Imprint celebrates 5th birthday with record number of visitors
15 Nov 2011 10:44:44
Imprint, East Ayrshire’s book festival, has become a cultural highlight over recent years and last week it celebrated its 5th birthday. Many events were sold out and audiences were treated to a week packed with literary gems.
Councillor Douglas Reid, Leader of the Council, officially opened the festival prior to the Elaine C Smith event which had sold out in a matter of days. Audiences were enthralled by Elaine’s wit, humorous stories and the Rab C Nesbit star even had the audience singing along to Cliff Richard classic Living Doll.
On Tuesday night, Mary Contini, writer, cook and director of the famous deli Valvona & Crolla in Edinburgh entertained the crowd with tales of her Scottish-Italian roots. Interviewed by The List food editor and critic Donald Reid, Mary captivated the audience with her memories of growing up in Scotland above the family fish and chip shop and how she became the successful business woman she is today. The audience were then treated to a selection of fine foods and wine from her wonderful deli.
Kilmarnock authors and Imprint patrons, Zoe Strachan and William McIlvanney made a welcome return to their home turf for an evening of readings, politics and reflection. Zoe read from her latest novel Ever Fallen in Love which has recently been shortlisted for the national Green Carnation Prize. William McIlvanney was on vintage form and selected a series of readings and poetry for a highly emotive performance.
The week continued with Scotland on Sunday Literary Editor Stuart Kelly interviewing author Neil Forysth, best known for his books revolving round his alter-ego Bob Servant. Author James Robertson then took to the stage with Kelly and lived up to his reputation as one of the major literary forces of our age.
The festival finale was a major coup for East Ayrshire. Author, visual artist and perhaps the most revered living writer in the country, Alasdair Gray, made a rare public appearance. The audience were treated to a reading of unpublished work as well as some of his better-known pieces. As one audience member commented on Twitter “Era-defining James Robertson last night, tonight it’s Alasdair Gray. How much literary genius can Killie handle?”
Throughout the week almost 1000 children had been treated to a programme tailored specifically for them. For the first year, Imprint teamed up with Glow, the Scottish schools’ network to broadcast author events throughout the country. 3500 pupils from Stranraer to Orkney tuned in to watch the Burns Monument Centre author events live on screen.
As Councillor Reid brought the festival to an official close, he said: “Imprint is a fantastic local book festival which has grown dramatically to rival even the greatest of festivals. To have the likes of the Elaine C Smith and Mary Contini entertaining our audiences with raucous tales, songs and amazing food then Zoe Strachan and William McIlvanney delivering wonderful, thought provoking readings is just incredible. Finishing the festival with one of the greatest Scottish authors of all time, Alasdair Gray, was a real coup for Imprint and an evening I will never forget. I would like to echo the sentiment of many of my fellow audience members – roll on Imprint 2012!”
Ends