Granite Noir 2023

Granite Noir is inspired by the incredible popularity of crime fiction in all its forms, by the fantastic contribution that Scottish writers make, by our love affair with Nordic Noir, on the page and on screen, and most of all inspired by Aberdeen, which is the perfect backdrop for the festival – steeped in history, atmospheric, quirky and with a strong sense of place.

It’s our pleasure to bring you a fantastic programme of noir writing in unusual places and spaces across the city, from our lively festival hub at the Lemon Tree to the newly restored Cowdray Hall and the atmospheric St Nicholas Kirk.

We can’t wait to explore the darkness within and around us with fascinating authors from near and far.

Granite Noir is produced by Aberdeen Performing Arts on behalf of Aberdeen City Libraries and Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives.

Marischal College Image: visitscotland

Thursday 23 - Sunday 26 February

The Curriculum of Crime Juvenile Delinquency in Early Victorian Aberdeen

In association with Aberdeen Archives, Gallery and Museums

With detailed personal observations of the characters and backgrounds of young offenders, the papers of Alexander Thomson (1792-1862) held by Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives shed light on the enlightened attitudes that existed in nineteenth century Aberdeen and the efforts that were made by social reformers to ensure children were not drawn into a life of crime. Aberdeen was at the forefront of efforts to steer young people away from prison through alternatives such as industrial schools. Using copies of original records, this exhibition will take a closer look at the children, some of whom were as young as eight when they were incarcerated, their backgrounds and the nineteenth century city of which they were a part.

FREE Exhibition in the Music Hall

thursday

Literature at Lunchtime with Sarah armstrong - we all go into the dark

horror with haunt publishing

coorie in with scandi crime friends

Oscar Wilde

Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers

“The suspense is terrible. I hope it will last”

Literature at Lunchtime

with sarah Armstrong

Join Sarah Armstrong as she opens Granite Noir 2023 to discuss the themes of her latest thriller The Starlings of Bucharest with chair Katalina Watt.

The threats people hold over us are most often imagined. We even create them for ourselves. Ted wants to get away from the working-class community he was born into. Hoping to train as a journalist, he moves to London and slides into debt. Things look up when he is given the opportunity to go to Romania to interview an art film director and then attend a Moscow film festival. But others are watching him. And listening.

Thursday 23 February

We All Go Into

The Dark

Bible John’s shadow loomed across Glasgow from the tail end of the 1960s. For a time, it seemed as if the killer’s carefully constructed image was everywhere you turned, leering from newspaper front pages or beamed across TV screens.

In his new book Francisco Garcia delves into how Bible John has morphed across generations and interrogates our collective obsession with ‘solving’ historic crimes. Captivating, eloquent and deeply original, the book is an absolute must read for true crime fans across the board.

Thursday 23 February Chaired by Katalina Watt

Chaired by Stuart Cosgrove

Horror with Haunt Publishing

Scotland has a great tradition of spooky and spellbinding stories. Haunt Publishing has been working to bring these stories back to life and introduce us to new horror from across the nation and beyond.

Founded in 2018, Haunt Publishing is an independent publisher of Gothic, horror and dark fiction in all formats. Dedicated to exploring both traditional and contemporary Gothic and horror literature, Haunt holds a flickering candle to global and underrepresented voices. Come along, and be prepared to be scared!

Thursday 23 February Defamiliarise this!

A workshop with Ever Dundas

What is defamiliarisation? How can this technique help your writing?

Russian Formalist, Shklovsky, stated “art exists that one may recover the sensation of life; it exists to make one feel things, to make the stone stony.” He explains that with habituation, perception becomes automatic, but the role of literature is to defamiliarise and heighten perception. This workshop with Ever Dundas will help you go about this by exploring defamiliarisation through examples, short writing exercises, and group discussion.

Thursday 23 February Chaired by Becky Wojturska

Thursday 23 February

writers of colour workshop

with Scottish BPOC Writers Network

Have you always thought about writing crime, a mystery, a dark tale but never know where to start?.

Learn the basics and where to begin at this online workshop hosted by Tariq with the Scottish BPOC Writers Network, for Black writers and writers of colour based in Scotland.

Thursday 23 February heal &

harrow

Rachel Newton and Lauren MacColl

The 16th and 17th Century Scottish Witch Trials were one of the darkest periods of Scotland’s history. In this new project, two of Scotland’s most celebrated folk musicians - Rachel Newton and Lauren MacColl - pay a humanising tribute to the 2000+ women who were executed during this time. Each piece of music is based on specially commissioned works by celebrated author Mairi Kidd - tales inspired by real women persecuted and tried as witches, and characters from the folklore. Their performance will feature newly composed music with accompanying visuals and will take place in the historic site used to imprison those accused of witchcraft in Aberdeen.

coorie in with scandi crime friends

Join two acclaimed Scandi authors to explore their starkly different but equally intense and thrilling books from Sweden and Finland respectively.

Lina Bengtsdotter takes us to Karlstad, nine-month-old Beatrice is missing from her pram. Her parents are in shock and the media is in a frenzy. DI Charlie Lager is struggling with her own demons when she’s called to investigate. Henri has his life under control, when a man from the past appears and a shady trio take over the adventure park’s equipment supply company... Things are messier than ever in the second instalment in Antti Tuomainen’s bestselling series.

atmosphere”

Thursday 23 February Chaired by Jacky Collins

“It’s always a delight and such a good

Val McDermid on Granite Noir

Thursday 23 February

fun lovin’ crime writers

Authors by day, rockstars by night! Your favourite band are back in town. A full-on rawk experience, murdering songs for fun in front of anyone who will listen. Help us kick off the festival and rock the night away with Stuart Neville, Mark Billingham, Doug Johnstone, Val McDermid, Luca Veste and Chris Brookmyre. 8:30pm-10pm, Lemon Tree Lounge Tickets £11.50

friday

- Literature at Lunchtime with andrew james greig - telling the tales of the past - children’s workshop - zine noir workshop - val mcdermid - new scottish crime - a night of noir - knives out (film screening)

“fiction is the truth inside the lie”

Stephen King

Literature at Lunchtime

Andrew James Greig

Award-winning Scottish author Andrew James Greig chats with chair Bryan Burnett as they explore the themes of his novel A Song of Winter. Edinburgh is basking in an unnaturally warm winter until the snow starts falling. When a student disappears, along with his climate research, and the national government closes down all communications, Professor Finlay Hamilton realises there is a link between his own research into dark matter and the freak weather. Suddenly he is in a desperate race to save his wife, Jess, and their young family from a catastrophic event. His only help is a man from Jess’s past, a past he never knew existed.

Telling the Tales of the Past

Masters of the craft Kaite Welsh, Vaseem Khan and Johana Gustawsson chat about their books and how they write historical thrillers. Set during different times, in three different cities with detectives who have vastly different lives and approaches and yet we find common threads.

Friday 24 February Chaired by Bryan Burnett

Friday 24 February Chaired by Alex Clark

children’s workshop

with Sarah Todd Taylor

Do you have what it takes to become a code-breaking spy extraordinaire? Find out with author Sarah Todd Taylor as she introduces her new series Alice Éclair, Spy Extraordinaire with a top-secret event full of cracking codes and saving the day! You’ll learn about some of the world’s oldest ciphers, discover how Alice and her fellow spies send secret messages and even learn how the computers we have today still use ciphers!

Friday 24 February

zine noir workshop

Join us in the Tutti Studio at the Music Hall for a laid-back crafternoon making zines inspired by the theme of our festival. Our workshops have a warm and welcoming atmosphere, and are suitable for accomplished zine makers and beginners alike. Some craft materials will be provided, but you are welcome to bring your own too.

Friday 24 February

val mcdermid

Val McDermid’s 1989 has been a triumph, making the First Minister’s best books of 2022 list. Celebrate the Queen of Scottish Crime with us and our special guest chair. It’s 1989 and Allie Burns is back...Older and maybe wiser, she’s running the northern news operation of the Sunday Globe, chafing at losing her role in investigative journalism and at the descent into the gutter of the UK tabloid media. But there’s plenty to keep her occupied. The year begins with the memorial service to the victims of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, but Allie has barely filed her copy when she stumbles over a story about HIV/AIDS that will shock her into a major change of direction.

new scottish crime

with Chris Brookmyre, Doug Johnstone & Denzil Meyrick

An evening of fun is guaranteed with Chris Brookmyre, Doug Johnstone and Denzil Meyrick. We’ll be chatting secrets, short stories and more. What new heights is Tartan Noir destined for? And how will we be getting there?

Friday 24 February a night of noir with the Scots Scriever

Close out your Friday in the company of National Library of Scotland’s Scots Scriever, Shane Strachan, as he hosts an evening of spoken word performances with a dark twist. As Scots Scriever, Shane is creating new work in Doric inspired by the national collections. His previous work includes Nevertheless: Sparkian Tales in Bulawayo (amaBooks, 2018), The Shelter and Granite (National Theatre of Scotland), and The Bill Gibb Line (Look Again), a spoken-word project exhibited in Aberdeen Art Gallery across 2020–2021. He holds a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Aberdeen where he now lectures.

Friday 24 February Chaired by Fiona Stalker

locals in the limelight

discounts & travel deals

Some of the region’s most talented authors and writers will read extracts from their noir fiction ahead of some of our festival events across the weekend. Keep an eye on our website and social media pages to find out our exciting Locals in the Limelight line-up. Will you be seeing the next big author at Granite Noir? Look

locals in the limelightdiscounts & travel deals

saturday

- face your fears

- bold new voices

- poison pen workshop

- zootropolis (film screening)

- gothic elements

- detective adventures

- an introduction to publishing

- CSI: Crime Scene improvisation

- who framed roger rabbit (film screening)

- family creative workshop

- edgy, weird & wonderful

- in conversation with tina baker

“very few of us are what we seem”

Agatha Christie

- nightime noir scottish bpoc writers’ network

- charlie higson

Saturday 25 February Recommended for ages 3-7 years old

face your fears

Jonathan Meres and Scaredy Bat show us that sometimes your biggest fear can help you find your biggest strength.

Jonathan Meres is a former paper boy, merchant seaman, ice-cream van driver, hand model, pop video extra, actor, voice-over artist, failed rock star and Perriernominated stand-up comedian, turned million-selling children’s author.

Saturday 25 February

bold new voices

Our new author panel is back with three extraordinary talents. Come and meet Cailean Steed, Kitty Murphy and Rachelle Atalla and listen to the stories behind their novels and what inspired them to become published authors.

BBC Radio Scotland host Bryan Burnett chairs a session offering a fascinating insight into being a debut novelist.

Chaired by Bryan Burnett

Saturday 25 February

poison

pen workshop with e.s. thomson

Arsenic or aconite? Cyanide or curare? Have you ever asked yourself these questions? If so, perhaps the Poison Pen Workshop is for you. Crime fiction is one of the most popular genres. Methods of murder are many and varied, but nothing gives the crime writer as much scope as poison.

Beloved by ‘golden age’ writers, such as Christie and Allingham, poisons have much to offer. In this two-hour workshop historical crime writer E.S. Thomson explores poison’s potential for crime.

Come prepared to kill your characters.

gothic elements

Angie Spoto’s debut The Grief Nurse is set in a world where the rich and powerful have their grief removed, a gothic drama about one woman’s search for freedom and the descent of an aristocratic family into madness and death.

When she was five years old Maggie announced that someone in the remote village of Blairmore in the Outer Hebrides had murdered a local man, sparking a media storm. Now, Maggie is determined to discover what really happened and what the villagers are hiding. Discover dark and deadly secrets in Carole Johnstone’s The Blackhouse.

This event will be live streamed and can be viewed online. Tickets £5

Saturday 25 February Chaired by Peggy Hughes

detective adventures

Maz Evans’ Vi is out to save the world, again!

Alice Éclair is a baker by day and France’s youngest spy by night in Sarah Todd Taylor’s latest book.

Fun, frolics and fancies galore as we chat to these two brilliant authors and get to know their brave and intrepid young investigators.

Saturday 25 February

an introduction to publishing

Ever wanted to know how a book came about?

How it went from author’s manuscript to sitting in your favourite bookshop for you to buy?

Granite Noir has teamed up with the Society of Young Publishers Scotland to help explain exactly how the publishing industry works and what goes into the publishing process.

You’ll have the chance to listen to industry professionals speak about their roles, ask them questions and find out how you could enter the industry too!

Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash

csi: crime scene improvisation

No one knows who the killer is; not even the cast! Mirth meets murder in the world’s daftest whodunnit as the multiple five-star sell-out comedy hit comes to Granite Noir. A fully improvised, witty and absurd murder mystery where you inspire the crime, grill the suspects with any questions you like and, ultimately, decide who is off to the clanger.

family creative workshop

with Maz Evans

Come and create your own mission with Maz in this family creative writing workshop, where she’ll teach you some top tips for making sure your stories are always successful missions.

Saturday 25 February

edgy, weird and wonderful

Ever Dundas and Heather Parry bring you compelling new novels - creepy, thrilling, sinister and terrifying. HellSans is a ubiquitous typeface, enforced by the government. It appears in all communications and in all public spaces. The ultimate control device.

In Orpheus Builds a Girl a woman’s grave is robbed, even in death she is controlled by a man obsessed.

This event will be live streamed and can be viewed online. Tickets £5

Chaired by Eris Young

in conversation with tina baker

Spend a fascinating hour with journalist and broadcaster turned author Tina Baker as we delve into her new novel Make Me Clean, with chair Fiona Stalker.

She will leave your surfaces sparkling. But she may well leave you dead... Maria is a good woman and a good cleaner. If you’re thinking of hiring her, you should probably know that Maria might have killed the terrible husband, the terrible boss and the terrible neighbours. She may also have murdered the man she loved. She didn’t set out to kill anyone, of course, but her clients have hired her to clean up their lives, and she takes her job seriously.

Saturday 25 Februarynightime noir with scottish BPOC Writers network

Join the Scottish BPOC Writers Network for an evening of mystery and intrigue. There will be new voices and new genres before we can all chill afterwards with an eclectic DJ set with Arusa Quereshi.

This event will be live streamed and can be viewed online. Tickets £5

This event will be live streamed and can be viewed online. Tickets £5 BSL SIGNED EVENT

Saturday 25 February Chaired by Fiona Stalker

Saturday 25 February

charlie higson

The first adult crime novel in twenty-five years from the Fast Show star and bestselling author of the Young Bond series!

Most people travel to Corfu to escape the real world for a couple of weeks and embrace the fantasy of olive trees, sandy beaches, and little fishing boats bobbing on sparkling blue water under a warm sun. But not McIntyre. McIntyre’s a fixer, specialising in getting people out of places they don’t want to be with the minimum of fuss, publicity and violence. Whatever Gets You Through The Night is a crime novel with a dark heart about the truths that lurk beneath the surface of a sunny Mediterranean idyll.

Chaired by Alex Clark

sunday

- no escape - fiction in real life? - and i thought i knew you - CSI: Crime Scene

improvisation

- vertigo (film screening) - a criminal practice? - the curriculum of crime - trials of the old bailey - cocktails - shaken not stirred

GK Chesterton

“the criminal is the artist; the detective only the critic”

no escape

Shared themes of water, mystery and suspicion connect two novels as Alice Clark-Platt and Tom Watson discuss their works with chair Bryan Burnett. Alice Clark-Platt’s luxury Malaysian resort surrounded by pristine sea and beautiful jungle, may seem the perfect escape but there’s tension brewing. In Tom Watson’s Metronome we meet Aina and Whitney who have been in exile on an island for a crime they committed together – as secrets and suspicions reveal themselves, can they escape?

Fiction in real life?

In The Library Suicides everyone knows who drove Elena, the renowned novelist, to suicide – her long-term literary critic, Eben. But the twins need proof if they’re going to get revenge. Fiction has been banned by the government for five years. Writing novels is a crime. Reading fairytales to children is punishable by law. Is this the End of Story? Fflur Dafydd and Louise Swanson bring true terror to the world of books.

This event will be live streamed and can be viewed online. Tickets £5

This event will be live streamed and can be viewed online. Tickets £5

Sunday 26 February Chaired by Bryan Burnett

Sunday 26 February Chaired by Peggy Hughes

Sunday 26 February Chaired

and i thought i knew you

When an Auld Acquaintance turns up at a remote island party, Millie’s left unsettled and there’s more mystery and drama to come in Sofia Slater’s tense debut.

Kia Abdullah’s Those People Next Door is a gripping thriller about nightmare neighbours that explores the loss of innocence and how far we’re prepared to go to defend ourselves and the people we love.

Sunday 26 February a

criminal practice?

Alan Riach and Louise Welsh dive the depths of Tartan Noir. Where it started, where it’s been and where it’s going. From Stevenson and Hogg, through Tey and McIlvanney to the giants of the genre today, some of them with us here at Granite Noir.

Join us for a riveting and fun conversation featuring some of Scotland’s favourite authors and their books.

by Alex Clark

Sunday 26 February

the Curriculum of Crime Juvenile Delinquency in

Early Victorian Aberdeen

Phil Astley, City Archivist and Dr. Dee Hoole, Honorary Research Fellow in History, University of Aberdeen.

Among the many remarkable records held by Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives is a scrapbook containing documents compiled by Alexander Thomson (1792-1862) a member of the Aberdeen County Prison Board during the 1840s and 1850s.

A section of these documents relate to juvenile delinquents, both boys and girls, who were incarcerated in Aberdeen Prison during this period, some of whom were as young as eight years old. Vivid descriptions of the characters of these young offenders appear, alongside details of their family backgrounds and where they lived.

The talk will take a closer look at what these original records reveal about the children, the efforts that were made to keep them out of jail and the urban landscape of the nineteenth century city which formed the backdrop to their young lives.

Trials of the Old Bailey

Her Honour Wendy Joseph KC, the third ever woman to hold a permanent position at the Old Bailey, unpicks six extraordinary cases and explores why we kill, what happens at trial and what we can learn about the society in which we live. What is it like to be a witness to the good and the bad? How is the system flawed? How much longer can we afford to ignore the strain the judiciary is under?

Sunday 26 February Chaired by Nasim Rebecca Asl

cocktails - shaken not stirred with kathryn harkup

The adventures of James Bond have thrilled and delighted readers since Ian Fleming’s novel Casino Royale was published in 1953, and when the movie of Dr No was released in 1962, Bond quickly became the world’s favourite secret agent. Science and technology have always been central to the plots that make up the world of Bond. Kathryn Harkup explores 007’s exploits from the practicalities of building a volcano-based lair, to whether being covered in gold paint really will kill you, and - if your plan is to take over the world - whether it is better to use bacteria, bombs, or poison. This event will give you all the answers over a few glasses of James Bond’s favourite cocktails.

crime watch film screenings

Presented at Granite Noir in partnership with Aberdeen Arts Centre.

Films selected by Colin Farquhar, former Head of Cinema Operations, Belmont Filmhouse - read here why Colin chose these four cracking crime flicks.

Aberdeen Arts Centre Tickets £9

Tickets available from aberdeenperformingarts.com

Fri 24 February, 7pm

Knives Out

2019,130 mins

A crime novelist has been murdered and, as it turns out, everyone is a suspect. Rian Johnson’s masterful Knives Out updates the Big House mystery, with wit and skill, and a huge ensemble cast. “Knives Out just almost could have been written for Granite Noir. Mansion mysteries have such a rich history, in film and in literature, and this is such a fabulously realised tribute to the entire genre, with every silly twist and turn seeking and receiving your rapturous applause.”

Sat 25 February, 12pm

Zootropolis

2016,108 mins

Zootropolis sees Judy Hopps, a rabbit from rural Bunnyburrow, come to the big city to chase her dream of being a police officer. Along with her mismatched partner, she uncovers a conspiracy that goes right to the top of Zootropolis. “We wanted to include a kids’ film in Granite Noir, partially because crime is for all ages, but also because Disney often does a fab job of bringing elements from far darker subject matter and turning them into something accessible and fun. A perfect introduction to a life of crime, and fun for all the family.”

Sat 25 February, 3pm

Who RogerFramedRabbit?

1988,104 mins

There’s something not quite right in Toontown. Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a comedy-fantasy set in the golden age of Hollywood, where cartoons and people co-exist. A critically acclaimed film noir comedy-fantasy, it still stands up today. “Who Framed Roger Rabbit is probably the first film that I ever remember seeing that could be described as film noir. It remains an absolute riot of over-thetop performances and slapstick, and a tribute to the writers’ imaginations. A film with risque humour and a brilliant, memorable finale.”

Sun 26 February, 3pm

Vertigo

1958,128 mins

In Hitchcock’s classic, a retired detective, played by James Stewart, is asked to investigate a woman’s strange behaviour by an old friend, falling into a world where nothing is as it seems.

“Vertigo is one of the best films of all time, topping polls by the American Film Institute and BFIs Sight and Sound in recent memory. It became hugely influential on Neo Noirs to come, including towering modern noir like Mulholland Drive and Basic Instinct. Also, Granite Noir has yet to show a Hitchcock, and it felt time to rectify that, with probably his greatest film.”

drama at granite noir

Girl From The North Country

Tue 21 - Sat 25 February 2023

Tue - Sat 7:30pm, Thu 2pm, Sat 2:30pm

The double Olivier and Tony awardwinning West End and Broadway smash-hit tours the UK and Ireland for the first time.

It’s 1934 in the heartland of America and we meet a group of wayward souls who cross paths in a time-weathered guesthouse. Standing at a turning point in their lives, they realize nothing is what it seems.

Celebrated playwright Conor McPherson boldly reimagines the legendary songs of Bob Dylan, like you’ve never heard them before. An uplifting and universal story about family and love, brought vividly to life by an extraordinary company of actors and musicians.

His Majesty’s Theatre Tickets £51 - £15

The Mirror Crack’d

Tue 28 February - Sat 4 March 2023

Tue - Sat 7:30pm, Thu 2pm, Sat 2:30pm

Miss Marple returns to the stage...

This thrilling new adaptation of Agatha Christie’s famous novel, adapted by Rachel Wagstaff (The Girl On The Train, The Da Vinci Code), brings real emotional depth and psychological insight to a thrilling story of revenge.

HHHH “We were blown away... If you are looking for a roller coaster ride of emotions, thrills and quite a lot of spills then get yourself a ticket.”

Stage Side UK

.

His Majesty’s Theatre Tickets £37.50 - £14.50

Scottish Exclusive

Starring Susie Blake, Sophie Ward and Joe McFadden

MEET OUR CHAIRS

nasim rebecca asl alex clark stuart cosgrove

Nasim Rebecca Asl is a Glasgow based poet and journalist. Her poetry has been published in a range of magazines and anthologies and she has received a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award for Poetry, been shortlisted for the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award and nominated for Royal Television Society Scotland’s Young Journalist of the Year.

Alex Clark is a critic, journalist and broadcaster. A co-host of Graham Norton’s Book Club, she is also a regular on Radio 4 and writes on a wide range of subjects for the Guardian, the Observer, the Irish Times and the Times Literary Supplement. She is a patron of the Cambridge Literary Festival, and has judged many literary awards.

Stuart Cosgrove, was a fanzine writer on the northern soul scene before joining the black music paper Echoes, becoming media editor with the NME and a feature writer for numerous newspapers and magazines. In 2005 he was named Broadcaster of the Year in the Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Awards.

bryan burnett jacky collins peggy hughes

Bryan Burnett is the host of BBC Radio Scotland’s popular evening music programme, Get It On. Aberdeen born Bryan began his career as a teenage magazine journalist before moving into radio and TV presenting. He has presented a wide range of shows over the years from arts and entertainment to quiz shows.

Dr Jacky Collins aka Dr Noir, formerly Senior Lecturer at Northumbria University in Literature, Film & TV and Spanish Language & Culture, is currently based at Stirling University. Jacky established the International Crime Fiction Festival that is Newcastle Noir. and more recently, she has been co-hosting a fortnightly crime fiction programme on SpiceFM.

Peggy Hughes is Head

of Programmes

at the National Centre for Writing, a literature house dedicated to the exploration and celebration of the artform of writing. Previously, she worked in various literature organisations in Scotland, including Edinburgh International Book Festival, Literary Dundee and the Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature Trust.

amy liptrott

Before joining Aberdeen Arts Centre as Director in October 2022, Amy Liptrott was Associate Director at Pitlochry Festival Theatre. She has directed classic and new works, lead Artist Development programmes and programmed and chaired writers including Denise Mina, James Crawford and Alexander McCall Smith at Winter Words.

shane strachan

As Scots Scriever, Shane creates new work in Doric inspired by the national collections. His work includes Nevertheless: Sparkian Tales in Bulawayo (amaBooks, 2018), The Shelter and Granite (National Theatre of Scotland), and The Bill Gibb Line (Look Again), a spoken-word project exhibited in Aberdeen Art Gallery.

becky wojturska

Rebecca Wojturska, loves all things Gothic. With three dissertations in Gothic literature and almost a decade’s experience in publishing, she has finally combined her two loves.

katalina watt eris young fiona stalker

Fiona Stalker is a Senior Presenter and Reporter at BBC Scotland. She presents programme across TV & radio including Drivetime and The Sunday Show on BBC Radio Scotland and Seven Days on the BBC Scotland channel . She previously worked for Reuters as Scotland Correspondent, lectured in journalism, and managed her own media training company.

Katalina Watt is Literature Officer at Creative Scotland. Her short fiction has been published in various magazines and anthologies including Haunted Voices, Unspeakable, and Extra Teeth. She has appeared at festivals and literary events including Edinburgh International Book Festival, Cymera, and FIYAHCON.

Eris Young is a queer, transgender author of fiction and nonfiction. Their short stories have appeared in Pseudopod, Fusion Fragment, Escape Pod and Metastellar, as well as anthologies such as Uncanny Bodies. They also edit fiction at Shoreline of Infinity magazine and in 2020 received a Scottish Book Trust New Writer Award for fiction.

How to Book

Tickets can be booked by visiting the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall, by calling 01224 641122, or through our website aberdeenperformingarts.com, deals and discounts are available.

Travel Details

By air: Aberdeen has an international airport located in Dyce, on the North-west of the city. The city centre can be accessed by taxi or bus from the airport.

By train: Aberdeen train station is conveniently located in the city centre and is walking distance from Union Street and all Granite Noir venues. Regular services arrive from south and west of the city.

By bus: Aberdeen bus station is situated next to the train station and in convenient walking distance from the city centre. Buses and coaches arrive regularly from all cities providing good access to Aberdeen.

By road: South: On the A90 from Dundee West: On the A96 from Inverness, A944 from Alford, A93 from Braemar/Ballater North - A90 from Peterhead/Fraserburgh Dundee……..1 hour 30 minutes drivetime Edinburgh…..2 hours 45 minutes drivetime Glasgow…….2 hours 45 minutes drivetime Inverness……2 hours 45 minutes drivetime Elgin…………1 hour 45 minutes drivetime

Thursday

All day

Venue Pg

The Curriculum of Crime MH 4 Archive Exhibition

1-2pm Literature at Lunchtime MH 7 with Sarah Armstrong

2pm Girl From The HMT 34 North Country

3-4pm We All Go Into The Dark LT 7

5-6pm Horror With Haunt Publishing LT 8

6-7:30pm Defamiliarise This Online 8

6-7:30pm Writers of Colour Workshop Online 9

6:30-7:30pm Heal & Harrow KSN 9

7-8pm Coorie In LT 10 with Scandi Crime Friends

7:30pm Girl From The HMT 34 North Country

8:30-10pm Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers LT 11

friday

All day

Venue Pg

The Curriculum of Crime MH 4 Archive Exhibition

1-2pm Literature at Lunchtime MH 13 with Andrew James Greig

4-5pm Telling Tales of the Past LT 13

4-5pm Children’s Workshop ACL 14 with Sarah Todd Taylor

6-7:30pm Zine Noir Workshop Tutti, MH 14

6-7pm New Scottish Crime LT 16 7pm Knives Out AAC 33

7:30pm Girl From The HMT 34 North Country

8-9pm Val McDermid MH 15

9:30-10:30pm A Night of Noir CODA, MH 16

Saturday

Venue Pg

All day The Curriculum of Crime MH 4 Archive Exhibition

10-11am Face Your Fears ACL 19 11am-12pm Bold New Voices LT 19 11:30am-1:30pm Poison Pen Workshop ACL 20 12pm Zootropolis AAC 33 1-2pm Gothic Elements LT 20 1-2pm Detective Adventures ACL 21 1:30-3pm An Introduction to Publishing AAC 21

2pm CSI: Crime Scene Improvisation MH 22

2:30pm Girl From The HMT 34 North Country

3pm Who Framed Roger Rabbit AAC 33

3-4pm Family Creative Workshop ACL 23 3-4pm Edgy, Weird and Wonderful LT 23 5-6pm In Conversation with Tina Baker LT 24 6pm CSI: Crime Scene Improvisation MH 22 7-8pm Charlie Higson LT 25 7:30pm Girl From The HMT 34 North Country 8:30-10:30pm Nightime Noir LT 24

Sunday

Venue Pg

All day The Curriculum of Crime MH 4 Archive Exhibition

10-11am No Escape LT 27 12-1pm Fiction in Real Life? LT 27 2-3pm And I Thought I Knew You LT 28 3pm Vertigo AAC 33 4-5pm A Criminal Practice? LT 28 4-5:30pm The Curriculum of Crime Talk CH 29 6-7pm Trials of The Old Bailey LT 30 7:30-9:30pm Cocktails - The Terrace, HMT 31 Shaken Not Stirred