Muriel Spark

Five of the best books set in Edinburgh

Five books set in the Scottish capital, including Kidnapped and Trainspotting

16 Feb 2011

1: Confessions of a Justified Sinner - James Hogg Don’t be put off by the title, this is a compelling and surprisingly modern novel which confronts the hypocrisy of the self-righteous. It inspired numerous later works, including Robert Louis…

Promises Promises

10 Feb 2010

It’s no mere nod and a wink to lovers of Muriel Spark that the school teacher protagonist of Douglas Maxwell’s gripping new monologue is called Margaret Anne Brodie. The character herself may claim not to have read Spark’s famous novel of sex, power and…

The Girls of Slender Means

Adaptation of the Muriel Spark novel

13 Aug 2009

A new adaptation of a never-before staged novel by Muriel Spark, The Girls of Slender Means is set (mostly) in that strange limbo period between VE and VJ Day. The war had ended, but hadn’t quite ended really, and the young women living in the May of…

The Girls of Slender Means - Spark of genius

There’s much more to Muriel Spark than Miss Jean Brodie

23 Jul 2009

Muriel Sparks talents are paraded this festival with performances from two of her works, including her most celebrated one of course.

The Home Season: Pitlochry Festival Theatre

9 Jul 2009

As the curtain comes down on another packed season of theatre in the Central Belt, and with the Edinburgh Festival and Fringe waiting in the wings, it’s worth casting an eye over the superb series of Scottish plays currently running at Pitlochry…

Edinburgh Festival 2009 - Fringe programme highlights

11 Jun 2009

Roll up, roll up. It may just seem like yesterday that the Edinburgh Fringe packed its bags for 2008 but now it’s back with a vengeance. Against stiff competition from its international and national counterparts, this year’s Fringe line-up looks…

David Malouf to be Muriel Spark International Fellow

14 Aug 2008

Australian novelist David Malouf has accepted the Scottish Arts Council's invitation to become the second Muriel Spark International Fellow. Canadian novelist Margaret Atwood was the inaugural recipient of the fellowship, established by the Scottish…

Muriel Spark - The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1961)

100 Best Scottish Books of all Time

1 Jan 2005

Jean Brodie is one of the most complex characters in modern literature. As a teacher, she is passionate about her pupils, even if her methods are frowned upon by the authorities. This makes her a rebel, and we should love her for that. But her influence…