pretty huge and imaginative. It might involve the use of lights. slides or suspended objects. but whoever wins will have to be adaptable as the crane still has to be operable.‘
Mark Francis of Edinburgh's Fruitmarket Gallery. who is organising the Edinburgh competition. says he is hoping for something ‘really spectacular‘. He added that about £8000 is available for each project which allows for something rather substantial. Neither of the organisers expect a huge number of applications because of the scale of the operation but hope to have some really good ideas by the time the competition closes on 29 November. Further details from Mark Francis on 031 225 2383 and Andrew Nairne on 041 332 7521. Also see future issues of The List. POST CODES Stephen ()tterburn and Maureen Watson have come up with one of those ‘good‘ ideas that if it catches on looks set to turn another genteel act of friendship into a trivial pursuit.
Forget kind words on postcards. now its crosswords on Kluecards. The idea which has already interested London‘s Selfridges. consists of a pack ofeight original postcards and a crossword card.
i. ;- ‘3? .‘i. - «w s ‘1- J ‘ .-
.. F 3“ f ‘fi‘iulfiii Tweak . ' .
Each of the picture postcards — the first set is of Scottish scenes — carries a picture-related clue. Before posting the cards. you complete the crossword. and if you send the completed crossword card back to Otterburn and Watson. you may win a small prize.
Stephen Otterburn told Maureen Watson of his idea one night in the bar at Edinburgh‘s Filmhouse. and she who works in Edinburgh’s financial sector did the rest — including taking the photographs for most of the cards. The first pack can be found in Edinburgh‘s Waterstones. Romulus. and S.W.A.I..K. shops. and at John Smith and Son. Third Eye Centre and Just Write in Glasgow. and costs £2.50. For information on the
product write to PO Box 103. Easingwold. York YO 6 2EA.
ARCHIVE MAT
The Archives DepartEnBelnetli-f Dounreay Nuclear Power Station might not be the first place you would look for a playwright. But this is where Iain Sutherland. author of the Traverse‘s Christmas Show. The Silver Sprig is to be found. Mr Sutherland ‘an antiquarian at heart‘ takes his love of local history and
research well beyond the confines of the archives: a well-known local figure and founder member ofthe Wick Society. he has already written several books on local history and industry. The pantomime. though. — a musical fairytale ofgood and evil set in the Kingdom ofStrathgushel- was written on a whim provoked by a poor grade panto on TV: ‘I‘ve no desire to be a playwright. I just swore that day I would write one. I wanted to try and raise the standard of panto. Whether I’ve succeeded or not. time will tell.‘
The pantomime— or. more precisely. winter fairytale — contains aspects of local folklore and fairytale Sutherland feels have mostly been lost to public knowledge. ‘I was brought up in the old ways. with fairy tales and all that. It‘s always something that has appealed to me. So this contains a mix ofelements from fairy stories (and what I didn‘t know. I made up!). It was originally written in broad Scots— I had to rewrite it for a Southern audience.‘
By Southern. Mr Sutherland means Edinburgh. lie is a Caithness man. born and bred. and likely to remain so. despite debate about nuclear power safety. Asked whether events at Chernobyl have had an effect on workers at Dounreay he becomes good-humouredly categoric: ‘People working here see that Chernobyl was a quite different system with a different sort of reactor. Chernobyl could not happen here.‘ Though the Enquiry has made life as an archivist busy. Sutherland feels that most local people remain unaffected by it or by the Chernobyl incident: ‘People don‘t go about talking about Dounreay all the time.‘ He himselfis unlikely to be enticed South. whichever way the wind blows: ‘I ' never leave Caithness unless it‘s absolutely necessary. I‘ve managed fifty years up here so far — and I’ve seen nothing in the South that would attract me!’
He will however be making a rare sally forth later this month to discover whether his play achieves the desired effect on stage: ‘What I want is low-keyemotional riot . . .‘
The Silver Sprig opens at the Traverse
on 28 Nov.
CENTURY 0F FILM
As part of the Scottish Film Archive‘s tenth birthday celebrations. there will be a compilation screening ofScottish film over the past hundred years at the Glasgow Film Theatre on Thursday 27 November. There will be fourteen films in all during the two-hour show. Some. such as a clip from the 1890s which shows X-rays for the first time. are only a couple of minutes long. Others include Glasgow's Yesterdays. a collection of Glasgow scenes from the 1920s and the Oscar-winning Seaward the
tGreatS/zt’ps (pictured). a documentary about the shipbuilding on the Clyde. as well as a film about St Kilda. the evacuated island. The show begins at 8pm and further details can be obtained by phoning 0-11 334 931-1.
ALLSOP APOLOGY
Sorry to all of you who turned up to hear James Naughtie give the Kenneth Allsop Memorial Lecture in Edinburgh on Monday 3 Nov. The correct date was Thursday 13 Nov at 7.30pm. Lecture Hall A. David Hume 'l‘ower. Edinburgh University. George Square.
LETTERS
LIMITED ACCESS
RIAS Gallery..15 Rutland Square. Edinburgh. What a pity this public gallery is not open for the public. Mon—Fri. 9.30am—5pm — fine if you happen to work close enough to nip in at lunchtime. but impossible for most. Why not open at the weekend or after 5pm a couple ofdays a week‘.’ Particularly when the exhibition is as exciting as the current one. Berlin: lBA —The Regeneration of a City. Mark Cousins‘ delightful paintings of Berlin‘s new buildings are set Phoenix-like in the context of the war-ravaged city.
Yours faithfully
Candy Herrin Glasgow
RUTHLESS CRITIC
Three of us saw Ruthless l’eople last weekend — one was a distinguished ex-film critic.
We all laughed ourselves silly. I would recommend it to anyone with a sense of humour who doesn’t want to take life too seriously on a Saturday night.
I feel sorry for your critic writing in the last issue. How miserable his life must be! I was alarmed by his recommendation to urge only your worst enemy to go. Rubbish! 'I‘ell those you hate it’s horrible and those you love it‘s great.
Sincerely Stephanie Wolfe Murray Edinburgh
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