Highlights

The Sunday Post •

Declan McKenna on Edinburgh show and Sabrina Carpenter tour

After playing Glasgow’s TRNSMT festival last weekend, Declan McKenna will be heading back north of the border next month as part of the Edinburgh International Festival. We caught up with him about the upcoming show at the Edinburgh Playhouse and preparing to tour with pop’s newest megastar, Sabrina Carpenter. From a festival goer’s perspective, it’s an opportunity to catch new music, maybe something you haven’t heard before and you just bump into something. It’s so important for new bands, I gu...
The Sunday Post •

Sudden Death: Rosco McClelland explores heart condition in Fringe show

Dying is a subject often avoided or talked about in hushed tones, but not for comedian Rosco McClelland. The stand-up, one of the brightest stars in the current wave of new Scottish comedy talent, feels acquainted with death as an old friend, and it’s even one of the only things that gets him really laughing. He has Long QT syndrome, a rare and life-threatening heart condition that gives an increased risk of an irregular heartbeat which can result in fainting, seizures, or, worst case scenario,...
The Sunday Post •

Nina Conti on donning monkey suit for debut feature film Sunlight

If it wasn’t hard enough to juggle starring in and directing her debut feature film, Nina Conti gave herself an extra challenge – do it all in a giant monkey suit in the blistering heat of the New Mexico desert. Best known for her ventriloquism work, she combines her usual hectic Fringe schedule this year with premiering dark comedy Sunlight at the Edinburgh Film Festival. In it she goes further than just lending her arm and voice to Monkey and goes for full immersion, playing Jane, a woman who...
The Sunday Post •

INTERVIEW: Katherine Ryan on the Fringe, fame and family

Having established herself as a familiar face on our screens, married her teenage sweetheart and played to sold-out audiences around the world, Katherine Ryan is aiming to tick off yet another life goal – becoming besties with Shania Twain. In the latest big TV job to come her way, the comedian will soon be jetting back to her homeland to take a seat alongside the country-pop superstar on the new judging panel of Canada’s Got Talent. If you go by her lyrics, Shania is famously hard to impress, b...
The Sunday Post •

Maureen Lipman on Edinburgh memories, Corrie, and staying busy

When she sits down for a Q&A in Edinburgh later this month, Dame Maureen Lipman will no doubt cast her mind back down the decades to her first visits to the city and its famous festival. Before she became a household name, the actor, writer and comedian appeared alongside Tamara Ustinov in Kerry Lee Crabbe’s play The Burn at the Fringe in 1965, hailed as a masterpiece by the renowned drama critic Sir Harold Hobson. Maureen, who says she still has that review in a ‘dusty scrapbook’ somewhere, wou...
The Sunday Post •

Richard Armitage on how roots of real life inspired second novel, The Cut

As one of the most popular audiobook voice actors, Richard Armitage has narrated some of the biggest page-turners, cliff-hangers and whodunnits. Now the star of The Hobbit, Spooks and Red Eye is having a thrill ride of his own in a surprise new career chapter as a novelist. Following the success of his first book Geneva, which has a TV adaptation in the works, Richard released his follow-up, The Cut, as an Audible exclusive earlier this week. A lifelong lover of the escapism of fiction, the Robi...
The Sunday Post •

Jo Nesbø on Scotland and Norway's cultural ties and solace in crime novels

Whether it be works inspired by shared rugged landscapes and unpredictable climates, or our respective genres of Nordic and Tartan Noir crime thrillers, Scotland and Norway have long shared strong cultural ties. Fittingly for a man who has sold millions of books worldwide, best-selling author Jo Nesbø, puts it perfectly, describing us as ‘national soulmates’. As the Norwegian crime writer heads across the North Sea to meet fans of his page-turner thrillers, he knows he’s almost coming to a home...
The Sunday Post •

Poet Liz Lochhead on revisiting her life's work for new collection

In her hands, Liz Lochhead is holding her newest book, and most of her life’s work. “There it is,” she says. “A great big stonking thing.” It is indeed quite a hefty tome. For the first time, all of Scotland’s second modern Makar’s published poetry has been put together in one release. Titled A Handsel, it also includes her first new poems since 2016. Although she daren’t look too closely in case she’s missed a typo, there’s a clear sense of pride in bringing her legacy together. The poet and
The Sunday Post •

Lucy Beaumont on reality and fiction colliding in marriage to Jon Richardson

Having attempted to fit herself into her own suitcase during a break in filming Taskmaster, the assessment of Lucy Beaumont as “consistently unpredictable” seems fairly fitting. The stand-up, writer and actor, who is one of the contestants on the current series of the Channel 4 panel game show, largely agrees with the words used by the show’s co-host, Alex Horne, in a recent interview. “You don’t really know sometimes that you’re odd until you see it in writing,” she laughs as P.S. catches up
The Sunday Post •

Love still burns bright for couple brought together by Glasgow fire strike

Rattling along the M8 at 30mph in a Green Goddess fire engine, a young RAF airman from Yorkshire had no idea his life was soon going to change forever. Steven Bentham-Bates was just 18 years old when he was drafted in to cover strike action by Glasgow’s firefighters 50 years ago this week. After a quick crash-course on how to extinguish blazes at Edinburgh’s Redford Barracks, he was assigned to a crew when they reached Maryhill. Little did Steven know that saying yes to a soldier, who asked h
The Sunday Post •

Lewis Capaldi on special bond with fans, new album and Big Weekend

As Lewis Capaldi clambers over a barricade to greet Janet Kirk, the moment encapsulates the special connection the singer has formed with his fans. For 80-year-old Janet, it was her first-ever gig and she made the journey just to see the singer-songwriter in action. He may shrug off national treasure status, but Capaldi’s honesty about his mental health in recent years – coupled with his immense talent, laid-back style and sense of humour – has formed a bond many artists could only dream of.
The Sunday Post •

Crying in the bathroom and a hug from Cate Blanchett: Lesley Paterson on her emotional rollercoaster Oscars

A big hug from Cate Blanchett was one of the highs in a rollercoaster night of emotion at the Oscars, according to triathlete-turned-screenwriter Lesley Paterson. Her film All Quiet On The Western Front was nominated for nine Oscars and won four – including Best International Feature Film – but missed out on Best Adapted Screenplay to Women Talking. “I’ve never experienced anything like it, really believing in your heart that you’re going to win something and then you don’t, but then your film
The Sunday Post •

Blackadder star and history presenter Tony Robinson on cunning new podcast

As Blackadder’s Baldrick, Tony Robinson captured hearts as the classic comedy presented a surreal, subverted version of British history. His character always had a “cunning plan” but when it comes to a 50-year career, the actor, author and presenter has simply been following his natural curiosity about the past. From documentaries ranging from Egyptian tomb hunting to the world wars, royalty and the climate, to two decades on Time Team, he is a font of historical knowledge – despite dropping o
The Sunday Post •

Implications of hurtling advances in tech to be discussed at Scottish AI Summit

We have, of course, heard it before and become used to news of technological advances threatening to upend our lives, take our jobs and transform our lives. Artificial intelligence (AI) is, according to experts and new converts, different. It is, they say, the real deal – capable of triggering change like the internet did but at a faster pace. We have only started scratching the surface of its capabilities, which seem to advance with every day that passes. From painting like Michelangelo and
The Sunday Post •

Katherine Parkinson on Significant Other, loneliness, and Taskmaster

Taking on her latest role, Katherine Parkinson found herself feeling a bit sorry for herself. Or, at least, her past self. In Significant Other, ITV’s new comedy drama, her character finds herself adrift, alone and with a heart that is sick in more ways than one. While a hectic schedule encompassing TV, theatre, interviews and the school run has her, perhaps, longing for a little solitude once in a while, playing Anna allowed her to cast her mind back to her university days where the company s
The Sunday Post •

Dreading the hordes? Experts assess post-pandemic theatre behaviour as staff report increased levels of abuse

To sing along or not to sing along has been the theatre etiquette question igniting debate since a showing of The Bodyguard in Manchester was stopped and police called to deal with an audience member insistent on giving their own rendition of I Will Always Love You. It was the latest in a string of incidents including a brawl during The Jersey Boys at Edinburgh Playhouse in January that has put theatregoers’ behaviour under the microscope. Impassioned debates over how audiences act in the thea
The Sunday Post •

Jings! Oor Wullie's American superfans cap off dream holiday with visit to Sunday Post HQ

A family of Oor Wullie superfans from Reno, Nevada, are heading home to the United States with a suitcase full of cartoons after a visit to the birthplace of Scotland’s favourite mischievous wee laddie. John Kitchen passed his love of the comic strip, alongside The Broons and classic characters from the Beano and Dandy, down the generations to his grandchildren Gracie, 14, Jackson, 12, and nine-year-old Caden. The youngsters love reading the adventures and antics so much that they even lapse i
The Sunday Post •

Alba Fyre & Isla Dawn: Meet the latest Scots to grapple with fame as WWE stars

There are now so many Scots wrestling for WWE that they’ve got their own WhatsApp group chat – with the Braveheart-inspired name “Freedom”. For the latest pair of warriors to get called up to the sports entertainment giant’s top shows, it’s a culmination of years of hard work that’s taken them from community centres across Scotland to the big arenas of the world. The tag team of Kayleigh Rae, who performs under the name Alba Fyre, and Courtney Stewart, who is known as Isla Dawn, were stunned t
The Courier •

Radio 1's Big Weekend: Jess Glynne can't wait to reintroduce herself when festival comes to Dundee

Thanks to seven number one hits, frequent radio airplay and her song Hold My Hand’s ubiquitous presence in summer holiday adverts, it feels like Jess Glynne has never been away. But when she appears at Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Dundee, the London-born singer will be taking her first steps on stage for several years having taken time out to re-focus. Reintroducing herself at a festival in front of thousands of people is a nerve-wracking prospect, but riding high on the success of new single Sill
Press and Journal •

Katie Gregson-MacLeod on rubbing shoulders with Sting and Highland homecomings

As she rubbed shoulders with Sting at last week’s Ivor Novello awards, Inverness singer-songwriter Katie Gregson-MacLeod knew she was definitely on the right track. Complex, the viral hit which last summer that changed her life, was vying for Best Song Musically and Lyrically at the prestigious awards bash, hot on the heels of signing a record deal, moving to London, and making music her full time career.
Load More Articles

All articles

Filters & Sorting
The Sunday Post •

Edinburgh Fringe Q&A - Glenn Moore

One of the most prolific joke writers in the country, Glenn Moore packs plenty of punchlines into each show. He’s back at the Fringe this year with Please Sir, Glenn I Have Some Moore?, following up recent appearances on Live at the Apollo, Have I Got News For You, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown. Here, he answers our Fringe Q&A. I’ve booked in to talk to my therapist three times a week while I’m up there, so yeah really great thanks! I usually write a couple of thousand jokes first, whittle it...
The Sunday Post •

Long wait over as Brigadoon gets London revival

The mysterious and dream-like village of Brigadoon only appears once every 100 years, and fans of the classic musical have had their own long wait for the tale to return to the stage. It hasn’t been quite a century, but the first major London revival of the musical in 35 years opens next weekend, bringing a slice of Scotland south with a cast and crew packed with tartan talent. Directed and choreographed by Drew McOnie at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, the task of adapting Brigadoon for the...
The Sunday Post •

Paul Merton and Suki Webster on the joy of Fringe improv

“I used to climb up Arthur’s Seat, now I look at people climbing up,” Paul Merton laughs as he reflects on the 40th anniversary of doing improv at the Edinburgh Fringe. Alongside him on this Zoom call, though, his wife and fellow comic Suki Webster gently reminds him that they have, in fact, scaled it fairly recently. “We did do it one year,” she says. “Quite late at night, I think. There was reportedly going to be shooting stars. We got a car part way up and then were planning to walk the rest....
The Sunday Post •

'Every year, I see a show that makes me think: this is what it’s all about': Edinburgh Fringe Q&A - Kate Dolan

Kate Dolan splits her time between the UK and Australia, and has seen her shows critically acclaimed in both. Having scooped the Adelaide Fringe Emerging Artist Award last year, her second Edinburgh hour, The Critic, promises a rare sighting into the sleepless comedian’s mind, unravelling, in real time, for all to hear… Here, she answers our Fringe Q&A. I’m really looking forward to it. I had a great time last year and I’m hopeful that some of the icons who made up my audiences previously make a...
The Sunday Post •

Edinburgh Fringe Q&A - Pierre Novellie

Pierre Novellie brings his tenth hour to the Edinburgh Fringe this summer off the back of a sell-out run at last year’s festival. You Sit There, I’ll Stand Here also follows the success of his critically acclaimed book Why Can’t I Just Enjoy Things? A Comedian’s Guide to Autism. Here, he answers our Fringe Q&A. I’ve done so many Fringes that I’ve lived in Scotland cumulatively for about a year and a half, so it feels like returning to a chaotic, clown-infested home town. I moved house in a singl...
The Sunday Post •

Edinburgh Fringe Q&A - Rob Auton

It’ll be a different festival to usual for actor and comedian Rob Auton as he brings his debut story to the Fringe. Having written eleven critically acclaimed shows on specific themes, Rob is now keen on telling you about a man he made up in CAN (An Hour-Long Story). At one point in his life CAN was the world’s number one motivational speaker… and then something happened. Here, Rob answers our Fringe Q&A. I am feeling like I’m lining up for the rollercoaster but this time I’ve been doing a lot o...
The Sunday Post •

Edinburgh Fringe Q&A - Stuart McPherson

Stuart McPherson, one third of the hit Scottish comedy podcast Some Laugh, is back at the Edinburgh Fringe with his latest show Crisps and a Lie Down. His fifth hour at the festival, it’s a show about settling down, growing up and how he’s being controlled by his step-dog. Here, he answers our Fringe Q&A. When other comics ask I lie and try to sound morose about it to save face but I’m actually feeling really good. It’s all about the little life I’ve made for myself with my girlfriend and stepdo...
The Sunday Post •

Edinburgh Fringe Q&A - Ian Smith

Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Ian Smith returns to the Edinburgh Fringe this summer with a new show about stress, love and buying a magic spell off Amazon. He’s recently made a number of TV appearances on the likes of Live at the Apollo, Have I Got News For You and The Stand Up Sketch Show. He’s also a familiar voice on radio, on The News Quiz, The Unbelievable Truth, Just A Minute and his own Radio 4 series, Ian Smith Is Stressed. Here, he answers our Fringe Q&A. I’m pumped! I’ve had four Red...
The Sunday Post •

Curator reveals all about new Glasgow Tutankhamun exhibition

The name may be most familiar in Glasgow for the famous music venue but there’s another King Tut in town as Tutankhamun: The Immersive Exhibition opens on Thursday at the SEC. Promising an extraordinary journey into ancient Egypt, it’s the latest stop in a European tour that has welcomed around two million visitors. Having ended the exhibition’s first UK run in London last month, curator Nacho Ares can’t wait to open the doors to Scottish audiences and let them dive into the life of “The Boy Kin...
The Sunday Post •

Comedian Matt Forde on cancer diagnosis that changed his life

Just after finishing his run at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2023, Matt Forde saw his life turned upside down. The audiences for his stand-up shows had been great and he’d interviewed political heavyweights like Angela Rayner, Humza Yousaf and Kate Forbes live on stage for his Political Party podcast. But due to excruciating pain thought to be sciatica, he was getting by on a heady cocktail of painkillers and was about to receive life-changing news: it was, in fact, cancer. “I was doing that Fringe o...
The Sunday Post •

Karen Pirie: Behind the scenes with Lauren Lyle as hit show returns

“It’s really rubbish to be like, it’s me,” laughs Lauren Lyle when asked about the secret to the success of Karen Pirie. It’s hard to argue, though, that her portrayal of the titular character hasn’t been the driver for one of Scotland’s biggest recent TV success stories. I’m speaking to Lauren inside a nondescript, vacant Glasgow city centre office building, where The Sunday Post has been given a sneak peek at the eagerly anticipated second series of the hit detective drama. Written by Emer Ken...
The Sunday Post •

TRNSMT Saturday scorcher with Biffy Clyro, Fontaines DC and Sigrid

Tens of thousands of music fans enjoyed a scorcher at the second day of TRNSMT on Saturday, with temperatures approaching 30C. Event organisers encouraged revellers at Glasgow Green to wear their best bucket hat, slap on the suncream, drink plenty of water and above all else look after themselves and each other. There were blue skies all day with hometown band Lucia & The Best Boys opening up the main stage. Fans had a chance to belt out some pop anthems with Sigrid, despite the Norwegian star a...
The Sunday Post •

Rianne Downey on Paul Heaton team-up, TRNSMT and huge festivals

During lockdown, Rianne Downey posted a video on Facebook of her playing The Beautiful South’s 1996 hit Rotterdam (Or Anywhere) in her bedroom. Little did she know that, a few years later, Anywhere would be the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury, playing the song with the band’s founder Paul Heaton. He’d been so impressed by the cover that not only did he like and comment on the post, he got in touch to ask the Bellshill singer to join him on tour as a special guest vocalist to fill in for his usual p...
The Sunday Post •

The Scottish monk who helped in the fight against Napoleon

He was described as a “short, stout, merry little monk” who was always jesting and poking fun, but James Robertson was truly extraordinary. In 1808, as Napoleon neared the peak of his power, it was this middle-aged and overweight Scottish monk to whom the British government turned for a special mission. The unlikely secret agent’s task? Travel to Germany to persuade a Spanish general and his troops to betray the French emperor and switch sides. It may sound like something straight out of a war n...
The Sunday Post •

The museum team getting under the skin of the animal world around us

From blue tits to blue whales, the skilled team of preparators at the National Museum of Scotland (NMS) have dissected, inspected, stuffed or displayed the lot. While some of their work with the blood and guts of dead animals isn’t for the squeamish, they’re playing a crucial role in conservation work around the world, as well as creating incredible exhibitions for us to marvel at. The latest display is the much-anticipated return of Monkeys: Our Primate Family, which returns to Edinburgh after...
The Sunday Post •

Dundee's links to South Georgia marked with Whale Memorial

They may be around 8,000 miles apart but Dundee has played a huge role in the story of the whales of South Georgia. The two locations have been linked for nearly two centuries, firstly as Scots profited heavily from hunting the seas of the remote sub-Antarctic island that was the epicentre of the modern whaling industry. Now, it is an ecosystem in recovery, with Tayside-based charity the South Georgia Heritage Trust playing a pivotal role. As well as raising money for conservation missions and r...
The Sunday Post •

Reader relives her big day out at launch of QE2

When Catherine Sweeney picked up her recent copy of The Sunday Post, it was like stepping into a memory. The retired teacher was reading The Post’s feature about the 185th anniversary of cruise line Cunard. The story included a colour photograph from nearly 60 years ago showing many people gathering to witness the launch of the QE2 at Clydebank – and Catherine instantly knew that somewhere in the vast crowd was her younger self. “I was absolutely astonished,” she said. “I saw that photograph and...
The Sunday Post •

Scotland is short of 400 foster carers… do you have what it takes?

There has never been a more urgent need for foster homes in Scotland than there is right now. So says Anne Currie, assistant director for Scotland at The Fostering Network. “As over 350 foster carers leave each year, it’s critical that we take action now,” she said, adding that Scotland needs at least 400 more to meet demand. As Foster Care Fortnight comes to a close today, with people across the country being encouraged to consider if they could provide a safe, supportive foster home for a chil...
The Sunday Post •

Malpractice star Zoe Telford on ITV medical thriller's importance

“I think I’ve found my instrument,” Zoe Telford says as she pans over her Zoom camera to reveal an electric drum kit sitting in the corner of the room. The star of hit ITV medical drama Malpractice seems to be adding another string to her bow – or perhaps more accurately another stick to her cymbals – with her latest passion in a career that’s seen her go from a talented dancer to a familiar face on our screens. “I’ve started quite slow with Yellow by Coldplay,” she says of her down-tempo introd...
The Sunday Post •

The story of Cowal's hidden gem, Caol Ruadh Sculpture Park

Overlooking the stunning Kyles of Bute, the grand Victorian mansion of Caol Ruadh is a special spot that means many things to many people. Translating from Gaelic to “Red House on the Narrows”, the eye-catching building on the Cowal peninsula has a storied past, from being a grand home for titans of industry, to a place where generations of children from Glasgow got a taste of life outwith the city smog. Most recently, it’s been a family home and, since 2012, the site of a sculpture park which a...
Load More Articles