Tam's Tall Tales
- School's Out for Gregory's Girl Setting
Poster for Gregory's Girl, via Wikimedia
Despite Public Protests, "Gregory's Girl" School Demolished
Abronhill High School in Cumbernauld (graphic here of the school by Ross4587 via Wikimedia) may look an unremarkable building and certainly was never designed by any architect in the same league as Charles Rennie Mackintosh, but it did achieve global prominence.
"Gregory's Girl" was shot at the school. The film, directed by Bill Forsyth, is a certain kind of coming-of-age romantic comedy, which achieved a global audience despite its miniscule budget.
Now Abronhill is being demolished, apart from a plaque commemorating the school's role in the film, which was removed before the wrecking ball did its job.
One man who attended the school and played a schoolboy in the film, pointed out what an important event. "It was a big thing at the time and I think the film served the school well over the years.
As the nights draw in I might hunt out the DVD - the film is worth it for the performance of Chic Murray alone. He plays an eccentric piano playing headmaster to perfection, but the performances of the young actors (John Gordon Sinclair and Dee Hepburn) are also very good indeed.
Bill Forsyth went on to Hollywood and also to direct 'Local Hero' with Burt Lancaster in the lead role, but he became disillusioned with the film business and has not had a major project in recent years.
Please give me whatever feedback comes to mind via tamfromrampant@gmail.com.
Tam O'Ranter
May 2014Return to Tam O'Ranter Index
