William McIlvanney
William Angus McIlvanney (25 November 1936 – 5 December 2015) was a Scottish novelist, short story writer, and poet. He was known as Gus by friends and acquaintances. McIlvanney was a champion of gritty yet poetic literature; his works Laidlaw, The Papers of Tony Veitch, and Walking Wounded are all known for their portrayal of Glasgow in the 1970s.
Also recorded as William Angus McIlvanney
William McIlvanney

nonsenseferret · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Born
- 1936. · Kilmarnock.
- Died
- 2015. · Netherlee.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom.
- Occupation
- writer, journalist, poet and teacher.
- Fields
- poetry, detective fiction and detective literature.
- Education
- University of Glasgow and Kilmarnock Academy.
- Known for
- Laidlaw.
- Honours
- Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize.
- Languages
- English.
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Documentary summary
William Angus McIlvanney (25 November 1936 – 5 December 2015) was a Scottish novelist, short story writer, and poet. He was known as Gus by friends and acquaintances. McIlvanney was a champion of gritty yet poetic literature; his works Laidlaw, The Papers of Tony Veitch, and Walking Wounded are all known for their portrayal of Glasgow in the 1970s.
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wikidata · Q320327 · wikipedia · William McIlvanney
In this article
Biography
Biography
He is regarded as "the father of Tartan Noir" and as Scotland's Camus.
William McIlvanney studied at University of Glasgow and Kilmarnock Academy. The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is poetry, detective fiction and detective literature. Works named in the authority record are Laidlaw. Distinctions recorded are Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize.
McIlvanney was born in Kilmarnock on 25 November 1936, the youngest of four children of a former miner, and attended school at Kilmarnock Academy. He went on to study English at the University of Glasgow and graduated with an MA in 1960. McIlvanney then worked as an English teacher until 1975, when he left the position of assistant headmaster at Greenwood Academy to pursue his writing career. The writer's elder brother was the sports journalist Hugh McIlvanney. His son, Liam McIlvanney, is also an author of the crime genre. In addition to his literary career, McIlvanney wrote regularly for newspapers, and was a writer and narrator of the BBC Scotland football documentary Only a Game? in 1986. McIlvanney held onto his strong socialist views throughout his life. In common with many from working-class backgrounds in Scotland, he was strongly opposed to Thatcherism. Later, he became disappointed by the shift of Labour towards the centre during the New Labour era under Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and by 2014, he had ultimately come to hesitantly feel that Scottish independence might be the best political solution. William McIlvanney died on 5 December 2015 at the age of 79, after a short illness. Following his death, a number of public figures, including SNP MSP Nicola Sturgeon, authors Ian Rankin and Irvine Welsh, paid tribute noting both his inspirational writing and his likeable and gentlemanly personality. The Telegraph obituary noted: "Many authors are admired. Many are respected. Few are loved as he was, for what they are as well as for what they have written."
Writing
Writing
His first book, Remedy is None, was published in 1966 and won the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize in 1967. Docherty (1975), a portrait of a miner whose courage and endurance is tested during the depression, won the Whitbread Novel Award. The Big Man (1985) is the story of Dan Scoular, an unemployed man who turns to bare-knuckle fighting to make a living. Both novels feature typical McIlvanney characters – tough, often violent, men locked in a struggle with their own nature and background. The novel was adapted into a film in 1990 directed by David Leland, starring Liam Neeson, and featuring Billy Connolly. His novel, The Kiln (1996), is the story of Tam Docherty, the grandson of the hero of Docherty. It won the Saltire Society Scottish Book of the Year Award. Laidlaw (1977), The Papers of Tony Veitch (1983) and Strange Loyalties (1991) are crime novels featuring Inspector Jack Laidlaw. Laidlaw is considered to have "effectively created the genre now stereotypically referred to as Tartan Noir", although McIlvaney called the term "ersatz". McIlvanney was also a poet, and wrote The Longships in Harbour: Poems (1970), In Through the Head (1988) and Surviving the Shipwreck (1991), which also contains pieces of journalism, including an essay about T. S. Eliot. McIlvanney wrote a screenplay based on his short story "Dreaming" (published in Walking Wounded in 1989) which was filmed by BBC Scotland in 1990 and won a BAFTA. From April 2013, McIlvanney's writing was regularly published on his own website, which features personal, reflective and topical writing, as well as examples of his journalism. His final novel, The Dark Remains, was completed by Ian Rankin and released in September 2021. The McIlvanney Prize, awarded by Bloody Scotland, is named after him.
Reviews
Reviews
Gifford, Douglas (1976), review of Docherty, in Burnett, Ray (ed.), Calgagus No. 3, pp. 58 & 59, ISSN 0307-2029 Aitchison, James (1983), review of The Papers of Tony Veitch, in Lindsay, Maurice (ed.), The Scottish Review: Arts and Environment 31, August 1983, pp. 60 – 62, ISSN 0140-0894
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1936
William McIlvanney born at Kilmarnock.
2015
William McIlvanney died at Netherlee.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Kilmarnock.
Birth place
Netherlee.
Death place
Prizes and awards
1967 Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize for Remedy is None 1968 Scottish Arts Council Book Award for A Gift from Nessus 1975 Scottish Arts Council Book Award for Docherty 1975 Whitbread Award, for Best Novel for Docherty 1977 Crime Writers' Association Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction for Laidlaw 1983 Crime Writers' Association Macallan Silver Dagger for Fiction for The Papers of Tony Veitch 1990 Glasgow Herald People's Prize for Walking Wounded 1990 BAFTA (screen adaptation): "Dreaming" 1992 Glasgow Herald People's Prize for Strange Loyalties 1992 Scottish Arts Council awards for Surviving the Shipwreck and Strange Loyalties 1996 Saltire Society Scottish Book of the Year Award for The Kiln 2013 Saltire Society Fletcher of Saltoun Award 2013 for "outstanding contribution to Scotland's life and culture" 2013 Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Award for writing 2016 University of Glasgow posthumously awarded him with an honorary doctorate.
References to reviews of work
References to reviews of work
[1] Archived 15 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine McLuckie, Craig. "Researching McIlvanney. A Critical and Bibliographic Introduction", Scottish Studies International 28 (Scottish Studies Centre of the Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz in Germersheim), 1999. Newton, Ken. "William McIlvanney": Literary Encyclopedia William McIlvanney at British Council: Literature [2] McLuckie, Craig. "Postcolonial Resistance: Class, Gender and Race in McIlvanney's The Big Man," Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses (RCEI) 2002; 45: 151–67. [3] McLuckie, Craig. "William McIlvanney and the Provocative Witness: Resistance in the 'Laidlaw' Trilogy," Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses (RCEI) 2000 Nov; 41: 87-101.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.BBC Writing Scotland. Scotland's Writers - William McIlvanney.
- 2.William McIlvanney: not just godfather of 'Tartan Noir' but lion of literature. the Guardian.
- 3.Massie, Allan. "Scotland's master of crime is also its Camus". 25 May 2013.
- 4."William McIlvanney" in Contemporary Authors Online, Gale Thomson, entry updated 23 April 2001.
- 5.Kilmarnock Academy. William McIlvanney (b.1936).
- 6.Guardian Staff. Liam McIlvanney wins Scottish crime fiction award named after his father. The Guardian. 2018-09-21. 0261-3077.
- 7.British Film Institute. Only a game?.
- 8.Scots author William McIlvanney dies, aged 79. www.scotsman.com.
- 9.Scottish writer William McIlvanney dies aged 79. The Guardian. 5 December 2015.
- 10.Crime author William McIlvanney dies aged 79. BBC News.
- 11.William McIlvanney, novelist - obituary. Telegraph.co.uk.
- 12.Morton, Brian. Glasgow no mean Hamlet. The Times. 27 September 1990.
- 13.Taylor, D. J. Fist-fights and metaphors from Kilmarnock: D J Taylor on William McIlvaney, a Scottish storyteller launching guerrilla attacks from the front line. The Independent. 28 January 1989.
- 14.Williams, John. Jack of all genres, master of one – William McIlvanney's new detective novel continues his seamless document of Scotland. The Guardian. 3 September 1991.
- 15.Bailey, Hilary. A matter of manner/ Review of new fiction. The Guardian. 5 September 1985.
- 16.Brown, Geoff. Youth hogs the old spotlight. The Times. 21 August 1990.
- 17.Cochrane, Lynn. The Kiln is named book of the year. The Scotsman. 28 November 1996.
- 18.Kelly, Stuart. A writer's life: William McIlvanney. The Daily Telegraph. 27 August 2006.
- 19.Duncan, Lesley. Cherishing the kitten. The Herald (Glasgow). 1 May 1999.
- 20.McGinty, Stephen. Big Man hits the small screen as writer turns actor in music video. Scotland on Sunday. 21 March 2010.
- 21.Mclaughlin, Martyn. McIlvanney work-in-progress on Connery goes online. The Scotsman. 11 August 2013.
- 22.Flood, Alison. Ian Rankin to complete William McIlvanney's final novel The Dark Remains. The Guardian. Guardian News & Media Limited. 5 December 2020.
- 23.Radio New Zealand. Interview with Ian Rankin. August 2021.
- 24.Rankin 'honoured' to complete McIlvanney novel. BBC News. 30 August 2021.
- 25.Dening, Penelope. Honour in his own country. The Irish Times. 1 October 1996.
- 26.The Crime Writers' Association. The CWA Gold Dagger.
- 27.Linklater, John. Readers stay loyal to McIlvanney with second win in People's Prize. The Herald. 17 December 1992.
- 28.Linklater, John. Awards and votes of confidence for authors. The Herald. 4 June 1992.
- 29.Saltire Society. William McIlvanney to receive the Fletcher of Saltoun Award 2013.
- 30.Ferguson, Brian. Rediscovered William McIlvanney picks up award. The Scotsman. 30 November 2013.
- 31.Glasgow University to honour late author William McIlvanney with doctorate. The Courier. 1 April 2016.
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