THE actress, writer and poet Gerda Stevenson will be joined by fellow poet Magi Gibson in what could prove to be the highlight of ScotlandsFest which starts on the Edinburgh Fringe today.
This uniquely Scottish section of the Fringe is being mounted by Edinburgh publishers Luath who say that it will discover the Scottish perspective in topical debate at the Fringe.
ScotlandsFest will involve discussion on politics, culture and literature with subjects as diverse as the Scottish and Catalonian independence votes and the global homelessness crisis. One event will also tackles racism in Scotland while more light-hearted performances will feature motorcycle journeys across the country and photographing the silent islands of St Kilda.
The experiences of a Scottish firefighter during the Troubles is another highlight while a host of speakers includes former First Minister of Scotland Henry McLeish, the chair of the Sustainable Growth Commission Andrew Wilson and the artist Alexander Moffat, who has painted Muriel Spark and Hugh MacDiarmid. Stevenson and Gibson will present their “Verse and Song in tribute to the women of Scotland” tomorrow evening in the Quaker Meeting House on Victoria Street from 5.15pm.
A playwright and children’s author as well as a poet, Gibson’s work has been widely published in literary magazines and anthologies including Modern Scottish Women Poets (Canongate), Scottish Love Poems (Canongate), The Edinburgh Book of Twentieth Century Scottish Poetry, (Edinburgh University Press) and 100 Favourite Scottish Love Poems (Luath).
She has held three Scottish Arts Council Creative Writing Fellowships, one Royal Literary Fund Fellowship, was Writer in Residence with the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow and Reader in Residence with Glasgow Women’s Library. She was appointed the first Makar of the City of Stirling in 500 years in 2009.
Perhaps most famous for her brief appearance as William Wallace’s mother-in-law in Braveheart, Stevenson is the founder of the Stellar Quines theatre company.
She also won BAFTA Best Film Actress award for Margaret Tait’s feature film, Blue Black Permanent and her recent volume of poetry Quines has already been acclaimed and will feature strongly tomorrow night.
A spokesperson for ScotlandsFest said: “Celebrate the diverse achievements and perspectives of Scottish women, past and present with two of the strongest voices on the Scottish poetry scene: Conversation, song and readings from their recent collections – Gerda Stevenson’s Quines and Magi Gibson’s Washing Hugh MacDiarmid’s Socks. Luath Press is at the heart of Scotland’s national conversation.
“This festival within the festival is a smorgasbord of Scottish identity, which promises something for everyone,” they added.
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