Remember the fallen – and the survivors.
On the eve of Remembrance Day, we’re delighted to welcome back to McStorytellers Aberdeen-based master of the short story Bill Robertson with the haunting and poignant tale of one of last survivors of the Great War. Appropriately, Bill’s story is called The Last Post.
Remember the fallen – and the survivors.
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Here’s a wee midweek treat from Perth man Bill Robertson, who is back on the flash fiction trail with Strictly Business, a glimpse of skulduggery in high places.
Enjoy! We end the week in the heart of the wastelands with a triple-bill of post-apocalyptic fiction from the pen of Aberdeen-based writer Bill Robertson.
In Harvest, the new order of things means that a good bounty can only ever come at a terrible cost. While in After the Fact, love still blossoms where all else has withered and died. And in A Growing Boy Needs His Lunch, beware of survivors bearing gifts is the motto in the post-apocalyptic world. Enjoy the stories and the weekend! All of the protagonists in our three brand new stories today are full of romantic notions.
For a start, there’s a whole line-up of wannabe pop idols in A Star Is Born. It’s the debut story of McStorytellers newcomer, Ardrossan-born Sandy Wardrope. And it’ll keep you guessing to the end. It’s followed by a double-bill of cracking tales from regular McStoryteller, Aberdeen-based Bill Robertson. Can two old friends rekindle those romantic feelings from long ago? Find out in A Second Chance. And how about a vision of the perfect play gym? Perfect for dads, that is. Check it out in Probably the Best in the World. Enjoy! Our two new stories tonight are stark reminders of the horrors of war.
In a tragic piece called Black and White, Perth-born writer and veteran McStoryteller Bill Robertson lets us see those horrors through the eyes of a photojournalist on his last assignment. Then it’s a leap in time and distance from the poison of the Balkans to the cauldron of Afghanistan in Purple Hearts, a tale of bravery and enduring love from the pen of US author Michael C. Keith. Originally from Albany, New York, but with strong Scottish roots, Michael makes his McStorytellers debut tonight. Enjoy! That’s the message conveyed in our trio of stories today.
Dalmuir-born old boy Alasdair McPherson continues his occasional series of memoirs with Big Fearty, in which he remembers his first panic attack. Then there’s a wee shocker of a piece from the pen of young Edinburgh-based Lee Carrick. In Kate’s Last Chance for Happiness, the eponymous heroine tries desperately not to panic as she prepares for the perfect big night. And in The Last Mile, another expertly woven tale by youngish Perth man Bill Robertson, a flagging long-distance runner finds a novel way to avoid the panic of defeat. Enjoy! Coming next – Shieldz Ya Bass! But don’t panic, it’s only some stories of everyday life on the mean streets of South Shields... That same question is asked in all three of today’s very different stories.
It’s probably the last question on the lips of the protagonists in Every Reader’s Nightmare, a cliffhanging drama by Ayrshire author and poet Angus Shoor Caan. It’s the question posed by Dalmuir-born writer Alasdair McPherson in Deep Fried Mars Bars in Your Calorie Controlled Diet, his tongue-in-cheek assimilation (or should that be digestion?) of this week’s news of three-person babies. And it’s the question uppermost in the mind of the troubled time traveller in The Breakthrough, a poignant tale from the pen of Aberdeen-based storyteller Bill Robertson. Enjoy! And watch out for another stunning entry in our Being Scots McCompetition. It may or may not be raining cats and dogs where you are now. But a whole menagerie of household pets is featured in our trio of shorts today.
We start off with Doug’s Dinner, a bit of a shaggy dog story penned in the vernacular by Saltcoat’s own Angus Shoor Caan. Dogs and other species are also the topic of My Mother’s Iguana, a one act play written by Saltcoats neebor Brian Morrison and set on... wait for it... the bus to Greenock. And we round off with a portrait of a feline predator in The Unexpected Guest, a delightful piece of flash from the Flashmaster himself, Aberdeen’s Bill Robertson. Enjoy! And watch out for some darkness coming next... Our trio of new stories tonight all take a step back in time.
What was the reaction to the invention of the fountain pen in the eighteenth century? Find out in Plus ça change, a piece of mischief by Dalmuir-born birthday boy Alasdair McPherson. You go for an innocent swim and suddenly you’re transported back to the Victorian age. Well, that’s what happens in Empires End, a slice of spookiness from Edinburgh’s own Garry Stanton. Our fairytales are hundreds of years old. Is it okay to give them a modern spin? See what you think in Once Upon A Crime, a tongue-in-cheek version of a cherished old favourite from Aberdeen-based Bill Robertson. Enjoy! And watch out next for the Ayrshire Mafia. Here for your midweek reading enjoyment is a trio of new stories in our trademark eclectic mix of writing styles.
McStorytellers regular, Perth-born Bill Robertson, begins with The Cleaner, a slice of Tartan Noir that deals with some rather shady Government business. Then Edinburgh-based Lee Carrick, the Jack Kerouac of South Shields, returns with Betting Slips and Saggy Tits – Part One, the first in a series of tales about life at the bookies. Dunfermline-born Andrew Velzian also makes a welcome return with Snippits in Scots, a triptych of everyday Scottish conversations. They include Wha’s like us?, an inspired caricature of Wee Eck himself and an automatic entrant in our Being Scots McCompetition. Enjoy! |
McBlog AuthorBrendan Gisby is McStoryteller-in-Residence. He's the author of four novels, three biographies and several short story collections. The McStorytellers
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