Episode 24: Kieran Hurley - Beat Connection
On writing for stage and screen, breaking into the arts, and the enduring cultural legacy of his rave-era classic, Beats
In this episode, writer Kieran Hurley discusses his iconic breakthrough Beats, and his subsequent work for stage and screen. Starting his career with one-man touring shows, he’s since moved behind the scenes with the sophisticated black comedy of 2023 play Adults and 2018’s coming-of-age tale Square Go, and the excellent screen adaptation of Beats. Have a listen to our conversation below.
This was an excellent chat, diving into Kieran’s early years working in and around legendary Glasgow arts venue The Arches, to his upcoming projects, and the enduring cultural legacy of Beats as a cultural document of Scotland’s rave culture era.
Show links and recommendations
We’re going to do things a little differently with our recommendations section! Rather than make you wait for a follow-up post, here are some links and short descriptions of the people and topics Kieran and I discussed on the show. Click through if you’d like to know more.
This article in The Scotsman does a good job of summarising the legacy, importance, and disappointing ending of Scotland’s premiere experimental arts venue, The Arches. It’s based on a longer book by Kirstin Innes and David Bratchpiece, which is an excellent read.
The boutique label Gerry Loves Records has a good profile of Over The Wall, a Scottish band who were in the same set of creatives Kieran came up with in and around The Arches. Johnny Whoop is the drummer, DJ and technician who helped him co-create the musical elements of Beats.
We mention a few rave-era movies that Beats compares more than favourably with. If you haven’t seen them, Human Traffic, Trainspotting and 24-Hour Party People are all good in their own way. Honestly, hands down, the film of Beats feels more real than all three. It’s directed by Brian Welsh, and you can watch it on Amazon (and elsewhere).
Kieran mentioned a few key figures who helped him out at key stages of his career, or took a chance on his writing. Orla O’Laughlin is now a senior figure at Guildhall Drama School, previously she produced acclaimed runs at The Traverse, one of Scotland’s few remaining homes for new writing. He also mentions his Square Go writing partner Gary McNair, who’s had a big hit since with his book and show Dear Billy, about the great Scottish comedian Billy Connolly.
Kieran briefly paid tribute to the late David McLennan, creator of the Glasgow new writing showcase A Play, A Pie and A Pint. And of course, Kieran mentioned his wife and sometime collaborator Julia Taudevin, an acclaimed writer, director and performer who has blazed her own distinctive trail across the Scottish arts landscape.
We talked very briefly about some new and emerging theatre companies doing awesome things in Scotland, including Wonder Fools, Buzzcut Festival and Summerhall in Edinburgh (now under threat of closure, since we recorded). If any other companies, writers, directors or producers out there want to contact me for further discussions about some of these topics, please reach out!
You can buy this volume of Kieran’s plays if you’re tempted by Beats and some of his earlier work. Adults is also available in a separate volume. Follow Kieran on TwXtter, and keep your eye out for more writing from him soon, in various places and forms!
Coming soon: Season 3
That concludes our second season! As I said at the end of the episode, there’s no break before we kick off Season 3, and I’ll be back in a week or two with a very special solo episode connected to my new book, The Darkest Timeline. Fans of horror, science fiction and wild speculative scientific theories will not want to miss that one.
Some other news, in case you missed it: Full episodes of Strange Exiles will now be exclusive to Substack, and available to subscribers only, from Episode 25 onwards. You’ll still be able to access an extended preview of each new episode via Spotify and other services, but the full thing will only be available here! We’ll also have more additional, exclusive content this year and into 2025, so stay tuned.
If you’re reading this, it’s likely you’ve already subscribed. You’ll be able to listen on the Substack player or app, via the email version of this blog; and with a few clicks, subscribers can access full episodes via their favourite streaming service. We’ll also stay completely FREE to listen for all subscribers for the duration of Season 3. Have’t subscribed yet? Plug your email in below!
Here are a few other things you might have missed…
THE DARKEST TIMELINE: LIVING IN A WORLD WITH NO FUTURE is available for pre-order now.
THIS IS REVOLUTION: A fantastic chat about the apocalypse with author and musician Jason Myles of cult bands Bitter Lake and La Fin Absolute du Monde.
THEORIZE AND BE DAMNED: Introducing The Darkest Timeline with authors and Revol Press founders Mike Watson and Daniel Melo!
CULTURE MATTERS: I speak to friend of the pod Brett Gregory aka Serious Feather about the book, he gives me a (Socialist) run for my money!
That’s us for Season 2! Thanks as always for coming on the journey with us, into exile.
See you next time! Take care of each other.
-Bram, Glasgow, May 2024
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