John Byrne on art, Nicola Sturgeon and Scottish independence
Krishnan Guru-Murthy
Presenter
Playwright and artist John Byrne is the kid from Paisley, who made it from the notorious Ferguslie Park housing estate to a life of fame as an artist and writer.
Occupying a unique position in Scotland’s cultural life, he designed record covers for Donovan, The Beatles, Gerry Rafferty but found fame writing plays and television dramas such as The Slab Boys and Tutti Frutti.
He is also author of the Slab Boys trilogy – widely reckoned to be most important Scottish drama of last 50 years.
So Byrne, in a way, is perfectly suited to talk about politics in Scotland.
SNP
Scotland voted no for independence last year but the Scottish National Party (SNP) – led by Nicola Sturgeon – won 56 seats out of 59 in Scotland at the general election. A result which has led to a growing national sentiment in the country.
Speaking to Channel 4 News, at the Fine Art Society, Byrne says people “now have to take interest in Scotland.”
He added: “Everybody who spoke about Nicola Sturgeon said she made such an impression on them, in England.
Independence
“The Republic of Ireland, they had to die in order to get independence… but if we can get independence without blood being shed, so much the better.”
However, Byrne says that he doesn’t carry a torch for Scotland or independence.
He said: “I’m not a rabid nationalist at all, I’m hardly even Scottish. I just think we should all be free.”