The real deal: How William McIlvanney transformed Scottish fiction

“If there is a direct line from the so-called ‘Kailyard’ writers of the late 19th century […] to the playful savagery of Irvine Welsh and the still rising body-count of ‘tartan noir’, then at its midpoint stands William McIlvanney.”

Brian Morton profiles William McIlvanney for BBC Arts

2/9

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1yvXjdWM7lsQNjpNB024ZPC/the-real-deal-how-william-mcilvanney-transformed-scottish-fiction

#Scottish #literature #20thcentury #WilliamMcIlvanney #CrimeFiction #TartanNoir

“Scottishness is not some pedigree lineage. This is a mongrel tradition!”

William McIlvanney (1936–2015) – author & poet (& provider, at a rally in Edinburgh in 1992, of our profile header, as quoted in Neal Ascherson’s 2002 book STONE VOICES) – was born #OTD, 25 November

A 🎂 🧵

@bookstodon

1/9

#Scottish #literature #20thcentury #WilliamMcIlvanney #Scottishness #identity