know I would spend most of my future screen career running away from the cops! I went to Corpus Christi school and then to St Aloysius College where all of my uncles and grandfather had gone. I loved it and gathered a group of friends who are still close to this day.

1983 - 1993 Much to the despair of my parents my schooldays at St Aloysius had become a social

club and I was revelling in the move from the primary at Langside to the secondary in Hill Street, bang in the city centre of Glasgow!I had played for the First XV at John Ogilvie Hall and continued to play rugby and football into upper school. I had played footie for Knightswood Juveniles and then moved up to Clydebank FC and had a decent season in their Under 15s.I was playing rugby in the mornings as well for the school and it was too much. I developed a bone problem in my knee which scuppered my football dreams but continued with rugby.I captained my year's Cricket team and broke into the St Aloysius Cricket 1st XI when still in 1st year.In my last year I played for the First XV at rugby, First XI at football & 1st XI at Cricket al in the same year, but by then I had started..Acting..It was the 500th Anniversary of the Jesuits Society and to celebrate I made my debut in front of 500 priests and Cardinal Winning in THE STRONG ARE LONELY as Father Provincial. Shortly afterwards I played the Reverend Mercer in Laurel Bank's WHEN WE WERE MARRIED. I had been attending Dorothy Paul's acting studio at weekends in the summer and got my first agent, Freddie Young. Castings for LEAVING, DRAMARAMA and ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE followed and I decided to make a career of it, heading to Motherwell College for an NC Drama & Theatre Skills course.I had started getting extra work in TAGGART and did six in a row as a policeman,ironic, as I had been 2 weeks away from basic training at Tullieallen for Strathclyde Police-My Plan B..! By now I had my landed professional acting work in corporates and a MILK Advert as well as more theatre jobs and was starting to break through. I qualified from the course, but it ended tragically with the murder of my classmate Amanda Duffy,a nightmare only exacerbated with the 'Not Proven' court verdict afterwards.

1993 - 2003 I had started to do a lot of theatre work now and did three excellent shows with Paul Moore's Tram Direct company. This led to a couple of Mayfest shows and then to Rubber Ear's GLASGOW HARD TICKETS and an Edinburgh Fringe First Award in 1995. I moved to Andy Arnold's Arches Theatre Company and performed in CALIGARI before breaking my Shakepearean duck and playing Bassanio in THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. I was still doing little bits of tv and film extra work and was invited to do a fight scene in TRAINSPOTTING by Bobby Carlyle who had been helping me get a leg up into the business.More advice followed from David Hayman, then directing FINNEY and from John Murtagh at Borderline. I remember going to see Raindog's WASTED at The Arches and thinking..'THIS is it..this is the sort of work I want to be doing'. Glasgow had an excellent theatre scene then but I was soon to land a bit part in Scotish Television's HIGH ROAD. A few weeks later I was back there and landed the part of Paul Lafferty in HIGH ROAD, my home til 2001.This was my real education into acting for camera and learning the disciplines and additional skills required for the medium. From then on it was good parts in TAGGART and THE GRANTON STAR CAUSE and MONARCH OF THE GLEN as well as voice-overs which became a lucrative sideline. I had small roles in THE FOOTBALL FACTORY and US feature POSTMORTEM, starring Charlie Sheen. I moved to London in 2000 following HIGH ROAD's Millenium Special and started working at A1 Vox studios in Soho. I shot a music video in New York and a Celtic documentary in Spain and changed agents to PLA in London. Still playing football I turned out for Birkbeck University in the leagues for 3 seasons and loved playing at Arsenal and Chelsea's training grounds then dragging opposition teams to our 'home' ground of Hackney Marshes! I had become an ex-pat Tambo for real..!

2003 - 2013 I returned to Scotland to shoot INSTANT CREDIT and then voiced television and cinema commercials for THE TERRATORIAL ARMY and ARMY OFFICER. I decided to set-up my own production company. We produced Des Dillon's SINGIN I'M NO A BILLY,HE'S A TIM as a touring theatre show and funded by the Scottish Executive and Sense Over Sectarianism we toured Scottish schools and then Northern Ireland with the PSNI. The adult show ran for two years and is still touring to this day. We worked with Marc Pye on getting a HIGH ROAD stage show up and running but despite getting the theatrical rights to it we couldn't get it quite ready enough to go on. But I've still not entirely given up on that one! We then opened up a fashion store, Zico Fashion Boutique in the West End of Glasgow and this wee cult shop was open for 4 years, moving to Queen Margaret Drive from Ruthven Lane. Parts in HOPE SPRINGS and RIVER CITY followed and I worked on lots of short films from new young film makers in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Wales and played a variety of roles in different genres. I had now begun writing screenplays as well as theatre plays and musicals and learning this very different craft! I'm hoping this will pay for my old age! Low budget feature films followed and I enjoyed myself immensely on FAST ROMANCE, NIGHT IS DAY and A SPANKING IN PARADISE, which is the film where I felt I did my best ever work. I was invited to play for the Scotland Celebrity XI by Joe Miller(Ex-Celtic FC) and joined my illustrious teammates at Wembley to defeat Sir David Frost's England XI 2-0 in front of 25,000 fans! My love-affair with the game caused me to buy Third Lanark and I am still actively involved in this to the present day. Back to tv and I was cast in HOW NOT TO LIVE YOUR LIFE and a rare departure into comedy, something I have never really 'cracked' before. In 2010 I played the hitman Paul Bradley in the excellent Jason Isaacs drama series CASE HISTORIES and revelled in the role. I formed Thistlewood Film Studios in 2012 and will be producing my own work and investing in new talent coming through. And I'm still playing The Beautiful Game with the Scotland Writers XI.....!!

Press

I was delighted and honoured to be included in Jeff Holmes recent book celebrating 10 years of BBC Scotland's RIVER CITY. I loved my time in Sheildinch and would relish a return to that excellent back lot and studios. RIVER CITY is an important show for up and coming Scottish talent as HIGH ROAD was for me 15 years ago. It also gives established actors decent characters and memorable storylines to get their teeth into and I hope the show runs easily as long as HR did. Working on a 'soap' or 'returning drama serial' is hard work, (believe me!) and the cast and crew on this one work hard to keep it going and to keep it fresh for the audience. I was delighted to see so many familiar faces in the crew from my Glendarroch & Glenbogle days now working in Shieldinch..brought back many memories!Jeff's book, 10 YEARS OF RIVER CITY is available in all good bookshops now!

Following our opening night at Greenock for KIDNAPPED we received a lovely 4* review from the Glasgow Herald. I was honoured to be compared to a young Ian Cuthbertson, with whom I once worked on a script reading of Sergio Casci's feature film, 'THE STRAWBERRY WHISTLER' which became 'AMERICAN COUSINS'. Huge thanks and much respect to Neal Cooper for the comparison!

Kidnapped  

The latest production from Sell A Door Theatre Company - has been touring the UK since January. As the production enters the second part of it tour, the team caught up with Simon Weir from STV's High Road and the BBC's Monarch of the Glen who is bringing the famous Alan Breck to life.

Where have we seen you before Simon?

 I played the village bad boy, Paul Lafferty in STV's long-running series High Road from 1996-2003. Taking over the garage from Gary MacDonald. My character was involved in many dodgy schemes such as selling illicit booze, steroids, ram rading with a fire engine and even ended up in jail for beating his girlfriend Sally McGann.I was also in series 3 of Monarch of the Glen, where I appeared as Stuart MacIntosh, a local dodgy building contractor who conned Hector into selling off plots of the Glenbogle estate, whilst romancing Lexie and falling foul of Archie.

When did you start acting?

I started acting at 12yrs old, when I attended Dorothy Paul's Acting School in Glasgow. I then signed with the Freddie Young Agency and auditioning for roles in Leaving, One Foot in the Grave and landing commercials (with Vincent Regan). I decided to make a career of it after watching a TV series with Iain Glen, The Fear, in the late 80s. I got to work with Iain Glen on Glasgow Kiss and ironically am now playing Alan Breck in Kidnapped which Iain Glen played on TV in 2005.

What is like being on stage again?

I am thrilled to return to the stage after 7 years and to have landed the role of Alan Breck in Kidnapped is a personal dream come true. One of my favourite historical characters and my childhood's most prized novel! The Sell A Door production has all the elements of the book and terrific performances from the cast, with rousing jacobean live music, adventure, singing, puppets, a riveting central narrative and is a fast-paced adaptation by Ivan Wilkinson. And of course there's plenty of swashbuckling sword-fighting from a certain...Alan Breck.

Kidnapped also stars Stewart McCheyne, Lesley Cook, Christopher Anderton and Jamie Laird.

The production is Directed by Anna Fox, Designed by Richard Evans and Lighting Designed by Charlie Morgan Jones.

For more information visit www.selladoor.com.

Voice Overs

It was my HIGH ROAD co-star Iain Andrew who first got me into doing commercial voice-overs in 1996. Radio Clyde were first to hone my vocal talents, where my Trainspotting demo of 'Choose Life..' ensured me a future in the sound booth industry! Head Of Commercials Dan at Clyde and Producer Stephen were really encouraging at the time, Dan's desciption of my voice was 'The Poor Man's Ewan McGregor..!' I took that as a compliment and I have managed to continue doing some really interesting voice work over the years.

I have worked on television and radio adverts for Rangers FC, The Scottish Executive,The Terratorial Army, Army Officer, SPT, Motherwell Beer Festival, Verve, Motorolla, The Daily Record, The Scottish Daily Mail, The Sun, The Sunday Express, The Evening Times, The Glasgow Herald, Larry's Laminates, Reg Vardy, Arnold Clark, Cardonald College, Reid Kerr College, Weir Nissan, GWR, Scotrail, National Express, Thompson Wheelchairs, The Glasgow Pram Centre, The Kings Theatre, The Pavilion Theatre, Scottish Prison Service, Safeway International Women's Football, The Scottish Central Government, Amazonia M&D Theme Park, Claims Equilibrium Club & Totem.
In the last few years I have narrated videos for the Mal Milap Centre,East Fortune Air Base & an AICR Corporate Film as well as having performed in Sandy Nelson's BALTAMIRE on Radio Scotland. Thanks to Charles Nove at A1 Vox in Old Compton Street for regularly using me at his famous wee studios in London over the years as well as all the Scottish stations and studios who have bent over backwards to accommodate me every time.

Whilst the money may have fallen out of the ad industry it still remains the bread and butter for many actors and is a useful tool to keep your reflexes sharp & to learn another concentrated discipline. I have now recorded over 800 voice-overs and I am still learning!And I am STILL cheaper than Ewan McGregor...

Here's a wee example of my VO work in 2013:
Simon Weir Voice Over

Monarch Of The Glen

In 2001 I was cast as Stuart MacIntosh in MONARCH OF THE GLEN. It was the 3rd series and I played a clan rival who was hoodwinking Hector(Richard Briers) out of buildings on his land - for a very low price! Stuart then became enamoured with the feisty Lexie (Dawn Steele) and all of this combined to give Archie (Alastair MacKenzie) some sleepless nights!Stuart also attempted to woo Stella (Alexandra Galbraith) whilst attempting to build a holiday village on Ben Bogle. He was imprisoned in the castle dungeons before being found out by Lexie and battered with flowers! When Hector discovered a long-lost tunnel and historical artefacts under the planned development it was curtains for Stuart...!
This was a superb show to be a part of and to work with the likes of Susan Hampshire, Richard Briers & Julian Fellowes was a dream come true. I learned a lot from this show and have to thank Dawn for campaigning on my behalf to get the role. For such a huge show the cast & crew were incredibly warm & welcoming and I had some memorable moments in my time in Glenbogle!
As a postscript, I was so sad to hear of Richard Briers passing recently and cherish the cards we exchanged over the years. Believe me a long morning drive to location in Newtonmore in the company of Messrs Fellowes & Briers is an experience one will never, ever forget. I also got to whizz around the Highlands in a lovely wee red MG and work in the most stunning scenery you can imagine...despite the midges..!

High Road

I first appeared in Scottish Television's long-running 'soap' HIGH ROAD as a Rough Raver in a party scene in 1995, with the immortal line "How Man, Gonnae chill out,eh?" A few months later I was invited in by Producer John G Temple to have a chat about a new bad boy character they were introducing. After a quick chat about the storyline I met Producer Liz Lake and a week later found myself filming my first scenes in Glendarroch..! Paul Lafferty was to become my alter-ego for the next 8 years and the character I am still most closely identified with. Lafferty was a motorcycle-riding leather-clad hoodlum with a rich father and a head full of scams. He soon teamed up with Chic Cherry at the garage and romanced half the village. Lafferty was dealing drugs, doped with steroids, ram-raiding with fire engines and selling illicit booze in his girlfriend's nightclub. He was drugging Trish MacDonald (Natalie Robb) whilst romancing Sally (Cat Evans) before Trish got wise and drugged him back, leaving him dying in a gas-filled cottage. Saved by Victor (Iain Andrew) and Trish's father, he was soon incarcerated for beating up Sally. He returned to more heroic storylines, preventing a rapist and winning the Ben Darroch Hill Race-without steroids! The show celebrated it's 25th anniversary with the cast naming a train at a ceremony at Central Station and yet weeks later we were informed it was all over. The show ran until 2003 and I am immensely proud of my time there and the cast were superb to work with. I still miss these days and the crew who became like a second family to me. HIGH ROAD was a huge part of Scotland's television cultural history and I feel sure one day it will be revisited.

March 2013 - The Diary

March has seen two auditions for London short films and a couple of commercial castings in Glasgow, so lot's of travel..again. Did some filming on a corporate for the Bell Group and still to record the v/o this week. Researching & writing a new play at present. Managing ten pages per day on average so happy enough but a huge edit coming up! Have been redrafting my tv and film scripts for sending to the BBC Writer's Room by the 28th so a busy old month...Just managed to get my Feature Film script of THE CLANSMEN in on time..fingers crossed.A huge thanks to Linda Wilson for typing up my scribblings and helping with the format so quickly.

The Acid House

 

In 1996 I wangled an audition for the part of TAMBO in a television version of Irvine Welsh's THE GRANTON STAR CAUSE. Following my brief appearance in TRAINSPOTTING in the pub fight scene I was thrilled to get this role and work with a really talented up-and-coming cast and crew on this one. TAMBO was an orange & lemonade man, a proper striker who steals Boab's place in the team and then his girlfriend. I based my TAMBO on a combination of Mo Johnston & Frank McAvennie(circa 1985)..hence the shorter than shorts, blond highlights and flapping boots tongue!The film went down a storm, became a cult video & caused arguments in the House Of Lords and outrage everywhere for it's depiction of Maurice Roeves GOD as a vengeful jakey..! The film was a success! As a result it was made into THE ACID HOUSE TRILOGY and released in 1997, featuring Ewan Bremner and Kevin McKidd in the The Acid House & A Soft Touch, directed by Paul McGuigan. I still prize my Granton Star football shirt & Diadora Cabrini boots in my collection at home!

Reading List

In a feature shamelessly stolen from the excellent Eric Idle's blog I thought I'd share my current reading list with you all. This is aimed at actors and writers and is just a suggestion of some of the plays, biographies, film & theatrical books that have really helped me over the years, ever since John Murtagh, Actor & Director at Borderline Theatre Company gave me 'A Bluffer's Guide To Acting.." many, many years ago when I was just starting out ! Over the years I have amassed a library of over 2000 books. Here are my latest acquisitions, check them out if you get the chance :
    

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POSTCARDS - (Annie Proulx) - July 2014 - A present from my book-mad sister, this bleak tale of the lonelyVermont countryside and 40 years in the wilderness for the central character of Loyal Blood. Having just finished Sunset Song recently this reminded me very much of it. Same love/hate relationship with the land and the sheer effort and misery of trying to eke out a wartime living. Sublime read.

A BROKEN WORLD - (Sebastian Faulks) - July 2014 - I have been researching our family's links to WW1 and this riveting book of soldiers and others caught up in the events of 14/18 is a poignant and moving read. Again amazingly well researched and beautifully put together book and read this one in a matter of hours!

HIGHLANDER - History of The Highland Soldier - (Tim Newark) - June 2014 - Spellbinding history of individuals and regiments raised from the Highlands of Scotland since the Civil War. Beautifully written and researched and contains some fantastic tales of bravery and sacrifice as well as explaining the political background to most of the encounters.

GONE GIRL - (Gillian Flynn) - May 2014 - Soon to be released as a film this was excellent reading! A missing wife and errant husband and the unravelling of a marriage, told partly in real-time and partly in flashbacks through the wife's diary entries. Clever use of various styles and very filmic so little wonder the movie is due out soon!

THE PSYCHOPATH TEST - (Jon Ronson) - April 2014 - Read this with a growing terror as I crossed off most of the questions and answers! Mercifully there is a line..If you're reading this and worried you're a psychopath...you're not. The relief! Brilliant book, fascinating topic and will make you view the world differently... maybe.

SHERLOCK HOLMES - AT THE VARIETIES - (Val Andrews) - April 2014 - Bought this wee volume on tour in Chesterfield at a book fair and loved it. Andrews returns Holmes & Watson to the Music Hall and is a great story concerning murderous intent on a young star of the reputedly haunted House On The Green.

LAST WALTZ IN VIENNA - (George Clare) - March 2014 - I read this voraciously on tour of KIDNAPPED and reminded me of the wonderful time I spent in Vienna last year. Superbly written, desperately sad story of a Jewish family destroyed by the rise of the Nazis and the outbreak of war. Clare's descriptions of 19th Century imperialist Austria and the sights, sounds and white uniforms of the army brought this period to vivid technicolour. I adored this book.

THE GOLDFISH CLUB - (Danny Danziger) - March 2014 - Continuing my interest in all things RAF and was intrigued by these personal accounts from airmen(and Richard Branson!) from all eras and their tales of crashing into the sea. Fascinating and brave men and all honoured to be members of such a prestigious 'club'. My paternal grandfather was a member of the 'Caterpillar Club' for those shot down who made their way back!

THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE - (RL Stevenson) - March 2014 - Picked up a lovely copy of this classic in Horsham whilst touring KIDNAPPED. I remember being enthralled with the evil brother The Master as a kid and enjoyed reading it again. Delighted to see Mr Alan Breck popping up again on page 55 and again a little extra nugget to add to my own research of this wonderful character.

LOST VOICES OF THE RAF - (Max Arthur) - March 2014 - Loved these sometimes harrowing tales from RAF members from the inception to the Gulf War. The bravery and sheer horror of it all has stayed with me as I am researching my own grandfathers' RAF WW2 service in Bomber Command and Coastal Command. Check out my blog on Lancaster PB265 for more info.

WOULD YOU KILL THE FAT MAN? - (David Edmonds) - February 2014 - Another superb gift from my father for Christmas and the great pholosophical quandry of what to do in various scenarios, based on the 'Trolley Problem' with fascinating historical examples to highlight these very situations. In answer to the title, No I would not, but I do understand why the skipper ate the cabin boy...!

THE GOLDEN RULES OF ACTING - (Andy Nyman) - February 2014 - Picked this little gem up on tour with KIDNAPPED and have been quoting from it ever since. Just superb and underlines so much of what I have thought and discovered throughout my own career. A must buy for anyone even thinking about becoming an actor and well user-friendly!!

CATRIONA - (Robert Louis Stevenson) - December 2013 - Again as part of my research into Allan Breck this follow up to KIDNAPPED was devoured in days! The final appearance of Alan in literature and the story of the Campbell trial of James Of The Glen and the fugitive James More, again mixing fantasy and history in Stevenson's own inimitable style. Tremendous.


THE APPIN MURDER - (Seamus Carney) - December 2013 - Brilliantly researched and well written true story of the most famous unsolved murder in Scottish history. Features accurate descriptions of Allan Breck and James Of The Glens and vividly recounts the famous mistrial and execution of an innocent man.

WAVERLEY - (Sir Walter Scott) - December 2013 - Required reading for me as I delved once again into the world of the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion with KIDNAPPED. The classic story of a young English soldier caught-up in the revolt and captivated by the wild Highlanders he encounters. Vital in my research of the Battle Of Prestonpans and beautifully written by a master storyteller.


FOUR MAJOR PLAYS - (Henrik Ibsen) - November 2013 - In preparation for a possible audition I read this collection of Ibsen classics, including GHOSTS, currently about to transfer into the West End. Really enjoyed this and looking forward to seeing it. A tale of society's hypocrisy which shocked Victorian audiences when first performed.My kind of play!

PIMP - (Iceberg Slim) - November 2013 - With a fascinating foreward by Irvine Welsh, this is a true American classic. The true story of the pimp game in 40s USA and written in street slang of the era. I could not put this down and can imagine this as a brilliant Blaxploitation movie. If Quentin Tarantino is reading this...get that book!

KIDNAPPED - (Robert Louis Stevenson) - November 2013 - Every 6 years or so I return to this novel. Whilst researching the Jacobite period I re-read this classic tale again. The story of David Balfour and Alan Breck's escape from the redcoats is as vivid and electrifying as they were when first published. In my view, Stevenson was Scotland's Shakespeare and this is the evidence. Superb. In an amazing co-incidence I then auditioned for Sell-A-Door's tour of the show in London whilst working on The Merchant Of Venice!

THE HOPE THAT KILLS US - (Various) - November 2013 - Published by Freight, this is a book of football related stories in Scotland. Superb in every way. Alan Spence, Denise Mina, Gordon Legge and others, but Andrew C Ferguson's 'Nae C**t Said Anyhin' is my favourite short story. Memories of the Austrian Writers team yelling this in Vienna will stick with me always. Proper cultural exchange!

THE FIERY CROSS (Diana Gabaldon) - October 2013 - Another epic journey with Jamie & Claire Fraser as the action moves to North Carolina and some old faces reappear! Expat community of Scots settling in The Americas and superbly researched once again. The action clicks along relentlessly and this book alone would be an excellent movie. The tv show is in production now..!

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE (William Shakespeare) - October 2013 - Time once again to do this one onstage as I played Bassanio in 1996 with The Arches Theatre Company. Now I am to play The Duke and loved going back into the world of Venice and Belmont once again. Touring from October 2013.

BETWEEN THE ASSASSINATIONS - (Aravind Adiga) - October 2013 - Having been to this part of India I adored this book and was instantly transported again to the sounds and smells and sights that ONLY India can display. Set in Kittur, near Goa, the characters are defined in a paragraph and each tale, sadder and more unfair every time really gets to the heart of the caste system and the gulf between the rich and the poor in this enormous country.

KING LEAR - (William Shakespeare) - October 2013 - In preparation for an audition at The National Theatre it was time again to absorb this, one of my favourite plays of all time. Some wonderful speeches and characters and action, bothshocking and horrifying in equal measure.

PAST IMPERFECT - (Julian Fellowes) - September 2013 - Superb tale of Damian Baxter and his trail of destruction through the last days of the debutante season, at it's height in 1968. Brilliantly written and reeks of the end of a way of life, of a world far more glamorous and removed from the present. Having worked with Julian on 'Monarch Of The Glen' I can hear his voice on every page! Thrilling.

SHAKESPEARE - (Martin Fido) - September 2013 - Epic tome devoted to the life of The Bard, set against the backdrop of the history of the time as well as sections on The Problem Plays, Histories & Commentaries, The Globe and the characters and influences behind Shakespeare's writing. Necessary reading when embarking on these plays again.

DRUMS OF AUTUMN - (Diana Gabaldon) - August 2013 - The next book in the OUTLANDER series sees our heroes in frontier America in 1767. Thrilling and again wonderfully researched and pulls together further strands of the story together, with the usual quota of birhs,deaths & marriages and sheer bloody excitement, following o from Voyager. Another superb read. Finished it 'verra,verra' quickly and off to buy the next one! What a series this could be!!

ZUGZWANG - (Ronan Bennett) - August 2013 - Set in one of my favourite periods, 1914 St Petersburg and Tzarist Russia, this thriller by Irish writer Bennett is brilliant. It follows the story of Dr Otto Spethman, a psychoanalyist and his disturbing new patients and uses the game of chess to illustrate the narrative. Clever and dark, this has twists and turns at every corner. Loved it! Would make an excellent tv film.

THE YEAR OF THE KING - (Anthony Sher) - August 2013 - Possibly the best book ever written about the playing of a single character and one year of a top theatre actor's life in the 80s. Have had to re-read this as research and it's tortured musings on what choices physically and emotionally, in tone and in 'not doing Olivier' is fascinating. The author struggles to find the correct deformity and fills this excellent book with scribblings, sketches & theatrical tales from the likes of Michael Gambon.

VOYAGER - (Diana Gabaldon) - August 2013 - Addictive. The action moves to Jamaica and the high seas with the aftermath of Culloden, imprisonment and pirates...What more could you want? Again, took me three days to read 1059 pages. Utterly absorbing stuff. Wrinkly skin from hours of reading in the bath and now the action moves to Georgia.

DRAGONFLY IN AMBER - (Diana Gabaldon) - August 2013 - Raced through the next installment and really impressed by the research and care that went into this. Clever plot has the lead characters 20 years later and the 1745 Rebellion in full. Great to see the almost forgotten Prestonpans battle featuring heavily as I have been a bit obsessed with that one and spent a lot of time in East Lothian. Superb!

CROSS STITCH - (Diana Gabaldon) - July 2013 - In the hope of an audition for this upcoming series being filmed in Scotland this autumn I instantly fell in love with these books! I am a bit of a Jacobite history buff and this combines my favourite periods in time, 1945 and 1743. Read this in three days, utterly absorbing and loved the fact that the Jamie character uses my ancestors name of MacTavish..!

CRIME & PUNISHMENT - (Fydor Dostoyevsky) - July 2013 - Meaty old tome this one! Bought in preparation for The Citz production later this year, but unfortunately this is fully cast. Battled through it though and intrigued by Raskolnikov and his evasion from the law following an existentially driven double murder. On reflection I should have bought 'The Idiot' instead...

REHEATED CABBAGE - (Irvine Welsh) - July 2013 - Picked this up in the Hippy Bookstore in Brixton, purveyors of excellent & hard to find books! Loved this and great further reading on the likes of Carl Ewart(N-Sign) and the fantastic Juice Terry Lawson. Really nice touch was the 'Blackie' story and his moralising crusade to Miami. Incongruous and hysterical setting and an excellent read.

A POSITIVELY FINAL APPEARANCE - (Alec Guinness) - July 2013 - Whimsical and beautifully written anecdotes by one of the greatest actors to creep the boards. His 3rd autobiography and his recollections of wartime theatre and of his career are fascinating and the whole thing is tinged with a sadness of an actor retired. Brilliant.

THE GOLDEN KEEL - (Desmond Bagley) - June 2013 - Based on the true story of Mussolini's Missing Treasure...I adored this old book. It was another 10p purchase from the charity shop. This would be a fantastic feature film and crosses the continents from South Africa to Italy and back again. Great central 'goog guy' character of Hal and various well-written villains. Out in 1963, am surprised it hasn't made it to the big screen.

THEATRE LORE - (Nick Bromley) - June 2013 - The best alternative theatre dictionary I have read for years and bang up to date! Funny and informative and a nice addition to my theatrical collection! Good forward from Mr Callow too..

BEING AN ACTOR - (Simon Callow) - June 2013 - Had to re-read this one again whilst in London. This copy was sent to me many years ago by the author and inspires and terrifies me every time I lift it up. Vital reading for actors of any age!

RICHARD III - (William Shakespeare) - June 2013 - My favourite of the classics and so many excellent scenes for an actor. Adore the opening speech and how the plot unravels as The Duke Of York manipulates his way to the throne. Brilliant.

EDWARD II - (Christopher Marlowe) - June 2013 - In advance of a trip to The National I romped through this excellent play, chronicling the life and loves of the much-maligned monarch, forever in his father's shadow. Due for a revival soon and would KILL to play Lightborne (Lucifer) the eventual killer...

LAURENCE OLIVIER - (Donald Spoto) - June 2013 - Excellent huge tome on the life of the great theatrical knight. Superbly researched and a serious biography! I am fascinated by theatre and early filmmaking and the birth of quality television and am still in awe of how much of Shakespeare's dialogue he could retain at once. Bought this book for 10p in a charity shop. Now that is value for money!!

THE LOST WORLD - (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) - June 2013 - Picked-up an excellent reprint of this old favourite recently and was once again swept up in the story as I was when I first came across the epic tale as a young fella. I think I enjoyed it even more this time.Absolutely superb original tale with superbly drawn characters and a romping good read..

THE THIRD POLICEMAN - (Flann O'Brien) - June 2013 - Given to me by ma wee pal Heather Stewart I devoured this madness in 3 days. Surreal in the style of Joyce but a black-humoured joy of a tale. Murder, guilt & bicycles..it has it all. Reminded me of my favourite The Master & Margerita. Get it read!

GLUE - (Irvine Welsh) - June 2013 - Back to my favourite author's rich back-catalogue for this 'middle tale' in the pantheon. The prime reason to mine as much info about Juice Terry,a part I was born to play and the cast includes the birrells, Ewart as well as Renton & Franco & Murphy's cameos.

THE ASCENT OF RUM DOODLE - (W.E.Bowman) - May 2013 - A funny and long-forgotten novel of the spoof 1937 mountaineering tale. Central Narrator Binder's increasingly baffled scribblings of the attempt to scale the Himalayan fictional peak of Rum Doodle. Loved every one of it's 171 pages and Bill Bryson's excellent foreward. An unknown classic this one, Monty Python meets Everest...

ALEC GUINNESS - THE UNKNOWN - (Garry O'Connor) - May 2013 - Summer reading in Zante for this one and a really interesting exploration into this most private of men & one of my favourite actors of all time. Still trying to get over the image of Obi wan lusting after C3PO...Read the book, you'll understand!

TERRENCE RATTIGAN - (Geoffrey Wansell) - May 2013 - A camp and theatrical feel to my reading list this month with Wansell's exposition of a very secret and talented playwright, one of my favourites..A theme is emerging here! Superbly researched and a fascinating look nto the theatre and film world of the 40's onwards. Great to see interest in his plays resurface and as we speak The Winslow Boy is on in the West End.

CAPITAL (John Lanchester) - April 2013 - Excellent storyline of the mysterious goings-on in Pepys Road, South London and brings the city vividly to life. Loved this and read it in a few days. Would make a good wee 2 part BBC series.

THE SIMPLE TRUTH (David Baldacci) - April 2013 - Described by the Independant On Sunday as 'a plot strong enough to make the bath go cold around you'..Amen to that, I nearly froze to death. Another cracking legal adventure from the author of 'The Camel Club'.

HEMINGWAY'S BOAT (Paul Hendrickson) - March 2013 - Superb biography of one of my literary heroes, all related to his adventures onboard his beloved boat PILAR. A fascinating read.

MICHAEL PALIN DIARIES 1969-79 (Michael Palin) - Feb 2013 - Inspired me to keep up my own diary and to beaver away at my own writing projects. Interested to note we share the same birthday..Quite a cathartic read as I'm turning 40 this year!

PORNO (Irvine Welsh) - Jan 2013 - What better way to kick off a new year than in the company of Sick Boy, Spud, Renton & Begbie. Re-reading this and praying I get the part of Juice Terry Lawson when Danny Boyle makes this Trainspotting sequel in 2016...Spice Ay Life!

VANISHED YEARS (Rupert Everett) - Dec 2012 - Achingly truthful latest tome from the film actor which begins and ends in my beloved Jamaica. Read this in days.Could not put it down. Rivetting and quite moving experience. Determined to read more of his caustic scribblings soon.

FIRST LIGHT (Geoffrey Wellum) - Dec 2012 - This is as close to being in a Spitfire during the Battle Of Britain than you will ever get. You can smell burning oil and cordite from this tale and a magnificent read and a story so well told.My mum bought me this one..my favourite Christmas present this year!

TOMMY COOPER (John Fisher) - Nov 2012 - Loved this book as it too was an honest and well-researched, knowledgable tome on the late,great Magician. Heavy focus on the magic part which is great as it was overshadowed by the comedy, but this is a great chart of the rise&decline of an international superstar.

FROM THE ELEPHANT TO HOLLYWOOD (Michael Caine) - Oct 2012 - Picked this one up in a bookshop in Balham.Read it voraciously as I have become a huge fan of Sir Michael recently. This is a good read in his own words and his voice is as clear as a bell on every page. Found myself reading this in Michael Caine's voice.