The acclaimed playwright, performer and author, Alan Bissett, has started gigging again following a move to Lochwinnoch and the birth of his second child. Words by Nadine McBay. Alan Bissett published his debut novel Boyracers soon after graduating from the University of Stirling. The Pink Floyd super-fan grew up in Hallglen, the Falkirk housing...
Read MoreOne of the UK’s foremost soul and disco DJ’s, we spoke to Paisley native Al Kent about his origins as a mod, how he entered the club world and more. What was your gateway into soul music? “I was still at school at the time. My generation were the second wave of mods from...
Read MoreMeet an award-winning ceramicist who creates narrative illustrations on porcelain. In a converted farmhouse just outside Lochwinnoch, Wendy Kershaw appears to be enjoying an idyllic life combining work with feathered domesticity. When we call her in her workshop, she reveals she’s not alone: “Two pheasants are watching me from outside as I haven’t put...
Read MoreBest known for playing Methadone Mick in Still Game, the Paisley-based actor opens up about the highs and lows of working within an unpredictable industry. Scott Reid has St Mirren to thank for his career. A keen footballer, he had a trial for the team as a teenager. As he recalls, “They said to...
Read MoreBrian Whittingham is the recently-appointed Renfrewshire Makar. Peter Ross accompanied him on a poetic perambulation. Bunnet pulled low against the wind off the water, his one good ear alert for the passing muse, Brian Whittingham, shipbuilder turned poet, leads the way along the riverbank to a boundary of his realm. We pass oystercatchers, joggers...
Read MoreTony Fitzpatrick interview by Paul English. When Tony Fitzpatrick stood at the top of the Love Street terracing as a 12-year-old boy, he had a vision. “I knew this is where I wanted to play football,” says the Buddies’ Chief Executive half a century later, having not only played for, but managed, the team...
Read MoreThe SNP MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire South, Mhairi Black was elected while still a student at the University of Glasgow. Words by Nadine McBay. In May of 2015, Mhairi Black became the youngest person to be elected to the House of Commons since the 1830s. Still the ‘baby of the House’ at the...
Read MoreAn award-winning jazz musician and dedicated community activist, Evelyn Laurie is one of Paisley’s most prominent creative figures. What inspired you to start the #PositivePaisley campaign? I’m a Paisley buddy, but I’ve lived and studied elsewhere. When I moved back to Renfrewshire in 2010, I was quite dismayed at the way Paisley had become...
Read MoreArtist Caroline Gormley, co-owner of Made in Paisley, talks to us about her art gallery, community workshop and studio in the heart of the town centre. What’s the thinking behind Made in Paisley? We want to make art accessible to local people, not just professional artists. We sell vouchers for all our classes, and...
Read MoreA senior Scottish Government figure is spearheading plans to transform Paisley’s future. She tells us more in this exclusive interview. You can’t keep a good town down. When Paisley lost its bid for UK City of Culture 2021, the story was far from over. On the contrary, it marked the beginning of a cultural...
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