Send a text Well, since the Spring is very nearly upon us, we’re celebrating the forthcoming season of Scottish lunchtime theatre phenomenon - A Play, A Pie, and A Pint. Founded by the hugely missed David MacLennan in 2004, PPP - as it’s fondly known - is the most prolific producer of new writing in theatre in the UK, bringing us 30-odd brand new plays every single year… The premise is therefore wildly creative, wildly thrilling - and wildly simple: a new play, every week, every season, for under an hour, with food and drink included with the price of every ticket. It’s a revelation, a wonder, a risk, a cultural institution, and a total joy. The new season kicks off later this month at its glorious HQ - Glasgow’s gilded Oran Mor - but many of the plays will also travel to spiritual PPP homes across the country - from Aberdeen to Dumfries; from Pitlochry to Paisley; from Edinburgh to Ayr - and they’re all worth your lunchtime… I caught up with A Play, A Pie, and A Pint’s fab Artistic Director, Brian Logan earlier this week - along with Associate Artistic Director Laila Noble, in her last few days in post before she brings all of her vision and dynamism to Ayr’s Gaiety Theatre, where she’ll be at the helm as Creative Director and CEO. We reflected on the general wonder of A Play, A Pie, and A Pint, and we whirled across the Spring season’s programme - from a comedy-drama inspired by a couple door-stepping a Beatle on the Mull of Kintyre, to a cabaret - and life-changing - swansong, in Funeral to my Boobs, via social uprisings, unsung Scottish football heroes, Hen Nights, dancing shoes, un-planned parenthood, self-discovery, lesbian bikers, and grannies in gay bars. All life is here. And there’s a free pastry, thrown into the bargain. Brian and Laila and I chatted in their precious free time between rehearsals, so we’re in a fairly echoey space - but they’re total legends, and their chat is great - and it’s all part of the magic, right?
