David MacLennan, Rogart

Leading Scottish theatre producer David MacLennan, who has died aged 65 after suffering from Motor Neurone Disease, dedicated his life to advancing Scottish theatre.

The actor, writer and producer had strong Sutherland connections – David’s father, Sir Hector MacLennan, was the owner of Rogart Hotel and his older brother Robert, now Baron Robert MacLennan of Rogart, is the former Caithness & Sutherland MP.

In 1971, David was one of the founding figures of the 7:84 Company, which toured the Highlands and indeed the world, with The Cheviot, the Stag, and the Black, Black Oil, John McGrath’s radical play about the Highland Clearances.

This was the first drama to take such a daring and emotional perspective on the subject, and performing it in remote venues in front of audiences whose lives were the subject of the play added to its power and poignancy.

David often said that his love of storytelling was sparked by his Sutherland connections. “In Rogart my father had three best friends, a gamekeeper, a garage owner and a crofter. In the evening they would arrive at our cottage and he would get out a bottle of whisky, throwing the cork on the fire, with the immortal line: ‘We won’t be needing that again, tonight’.

“And, of course, the stories would start. They all knew them inside out but it was the telling and embellishing that was the attraction. That, I suppose, is the origin of theatre: the audience allows you to tell even whopping porkies if they’re true to the spirit of the story.”

David grew up in Glasgow, the youngest of the four children of Sir Hector MacLennan who was a gynaecologist and obstetrician, and his wife Isobel, also a doctor and a public health activist.

David was educated at Fettes College in Edinburgh before going on to Edinburgh University where he dropped out to work as a street refuse collector, and then as a stage manager in Brighton.

Along with his sister, the actress Elizabeth MacLennan, and her husband the late John McGrath, the three co-founded 7:84. Then, along with actor, writer and musician David Anderson, David went on to establish Wildcat Theatre, another pioneering touring company.

David was devastated (along with many others) when in 1997, the then Scottish Arts Council pulled Wildcat’s touring grant. This resulted in a substantial slice of Scottish talent being overlooked and under used; some might say neglected.

But the best was yet to come when a decade ago, David became the driving force behind the ground breaking lunchtime theatre concept, A Play, A Pie and A Pint at Oran Mor in Glasgow’s West End.

From modest beginnings, the repertoire now consists of 30 plays featuring actors such as Robbie Coltrane, David Hayman and Bill Paterson, along with emerging talent, while work is commissioned from the likes of Liz Lochhead as well as first-time playwrights.

The artistic success and global outreach of A Play, a Pie and A Pint is down to David’s great vision and vast experience. I cannot think of any other producer who could have pulled off such a feat.

And yet, he made it all look so effortless and always played down his role as theatrical ringmaster; that is except for his taste in trousers. David was famous for his salmon pink cords and his family have asked that mourners wear his signature colour at his funeral this Saturday.

David’s colourful taste in clothes aside, this was a man with a great eye for a script, who could make things happen by focussing on what mattered.

He was once asked why we need the arts and his reply sums up the essence of David MacLennan.

“Well, I know why I need them. It’s because they hugely enrich my understanding of fellow human beings. It’s a holistic approach for one very simple reason: the way a people’s culture is allowed to breathe affects their sensitivity, their learning, their very wellbeing.”

David is survived by his wife, the actress Juliet Cadzow, and his son Shane, as well as Elizabeth, and his brothers Robert and Keith.

David MacLennan, actor, writer and producer, born 19th June 1948, died 13th June 2014 – Heather Macleod.

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