Latest news with #RestlessNatives
Glasgow Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
New musical adaptation of Restless Natives coming to Glasgow
Restless Natives, featuring well-known Scottish stage talent, will run at the King's Theatre in Glasgow from June 24 to 28. Leading the cast are Kyle Gardiner and Finlay McKillop, who will bring to life the iconic characters of Will and Ronnie, also known as The Clown and The Wolfman. They will be joined by Olivier-nominated Kirsty MacLaren, who will play tour guide Margot. The ensemble cast also includes Robin Campbell, Ailsa Davidson, Caroline Deyga, Stuart Edgar, Sarah Galbraith, Ava MacKinnon, Alan McHugh, and Harry Ward. Read more: Popular singer-songwriter coming to Glasgow as part of UK tour Restless Natives: The Musical has been produced and directed by the original team behind the 1985 cult classic film, in collaboration with co-producers Perth Theatre. The story follows Ronnie and Will, who, tired of their mundane urban lives, become the Highland Highwaymen. They soon gain international fame by charmingly robbing tourists on buses. Tour guide Margot believes these modern-day Robin Hoods can restore national pride. However, with the authorities hot on their trail, their story takes an intriguing turn. Read more: American musician coming to popular Glasgow venue - Here's when The production, which features music inspired by the spirit and songs of Big Country, is written by Ninian Dunnett, Michael Hoffman, and Andy Paterson, with Tim Sutton composing the score. The musical is designed to captivate both fans of the original film and new audiences alike. For more information and to book tickets, visit the ATG tickets website.
The Herald Scotland
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
The projects transforming Edinburgh's cultural landscape
A cultural revolution stretching across the city will involve a rolling programme of openings of new and reborn venues embracing almost every imaginable art form. Significant gaps in the city's cultural infrastructure will be tackled by some projects, while others will see the future of some of the city's most important landmarks secured. The changes are expected to help the city attract a host of performers and companies who would otherwise bypass the city, as well as encourage a greater geographical spread of the city's festivals and events. The first taste of what is to come will unfold this weekend in Leith Theatre, when the venue reopens for the first time in nearly three years to host performances of a new musical inspired by the classic Scottish film comedy Restless Natives. A 'pop-up summer season' of shows, which also feature a stage adaptation of Leith-born author Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting sequel Porno, was announced shortly before an announcement that the National Lottery Heritage Fund had pledged £4.5 million to get a long-awaited full-scale refurbishment off the ground. The building was originally a gift from Edinburgh to Leith following its controversial amalgamation in 1920, although the venue did not open until 1932 and was forced to close in 1941 after almost being destroyed by a bomb blast during the Second World War. The Leith Theatre Trust launched in the wake of a campaign more than 20 years ago and successfully thwarted city council plans to sell off the building, which closed in 1988 due to its declining condition. Leith Theatre has been reopened on a temporary basis for events like the Hidden Door festival since 2017. (Image: Chris Scott) More than two decades after the original campaign and eight years on from the first of a series of temporary openings for events, including Hidden Door and the Edinburgh International Festival, the trust has also finally secured a 50-year lease from the city council, which was seen as critical to unlock the long-term revamp. Leith Theatre has not been open as a year-round venue since the 1980s. (Image: RYAN BUCHANAN / LEITH THEATRE) Trust chief executive Lynn Morrison described the funding breakthrough as a 'zeitgeist moment' after years of behind-the-scenes efforts to get a refurbishment off the ground. She told The Herald: 'It allows us to develop a plan that celebrates this beautiful building design and original intent while preparing it for its future life. 'By celebrating both heritage and innovation we are creating a space that honours its past while we head full steam in to our exciting future. 'Leith Theatre's potential is extraordinary. It's a space where music, performance and community activity can coexist. This building is and will be for everyone – a cultural treasure on your doorstep.' Edinburgh's reborn Filmhouse cinema is due to open to the public on June 27. (Image: Filmhouse) The campaign to reopen the Filmhouse on Lothian Road may not be as long as the one to bring Leith Theatre back to life, but its supporters will finally be able to celebrate its return this month, after nearly three years of efforts to bring the art house cinema back to life. The Filmhouse had been running for more than 40 years when its doors suddenly closed in October 2022 after its operating company went into administration. Both the cinema and the Edinburgh International Film Festival, which was also run by the Centre for Moving Image, ceased trading with immediate effect. The campaign to bring Edinburgh's Filmhouse cinema back to life saw images of classic films, including Gregory's Girl, projected onto the building. (Image: PA) Within weeks, a Save the Filmhouse campaign was up and running, while a group of former staff launched a bid to raised £2m to buy the building from the administrators after it was put on the open market. Although initially unsuccessful, the four-strong team led by former chief executive Ginnie Atkinson persuaded Caledonian Heritable, the Edinburgh-based bar and restaurant operator who snapped up the building for £2.65m, to agree to negotiations over a potential lease agreement to bring the Filmhouse back to life. Their new charity, Filmhouse (Edinburgh) Ltd, would go on to secure a 25-year lease, and £1.5m in funding from the UK Government to pay for a refurbishment which was seen as critical to the future success of the reopened cinema. A crowdfunding campaign supported by screen industry figures like Jack Lowden, Alan Cumming, Ewen Bremner, Kate Dickie, Charlotte Wells, Dougray Scott, Brian Cox and Emma Thompson has generated £325,000 to date. The fundraising is expected to continue after the planned public opening date on June 27, with a second phase of work expected to add a fourth screen to the venue later in the summer. New seating has been installed in the three screenings rooms, which will have a lower capacity but more leg room, while the much-loved café-bar Ms Atkinson said: 'The whole place is looking absolutely gorgeous. All the seats are in, the café-bar has been completely redone and the foyer looks amazing. It really will be a different place. 'We're really pleased and happy. It's been a long haul, but the reason Filmhouse been sustainable is because we've had so much support from our audiences. 'We also hope that a lot of new people will come and experience Filmhouse for the first time once we reopen.' Although the finishing line will not be reached till next year, the next capital project to completed will be the biggest ever refurbishment of the King's Theatre since it opened in 1906. Laurence Oliver, Noel Coward, Maggie Smith, Simon Callow, Maria Callas, Ian McKellen, Rikki Fulton, Chic Murray, Stanley Baxter, Harry Lauder, Sean Connery, James Corden and Cillian Murphy are among the famous names to have performed at the venue. However, it was said to be at increasing risk of closure without a full-scale refurbishment, which was first explored more than 20 years ago. The revamp, which has been delayed by around three years by the Covid pandemic and a rise in costs, from an estimated £20m in 2018 to more than £40m currently, is finally due to be unveiled in the spring of 2026 ahead of the Edinburgh International Festival returning in the summer. Key improvements include the installation of lifts to improve accessibility throughout the building, refurbished dressing rooms, bar and foyer spaces, the installation of a new 'fly tower,' a new stage and backstage area, a new ground-floor café and box office, and a new studio space. Work is underway to turn the former Royal High School building on Calton Hill into a new National Centre for Music and concert venue. (Image: Richard Murphy Architects) The next big project due for completion after the King's is expected to be the National Centre for Music, the project which will finally bring the long-running saga over one of Edinburgh's most prominent landmarks to an end. Work is well underway to transform the former Royal High School building on Calton Hill into a new National Centre for Music and concert venue after decades of discussion and debate about what it should be used for. The project will open up the A-listed building - last in permanent use when the school relocated to a new site in 1968 - and its grounds to the public throughout the year, is being pursued after a number of previously proposals for the building, including a parliament building before the 1979 devolution referendum, a luxury hotel and a National Photography Centre. (Image: Tom Stuart-Smith Studio) The National Centre for Music, which emerged out of plans to relocate an independent music school to the site, will have three indoor performance spaces and the first new public gardens in the city since the creation of Princes Street Gardens more than 200 years ago. It is one of two city centre cultural projects being bankrolled by Scotland's biggest arts philanthropist, Carol Colburn Grigor, through her Dunard Fund charity, which has committed at least £45m to the £69m project. The National Centre for Music is planned to be 'busy day and night,' with rehearsals, recordings, workshops and performances from orchestras, bands, choirs and small ensembles. The main hall will be able to accommodation audiences of up to 300, while two smaller spaces will each have a capacity of around 100. Chief executive Jenny Jamison, who is planning for a summer 2027 opening, told The Herald that various enabling, investigation and clearing works were currently being carried out in and around the site to allow the main construction work to get underway within the next few months. She said: 'We want this to be a place that celebrates the full richness of Scottish music-making, across all genres and across all levels of experience. 'You might come here to try out an instrument for the first time or you might come here or listen to a top artist. 'We want it to be a place where people are exposed and up-close to music-making and that the inspiring interaction hooks them in to explore further. 'The centre will offer really complementary new infrastructure to what already exists in the city. 'Our main hall will be at a really nice level for an emerging artist looking to step on to a bigger stage, but equally for established artists who are wanting to do something a bit more experimental.' Edinburgh's new indoor concert arena is due to open by 2028. (Image: AEG Europe) Concerts and events of a completely difference scale are to get underway less than a year after the National Centre of Music's planned opening. The first quarter of 2028 is now earmarked for the opening of a long-awaited new indoor arena for the city. AEG, the company behind The O2 in London, is spearheading the 8500-capacity complex, which is expected to host up to 150 shows and attract 750,000 ticket-holders a year once it is up and running. Edinburgh is due to get a new 8500-capacity indoor concert arena by 2028. (Image: Canva) The project, which is earmarked for a new 'urban quarter' already taking shape in the Edinburgh Park area, was backed by the city council a year ago after decades of complaints from music fans in the capital about having to travel to Glasgow or England to see the biggest names in the music business. Alistair Wood, executive vice-president of real estate and development at AEG Europe, told The Herald: 'Securing planning permission last year allowed us to move ahead with our plans, from progressing design work to entering discussions with contractors and sub-contractors. 'We have funding in place, and now we're in the procurement phase. Once we have a final design, suppliers and contractors we'll break ground. We hope to begin construction early in 2026. 'We're excited to start the build process as soon as possible so that we can bring world-class acts to Edinburgh. We're hoping that the new arena will open its doors during the first quarter of 2028, with fans able to purchase tickets to the first shows during 2027. 'We've initiated discussions with a range of brands regarding naming rights opportunities. As expected, there's been strong interest in what is set to become one of the UK's most iconic venues. 'While we're still three years away from opening, these conversations mark the early stages of an exciting journey.' Edinburgh's first new concert hall for a century is due to be created in a gap site off St Andrew Square by 2029. (Image: David Chipperfield Architects) Back in the city centre, a gap site in the New Town, just off St Andrew Square, has already been cleared for what will become Edinburgh's first new concert hall for a century, which is pencilled in for a 2029 opening. The project is the second in the city centre being bankrolled by the Dunard Fund, this tune to the tune of £35m. Another £45m worth of private donations are said to have been pledged to date, with a further £25m in total committed by the Scottish and UK governments, and the city council. The Dunard Centre is due to open in the heart of Edinburgh's New Town in 2029. (Image: David Chipperfield Architects) First announced almost nine years ago, the Dunard Centre will be created on the site of former Royal Bank of Scotland offices, which were built in the 1960s behind Dundas House, the historic building which was acquired in 1825 for the bank's new headquarters and is still the registered head office. The 1000-capacity all-seater venue will provide a year-round home for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and become one of the Edinburgh International Festival's key venues. The Dunard Centre is being designed by the award-winning British architect David Chipperfield and the world-leading Japanese acousticians Nagata, for the company's first venue in the UK. The venue is expected to host combines classical, pop, rock, folk, jazz and electronica concerts, as well as spoken word events. Chief executive Jo Buckley told The Herald: 'Edinburgh is a cultural capital, but that is only going to keep being a cultural if it keeps investing in that future. 'We have astonishing venues in the city, but they are not modern purpose-built concert halls. The Dunard Centre is about what the city already has. 'There have been a raft of reports showing the need for a mid-sized concert hall in Edinburgh – it's the gap in the market that we don't have. 'There is a whole range of artists who are just not coming to Edinburgh at the moment. They are coming from the United States or Europe to do a gig in London, but don't come up to Scotland. 'The infrastructure is missing but also missing is a promoter curating a programme that brings together quality and diversity in the one place. A lot of Scottish artists are going elsewhere to perform but I don't know that we are seeing the return traffic as much as we should be. 'I think people will travel to Edinburgh for the building and its acoustics, as I don't think you will get better sound anywhere else in the UK.'
Glasgow Times
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
Martin Compston news, interviews and updates on the actor
He joined Aberdeen's youth team as a teen and then signed professionally with his hometown club, Greenock Morton. He made two substitute appearances in the 2001–02 Scottish Football League season before stepping away from the game to pursue acting. Compston during a training session at Champneys Tring ahead of the Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2024 match (Image: Nigel French/PA Wire) Compston's first attempt at acting was for Ken Loach's Sweet Sixteen which launched his career. Read on for all the latest Martin Compston news, interviews and updates. Latest Martin Compston news As reported by the Glasgow Times, here is a selection of the latest Martin Compston news stories. First look at Martin Compston in hit ITV drama Red Eye Martin Compston revealed worst thing about his 41st birthday Plush Renfrewshire hotel visited by celebs reopened after makeover Martin Compston's wife Martin Compston is married to Tianna Chanel Flynn, an American actress. They tied the knot at his family's chapel in Greenock in 2016. They have a son together. Martin Compston and his wife Tianna Chanel Flynn (Image: Newsquest) Martin Compston new series Compston is set to feature in the second series of hit ITV drama Red Eye alongside Jing Lusi, who returns as DS Hana Li. ITV shared a first look at the new series on social media (Image: ITV) The thriller was one of ITV's top 10 dramas of 2024 and saw more than eight million viewers tune in with 29.3m streams on ITVX. The actor was also recently seen in Amazon Prime's Fear, a three-part psychological thriller which was filmed in Glasgow. The show had its world premiere at the Glasgow Film Festival in February and was released on Prime in March. Martin Compston in Fear (Image: Kirsty Ellis/Prime Video) The series is about a family who are 'pushed to their absolute limits'. It also stars Anjli Mohindra, Solly McLeod, and Dumbarton's BAFTA-award-winning actor James Cosmo, among others. Martin Compston movies and TV shows Martin Compston is best known for his standout roles in hit TV series and popular films. His popular TV series include his role as DI Steve Arnott in Line of Duty and Ewan Brodie in the beloved BBC show Monarch of the Glen. Some of his movies are Sweet Sixteen, The Wee Man, and Mary Queen of Scots. Martin Compston's height Compston is 5′ 8. Martin Compston's age Martin Compston turned 41 on May 8. What football team does Martin Compston support? Compston is a Celtic fan. The actor partied with Hoops players after they won the Premier Sports Cup Final in 2024. Martin Compston podcast Martin Compston co-hosts the Restless Natives podcast with broadcaster Gordon Smart. The weekly podcast was launched in August 2022, where the duo set themselves 'missions', inspired by the 1985 Scottish film Restless Natives, where they plot new schemes for fun and laughs. Where does Martin Compston live? The actor lives with his wife and son in Las Vegas. He also owns a flat in Greenock to be near his parents on trips back home. Martin Compston Norwegian Fling Norwegian Fling is a six-part BBC Scotland travel series in which Compston and Phil MacHugh retrace Norway's length, from Oslo to the Arctic Circle, on a 2,000-mile road trip. The pair dive into modern Norwegian culture, from roller-skiing and sky-jump zip-lining near Oslo to crowd-surfing at a Black Metal gig and getting up close with a wolf in the wild.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Martin Compston news, interviews and updates on the beloved actor
Martin Compston is a Greenock-born actor and former professional footballer. He joined Aberdeen's youth team as a teen and then signed professionally with his hometown club, Greenock Morton. He made two substitute appearances in the 2001–02 Scottish Football League season before stepping away from the game to pursue acting. Compston during a training session at Champneys Tring ahead of the Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2024 match (Image: Nigel French/PA Wire) Compston's first attempt at acting was for Ken Loach's Sweet Sixteen which launched his career. Read on for all the latest Martin Compston news, interviews and updates. As reported by the Glasgow Times, here is a selection of the latest Martin Compston news stories. First look at Martin Compston in hit ITV drama Red Eye Martin Compston revealed worst thing about his 41st birthday Plush Renfrewshire hotel visited by celebs reopened after makeover Martin Compston is married to Tianna Chanel Flynn, an American actress. They tied the knot at his family's chapel in Greenock in 2016. They have a son together. Martin Compston and his wife Tianna Chanel Flynn (Image: Newsquest) Compston is set to feature in the second series of hit ITV drama Red Eye alongside Jing Lusi, who returns as DS Hana Li. ITV shared a first look at the new series on social media (Image: ITV) The thriller was one of ITV's top 10 dramas of 2024 and saw more than eight million viewers tune in with 29.3m streams on ITVX. The actor was also recently seen in Amazon Prime's Fear, a three-part psychological thriller which was filmed in Glasgow. The show had its world premiere at the Glasgow Film Festival in February and was released on Prime in March. Martin Compston in Fear (Image: Kirsty Ellis/Prime Video) The series is about a family who are 'pushed to their absolute limits'. It also stars Anjli Mohindra, Solly McLeod, and Dumbarton's BAFTA-award-winning actor James Cosmo, among others. Martin Compston is best known for his standout roles in hit TV series and popular films. His popular TV series include his role as DI Steve Arnott in Line of Duty and Ewan Brodie in the beloved BBC show Monarch of the Glen. Some of his movies are Sweet Sixteen, The Wee Man, and Mary Queen of Scots. Compston is 5′ 8. Martin Compston turned 41 on May 8. Compston is a Celtic fan. The actor partied with Hoops players after they won the Premier Sports Cup Final in 2024. Martin Compston co-hosts the Restless Natives podcast with broadcaster Gordon Smart. The weekly podcast was launched in August 2022, where the duo set themselves 'missions', inspired by the 1985 Scottish film Restless Natives, where they plot new schemes for fun and laughs. The actor lives with his wife and son in Las Vegas. He also owns a flat in Greenock to be near his parents on trips back home. Norwegian Fling is a six-part BBC Scotland travel series in which Compston and Phil MacHugh retrace Norway's length, from Oslo to the Arctic Circle, on a 2,000-mile road trip. The pair dive into modern Norwegian culture, from roller-skiing and sky-jump zip-lining near Oslo to crowd-surfing at a Black Metal gig and getting up close with a wolf in the wild.
Edinburgh Reporter
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Reporter
Restless Natives
There are those of us from a certain generation that grew up with Restless Natives. I remember it being screened on Channel 4 while still at St Mark's Primary School in Oxgangs. The next day my classmates were buzzing with tales of the Clown and the Wolfman riding on a Suzuki motorbike and holding up buses. They presented a new kind of Scottish hero from just down the road in Wester Hailes. Part of it was seeing characters with accents like yours, they were modern day folk heroes robbing the rich to literally throw money around Edinburgh council schemes. Forty years later the story returns with a new stage production which arrives in Edinburgh this month at Leith Theatre exactly four decades after the film premiered in Edinburgh's ABC cinema in June 1985. Original Restless Natives screenwriter and now lyricist Ninian Dunnett and director Michael Hoffman invited Sarah Galbraith to be part of an original workshop for the new musical version just after Covid-19. The role she was invited to play had a certain amount of heft thanks to the great character actor Ned Beatty who played American cop Bender. In the original film he gets involved in the police chase to capture Will and Ronnie. (This time around Bender remains American but he has changed gender.) 'I didn't know they were going to switch the role' said Sarah of Bender's transition from male to female, 'but like the character, I was an American in Scotland.' Galbraith is now based in Falkirk with her husband and daughter. 'Later I asked Michael Hoffman and he explained that he hadn't really thought about it, but decided it would be great for this version. They've developed this brilliant story around her and the reason she really wants to catch these boys is because of issues with her dad. It's a cool transition.' While the original film is packed with Scottish banter and humour, it was also political with an undertone of Scottish nationalism. It's fair to say anti-Thatcherite themes were more obvious. Ms Galbraith said: 'The production does have a moral compass, there's dialogue where the characters talk about tourists spending £20 on a pair of plastic bagpipes while they are underpaid. Will's moral compass kicks in and he wants to give the money away to help people. The scene where money is fired out of these cannons to his community with people picking up the money is very powerful. Ronnie goes more off the deep end and is more into the badness (of robbing). It's really all about how you 'stick it to the man' and make more of yourself than what was ever expected of you.' The production has been successfully touring Scotland where certain audiences have cheered when the classic line is recited 'I hold up buses'. Edinburgh is central to the story with locations such as Wester Hailes, Princes Street, North Bridge and Salisbury Crags all included in the original film. The bus station scene was said to have been filmed in Glasgow but the yellow Bar-Ox (a teenage gang from Oxgangs) spray paint on the escalator suggests otherwise. Now north Edinburgh will become part of the story when Restless Natives arrives at the regenerated Leith Theatre. Sarah said: 'We are looking forward to arriving in the capital where the story is set. It's a home-grown Scottish musical, there are lots of jukebox musicals now but as well as the original Big Country material there's new music written by Tim Sutton. The sounds very much belong in the 80s in terms of the Big Country guitar riffs as well as the kinds of sounds you might recognise from an advert or something that could only be from that time.' The much loved Big Country soundtrack amplified the Scottish underdog spirit of the film, and Will's fascination with Rob Roy also added a further swashbuckling romance. The musical, much like the original film, suggests it's time for Scotland to produce new stories and heroes. Sarah added: 'The tourists are no longer interested in the original Scottish heroes. They want to know about these new ones. As the policeman says at the end 'spending is up, tourism is up; you're bigger than the Loch Ness Monster'. These boys become the Scottish heroes of the times'. Ned Beatty was persuaded to take on the original role of Bender for £25,000, a kilt and a Scottish holiday. Ned Beatty Photo courtesy of Studio Canal Sarah agrees there are resonances with herself and the character. She arrived in Scotland after growing up in New Jersey and meeting her husband while singing on a cruise ship. She said: 'I was about 15 minutes from New York and my thing growing up was Broadway shows. In those days you could get tickets for the last row for around $15. My idol was Lea Salonga who was the original voice of Jasmine in the Disney film Aladdin, I would go and see her in Miss Saigon and Les Misérables, really anything she was in'. Sarah achieved something of an American dream when she met Lea and became her backing singer for UK tours and a subsequent Christmas tour of the states. She will carry on in that role later this year. 'I met my idol and now I sing backing for her'. Sometimes dreams do come true. Restless Natives is at Leith Theatre from June 7 to 21 2025 A still from the original film courtesy of Studio Canal Sarah Galbraith – an American in Scotland 'Restless Natives' Musical Scotland Tour 40 years on from their last ride (the original film was released in 1985), this hilarious and faithful new adaptation is produced by the same creative team behind the beloved classic Scottish film. PHOTO Colin Hattersley Like this: Like Related
