hink about this \cnlcncc. Ax )ou i'cllcct on it. ll'x alt‘cad} ltixtot'}. somcthing )(ttl read that _\ou can't un-i'cad. a dccixion )ou look. But at lc'itxl _\ou can go back atid rcl'lcct oll \\ll_\ _\otl t‘cad it ;t lnoi‘c conli'ollahlc agcnc} than \\ hat _\ou rcad ncxt.
’l'hc [Mtxl ix important. And ncxci' nioi'c so than in thc \toi'k ol' .lohn By'nc. lot" 30 )c‘arx nou. By‘nc'x pi‘cscncc in Scottish thcati‘c has hccn iinincnsc. llc stands hcsidc thc latc .lohn .'\lc(it'ath as thc \\l'llCl' uho cllcctiwl} launchcd Scottish lhcatt‘c writing as \\'c' kno“ it toda}. By'nc marks a transition in Scottish thcatt'c. a
\xi'itcr uhoxc chai‘actcrx L'Ullll'UltlL‘tl issues ol
Scottish idcntit} in thc poxl \\;ll' pcl‘iod inorc cottlplclcl} than an} \\'l'llL‘l' hcl’orc him. Along
with .\lc(ii‘ath lthough in a coniplctcl) dillcrcnt \t}lcl By'nc \pokc ol “oiling claxx c\pcricncc through characters that \xci'cn't thc ll\ll;ll L‘llc‘llC\ ol' the thcatrc. 'l'hc tradition. \till \xidcl} uphcld toda}. ol' onl} t'cpi'cscnting “oiling class charactci's as cithci' a thrcat a drug addict. \‘iolcnt criminal or Pl'()\llllllc 7 or a ligut‘c of pit}
u'lltl c‘;l\l\ ntiddlc clam audicnccs in thc t‘olc ol‘
social \\Ul‘l\L‘l' incanx nothing to B}l'llc. llix charactcrx arc Incl}. ol'tcn llaucd. lull} llcxhcd indhiduals with thoughts of thcii' o\\n. By'nc axkx us to maminc thc innci' px) chologicx ol' hix working pcoplc. t‘athci‘ than ;l\\llmlllg. as \o much \xi‘iting on such c‘llill'itc‘lcl'\ tltk‘x. that thc_\
don't haw onc. and asking tl\ to pi'oicct our
llL‘lll'()\L‘\ onto thcni. And all lltix comm \xith a nil. humour and scnsc ol' pathos that much B)i'nc'\ \t}lc
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idcntil'iahlc u ithin a sentence. It also coincs with an acknoulcdgcmcnt ol‘ histon that rcndcrx his charactcrx indi\i\iblc t‘roin thcii' pasts. pcrsonal and political. l‘ior B}rnc. thc past ix tar from a \iniplc cxpcricncc ol noxtalgia. or thc kind of inanul'acturcd \c‘l‘\l0ll ol‘ thc past propagath by thc mass mcdia. lt l\. in fact. a place \x'c go to roson “here no arc toda}. an unidcalixcd tcri'itor}. containing both jo} and amict}. a mom ccnain \ignilict' ol' idcntit). good or bad. than our pt‘cwnt life.
For thix l‘L‘ltxttll. much of Byi‘nc‘s \\'Ul‘l\' conccrns looking back. lit lllx hcxt-knmx‘n pla)‘. Y'lir' S/uh Brim ll‘l78l thc l);tl\lc‘} lahric l'actot'y \\'Ul‘l\cl‘\ of thc titlc arc _\oung lncn on thc cusp of thc t'ock'n‘i‘oll rmolution. but cach r cwn at thc hcginning ol~ an adult life arc itll‘L‘iltl)‘ cxainining the past causalitiu that put thcm >
DANNY McGLONE
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Who? Danny. the youngest member of the band. Played by
Tom Urie. best known for his appearances in Chew/n' the Fat and The Karen Dunbar Show. What’s Danny’s story?
Tom Urie explains: “There's a lot of resentment
t wards Danny from the other band members. because he's 20 ,rears younger than them, and hasn't shared that past. He's come back from York, where he's done okay as a piano player. and he's initially iust there to attend his brother's funeral. He's lived in his big brother's shadow tOr so many years that he doesn't know what to do. He gets involved in a relationship with Suzr the new Singer. but the rest of the band can't stand him, because he's a newcomer. He's kind of baffled by the fact that they're so bitter ano angrvf
Who played Danny in the TV series? Ronnie Coltrane,
What happened to Robbie Coltrane next?
If you didn't see him on television in B/ackadder the Third. The Yoong Ones. several of the Comic Strip programmes 0r Cracker. yOu'll certainly nave seen him in films like Mona Lisa. The World is Not Enough and of ecurse his lovabl/ homble Hagrid character in the Harn/ Potter films. He also appeared recently in the Play. Pie and a Pint series at Oran Mor. Glasgow.
7-21 Sep 2006 THE LIST 19