Something very different for this PPP series opener, a Scottish hip-hop musical, and a trio of players telling a three sided story. Using William Wallace as their example, the cast expore what it means to be a national hero, and the myths that surround one. Was Wallace the patriot and martyr he's largely portrayed as? A violent thug who got lucky because later writers needed a random figurehead to focus on? Or pure myth, a fiction built on the scantiest of facts? Each takes it in turn to put forward their arguments, to build and destroy the stories around the name. And questions why some (always men of course...) become the memoties of a nation, while others, who may have contributed far more (Andrew de Moray is the chosen example) are ignored by popular history, despite their well documented achievements? And there's one statement that we can all agree on the Braveheart film was shite!
It's a shame that the lyrics sometimes got drowned out by the soundtrack (especially during the expositions of Patricia Panther), because there was a lot of thought provoiking material. Why does a nation need myths and heroes to define itself, who gets to choose which ones gain prominence, just how reliable is the history we're given?
Stong performances, plenty of humour. Everyman characters - Dave Hook as 'Scotsman', Manasa Tagica as 'Sassenach' (and a fine, swaggering Edward I he made!), and PP as simply 'Wummin', largely ignored by the story. This was a refreshing and enjoyable take on our (and wider) historical memory, and what it means to be Scottish.
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