Category Archives: Talks and Events

All posts relating to talks and events

In which the author has a play at the Playwrights’ Studio ‘Stage to Page’ workshop…

On Monday 30 January one of my plays, ‘I Walked With A Zombie,’ will be workshopped at the ‘Stage to Page’ event in premier Glasgow venue The Arches.

 

‘I Walked With A Zombie’ centres around a group of art students making a short film in homage to classic zombie movies such as Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead. But during the filming, all the participants are visited by their own personal zombies…

 

‘Stage to Page’ describes itself as “A chance for writers, actors and directors to collaborate by workshopping scenes from a new work together.” Each month, a guest director chooses scenes from an unperformed play, and actors turn up, are randomly allocated roles, and then collaborate in workshopping the scenes before performing them to everyone present.

 

The event is at The Arches, 253 Argyle Street, Glasgow G2 8DL (under Central Station). It starts at 7pm on Monday 30th and entrance for all is £3, which includes a drink (you can just turn up to observe the proceedings without participating, and many people do just that, to watch the creative process in action).

 

More info at www.thearches.co.uk/events/arts/stage-to-page. Stage to Page is an initiative of the Playwrights’ Studio, www.playwrightsstudio.co.uk/stagetopage.htm.

 

If you come along, I’ll be the zombie-like individual wearing the idiot grin.

In which the author launches Haunted Dundee with a signing at Waterstones…

 

My next book, Haunted Dundee, is published on 26th January. So, manic grin in place, I’ll be signing copies that day in the Dundee Waterstones branch.

 

The book explores several centuries of Dundonian hauntings. There are stories of poltergeists, malevolent entities, apparitions, strange sounds, doppelgangers, visionary experiences and much more. The incidents range from 1706 to the present day, and include the tales of the White Ladies of Coffin Mill and Balgay Bridge, the hauntings of the historic ships Discovery and Unicorn, and a host of personal ghost sightings told to me by contemporary eye-witnesses.

 

Other cases include some truly bizarre episodes of apparent hallucinations of ghostly individuals investigated by a distinguished psychiatrist who was also a member of the Society of Psychical Research.

 

To celebrate, I’ll be signing copies on Thursday 26th January at the Waterstones branch at 35 Commercial Street, Dundee. Map here!

 

 

I’ll be in store between 1 and 2.30 p.m. Ish. If you can’t make it at the time, you could always call the shop on 0843 290 8287 and ask them to reserve a copy, which I’ll sign for you to pick up later. (They’ll probably have copies of Paranormal Dundee for sale as well.)

 

Watch the trailer for Haunted Dundee now!

 

In which the author discusses horror movie soundtracks and the Jacobites & the Supernatural on radio…

 

On Thursday 12 January I’m returning as the guest of that fine gentleman Tim Prevett on his ‘History and Mystery’ show on RedShift Radio.

 

 

From 7pm I’ll be playing and discussing brain-frying soundtrack gems from cult films such as Donnie Darko, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, The Wicker Man, Rosemary’s Baby and The Dawn of the Dead – as well as Werner Herzog’s mystical-weirdo classic Aguirre: Wrath of God.

Then from 8pm the topic changes to the Jacobites and the Supernatural, with Tim and I discussing everything from accusations that a Jacobite general sold his soul to the Devil, to the alleged magical powers of Bonnie Prince Charlie, and a host of Jacobite ghosts. In addition, as RedShift Radio is based in Crewe, I’ll be exploring the propaganda surrounding the mystical prophecies of Nixon the Cheshire Prophet.

 

For more info go to http://www.redshiftradio.co.uk/programmes/history-and-mystery.

 

History and Mystery with Tim Prevett, Redshift Radio, 7-9pm, Thursday 12th January. Listen live at www.redshiftradio.co.uk .

In which the author gives a talk on poltergeists at Kinross…

On Monday 21st December I’m delighted to be the guest of the Kinross-shire Historical Society. Topics for the evening will include local big cat sightings, a particularly dastardly bodysnatching crime involving a hidden door and a secret underground dissection chamber, and an eighteenth century poltergeist that specialised in the relocation of pins inside slices of meat and boiled eggs. Just the usual stuff, then.

 

Everyone is welcome. The event kicks off at 7.30 in the parish church on Station Road, and as usual I’ll have copies of books for sale and signing.

In which the author talks about witches and eats yummy things…

 

I recently gave a talk to the Dunning branch of the Scottish Women’s Rural Institute, on the subject of the Maggie Wall Witchcraft Monument, which stands just outside the village. It was my first talk at a SWRI, and it was quite an eyeopener. Not many of my talks start with the audience singing a song (in this case, the SWRI anthem), and even fewer involve me being asked to judge the best sweeties!

 

Apparently it is a tradition that all guest speakers have to judge the competitions held that night. So after selecting ‘best mask’ and ‘best flower’ I had to choose ‘best tablet’. For those not in the know, tablet is a Scottish delicacy, a very sweet caramel-like confection typically made with condensed milk. Now the standard of hand-crafted tablet on display was very high, so as the judge it was of course incumbent upon me to make sure that every sample was thoroughly tested…

 

This was followed by a cup of tea accompanied by delicious home-made salmon sandwiches. I think that from now on I should ask for such items to be a standard part of my ‘rider’ when I give talks…

 

As for the talk, it went down very well, with naturally a great deal of interest in my suggestions about the origins of the Witch Monument see here – with several alternative ideas proposed from the audience. My thanks to the SWRI for the invite and the hospitality. Now, back to writing, fuelled by tablet-tastic sugar rush…

 

In which the author gives a talk on the Maggie Wall Witchcraft Monument (and Kate McNiven, the Witch of Monzie)…

On Tuesday 1st November I gave an illustrated talk at Dunning Town Hall on the subject of ‘The Maggie Wall Witchcraft Monument’. I discussed my researches into another ‘famous witch who did not exist’, Kate McNiven, the Witch of Monzie. And as time allowed, we got some sightings of anomalous big cats in as well.

 The talk started at 7.30pm, at Dunning, 10 miles south of Perth and just off the A9. The event was organised by the Scottish Women’s Rural Institute, but was open to everyone, not just members of the SWRI.

 

My thanks, by the way, to the organisers of recent talks I’ve given, from the Breadalbane Heritage Society to the West Stormont Historical Society and the libraries of Coupar Angus and Blairgowrie. In each case the venue was full, the audience engaged, and the Q & A session replete with interest. Enjoyable times.