THE most anticipated casting announcement in Scottish theatre history is finally unveiled today.
We can reveal which actors will bring The Broons to life in a new stage show coming to theatres across the country from next month.
Still Game favourite Paul Riley will play Paw and he said it’s a real honour.
Speaking yesterday from the set of the new series of Still Game, where he plays Winston, Paul said: “I’m going up the loft tonight to dig out my old annuals and brush up.
“I had a meeting with the director last week and I was offered the part a few days ago.
“When I finish up with Still Game on Friday I have a week off and then it’s straight into rehearsals for The Broons.
“It’s going to be a right good laugh and I can’t wait.”
Playing his wife, Maw, will be River City favourite Joyce Falconer, who was Roisin in the soap for seven years.
Joyce and Paul went to drama school together 25 years ago and Paul says they’ll slip into the roles of a long-married couple with ease.
Joyce said: “We were in the same class and we used to have a right carry-on.
“I can honestly say I’ve never been more excited in my whole career as I am to play Maw.
“I feel The Broons is part of my DNA and I remember when I was a kid I used to lie on the floor with my siblings and pals and we would all play the different characters as we read the comic strip.
“We didn’t have a telly, but The Broons was our television.
“The script is hilarious and really does the characters justice.
“My family was so excited when they heard I was auditioning and my mum was sure it was a sign when she won a Broons hamper in a raffle at her sheltered housing – she was right!
“The Broons are really close to my heart and the show is going to be a riot.”
The impressive line-up bringing Scotland’s favourite fictional family to life also includes Kern Falconer as Granpaw. Kern has appeared in everything from High Road and The Bill to Macbeth and last year’s hit film, Slow West.
One of the most anticipated casting decisions centred on who would play the role of The Bairn – and that honour is going to actress Maureen Carr, who has featured in Monarch Of The Glen, Merlin and Still Game.
Playing the rest of 10 Glebe Street’s inhabitants will be Tyler Collins as Hen, John Kielty as Joe, Laura Szalecki as Daphne, Euan Bennet as Horace, Kevin Lennon and Duncan Brown as The Twins and Kim Allan as Maggie.
The show, which also features musical numbers, has been penned by award-winning writer Rob Drummond and will see the gang preparing for Maggie’s wedding, building on a storyline that appeared in a Broons strip in 1977 but mysteriously vanished before the big day arrived.
The production marks the 80th anniversary of The Broons and has its world premiere at Perth Concert Hall on September 27 before moving on to Inverness, Kirkcaldy, Stirling, Aberdeen, Ayr, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Producer David Hutchison, of Sell A Door Theatre Company, said: “We are thrilled to have on board a stellar cast, including household Scottish stage and TV personalities.
“Casting The Broons in Glasgow was the most fun I’ve ever had in a casting process. The actors brought our well-loved characters alive and I can’t wait for Scottish audiences to share that experience.”
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