John Cairney (16 February 1930 – 6 September 2023) was a Scottish stage, film and television actor who found fame through his one-man shows on Robert Burns, Robert Louis Stevenson, Robert Service, Charles Rennie Mackintosh and William McGonagall.
Biography John Cairney was born on 16 February 1930 in the Baillieston area of Glasgow. He is the brother of footballer Jim Cairney. They were raised in the Parkhead area of Glasgow; the referee Tiny Wharton was a childhood acquaintance.
He briefly attended art college but dropped out to pursue the life of an actor.
Cairney worked as an actor, recitalist, lecturer, director and theatre consultant. He was also a published author and an exhibited painter. Trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, he was a notable Hamlet at the Citizens' Theatre in Glasgow and a successful Macbeth at the Edinburgh International Festival. In 1954, he appeared in the British debut for Arthur Miller's The Crucible. He played King Humanity in Tyrone Guthrie's Festival production of Sir David Lyndsey's Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis in 1959. In 1962, he joined the Edinburgh Gateway Company, playing James Boswell in Robert McLellan's Young Auchinleck.Edinburgh Gateway Company (19655), The Twelve Seasons of the Edinburgh Gateway Company, 1953 – 1965, St. Giles Press, Edinburgh, p. 53 He was in This Man Craig on television, while his many films include Lucky Jim, A Night to Remember, Operation Bullshine, The Flesh and the Fiends, Victim, Cleopatra and Jason and the Argonauts.
Cairney would become associated with Scottish poet Robert Burns for the remainder of his career, when in 1965 he performed a three hour one-man show, where he recited Burns's works. The play, titled There Was A Man, was presented at the Traverse Theatre, running for over two months due to high demand. The show was also televised and recorded as a successful album. In 1968, he also wrote and starred in a television adaptation of The Robert Burns Story. In 1970s, Cairney played in a political drama by BBC Scotland, named Scotch on the Rocks. In 1987, he published his autobiography, called The Man Who Played Burns.
Cairney gained a PhD from Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand, and was much in demand internationally as a lecturer, writer and consultant on Robert Louis Stevenson, Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Robert Burns.
Cairney wrote books on many famous Scots as well as other books on football (particularly Celtic), theatre and his native Glasgow, where he lived with his New Zealand–born wife, actress and scriptwriter Alannah O'Sullivan.
Cairney married Sheila Cowan in 1954, whom he met at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He had five children with her. Cairney divorced her in 1979 and married actress and playwright Alannah O'Sullivan in 1980.
Cairney fell ill on the morning of 6 September 2023 and died around midday at age 93. He was buried on September 21.
Theatre Year Title Role Company Director Notes1959 Ane Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis King Humanity Tyrone Guthrie play by Sir David Lyndsay, adapted by Robert Kemp1962 Young Auchinleck James Boswell Gateway Theatre, Edinburgh Kenneth Parrott 1965 There Was A Man Robert Burns Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh 1972 Willie Rough Charlie McGrath Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh Bill Bryden
Filmography Year Title Role Refs1957 Ill Met by Moonlight Elias 1957 Miracle in Soho Tom 1957 Lucky Jim Roberts 1957 Windom's Way Jan Vidal 1958 A Night to Remember Murphy 1959 Shake Hands with the Devil Mike O'Callaghan 1959 Operation Bullshine Gunner Willie Ross 1960 The Flesh and the Fiends Chris Jackson 1960 The Edgar Wallace Mysteries – Marriage of ConvenienceLarry Wilson1961 Victim Bridie 1963 Cleopatra Phoebus 1963 Jason and the Argonauts Hylas 1964 The Devil-Ship Pirates Harry 1965 Spaceflight IC-1 Steven Thomas 1965 A Study in Terror Michael Osborne 1999 Nightmare Man Trapper
References
External links
Official website
Amazon author profile