Shetland Noir Programme 2023

Wordplay presents

- 18 JUNE 2023

Crime on distant shores

dance

Film Screening: The Third Man (1949)

In Conversation: Dr James Grieve

Panel: Not quite so noir

Panel: Old bones

to: Howdunnit - Ways to plot and structure a page-turning mystery

Real Shetland Noir: The Fox Lane murders of 1858

In Conversation: Shona Maclean

And then there were none... final fun & farewells

19 Meet the team

Tickets are available in person at Mareel or over the phone 01595 745500 (10am – 9pm Tuesday – Sunday) or online at www.shetlandarts.org

Noir Cards: Entry into all Shetland Noir events (excl Supper dance) for only £85 . On sale now .

Daily Noir Cards: Entry into all Shetland Noir events on individual days available from Friday 7 April Friday £35 Saturday £35 Sunday £35

Individual Tickets: Individual balcony tickets for headliner events will be available for purchase from Friday 7 April .

Shetland has always been special for me . I arrived in the seventies to work as assistant cook in Fair Isle Bird Observatory, and my love affair with the islands has only grown since then . I fell for its bleak beauty – the long horizons and big skies – and for the warmth of the welcome . It’s my place of sanctuary and escape

Shetland is brimming with stories: real adventures and magical fairy tales . Check out the museum next to Mareel to discover many of them for yourselves! It’s appropriate then that we should be holding a festival for writers and readers in the UK’s most northerly community

Shetland Noir will give you the opportunity to meet islanders, and to experience some of its traditions, its music and its culture Marsali Taylor, my partner in crime, is a Shetlander and an expert guide and I know she’ll be delighted to answer any of your questions .

I look forward to meeting you all over the course of the weekend I know many of you already and by the time you head south, I’m sure we’ll all be friends . I hope that by then, Shetland will mean as much to you as it does to me .

ANN CLEEVES Curator & Patron

For Ann Cleeves’ biography please see p19 .

It’s been an honour to work with Ann and the Shetland Arts Shetland Noir team Between us, we’ve enjoyed creating a programme which will combine some of the biggest names in crime with a taste of life here in Shetland . Shetland Noir events include an opening speed-dating session where the visiting panel authors have two minutes to tell you why you mustn’t miss their session, seven panels on a variety of topics, three workshops, two talks on local topics, a traditional Shetland supper dance on Saturday night and a ‘Survivors’ quiz’ on Sunday evening

It’s going to be a lot of fun! For those of you already signed up, I’m looking forward to welcoming you in person . If you’ve only just picked this brochure up in Mareel or found it online, well, just look at the crime treats on offer How can you resist joining us at Shetland Noir?

MARSALI TAYLOR Advisor

For Marsali Taylor’s biography please see p19 .

Welcome reception

Shetland Noir’s patron and curator Ann Cleeves will declare the festival officially open, in true Shetland style - warm and welcoming - with delicious locally-sourced food prepared by Shetland’s own food guru Marian Armitage Pick up your Noir Cards at reception and enjoy meeting new friends and greeting old ones .

After the welcome there will be a chance to hear some of Shetland’s young musicians live in the café bar . A regular feature at Mareel, this informal showcase brings together some of our finest emerging talent . So stay for a drink and soak up the atmosphere

Supported by Shetland Islands Council

Speed dating, crime writer style!

An opportunity to zoom around the room and meet as many writers as you can Listen to a two minute pitch as authors introduce themselves, their work and what inspires them . There may be time for a quick question or two until onto the next .

A great way to break the ice, meet some new faces and prepare yourself for the smorgasbord of crime writing discussions ahead with authors from around the world . . .

 Mareel, Auditorium & Café Bar

 Thursday 15 June, 7pm - 11pm

 For Noir Card holders

 Mareel, Café Bar

 Friday 16 June, 9am - 9.45am

 For Noir & Fri Card holders

In Conversation: Martin Edwards

Interviewed by Ann Cleeves

Award winning crime writer Martin Edwards talks to Shetland Noir about his work. Qualified solicitor Martin was the longest-serving Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association . In 2015 he was elected eighth President of the Detection Club; his predecessors include G K Chesterton, Dorothy L Sayers, and Agatha Christie . He is Archivist of the Crime Writers’ Association and of the Detection Club and consultant to the British Library’s Crime Classics

Martin Edwards’ 21 novels include the Lake District Mysteries and the Rachel Savernake books, most recently Sepulchre Street, as well as an acclaimed history of crime fiction, The Life of Crime

He received the CWA Diamond Dagger for the sustained excellence of his work . He has also won the Edgar, Agatha, CrimeFest H .R .F . Keating and Macavity awards, the Short Story Dagger and Dagger in the Library, plus the Poirot award for his outstanding contribution to the genre .

For Ann Cleeves’ biography please see page 19

Mareel, Auditorium

 Friday 16 June, 10am - 11am

 For Noir & Fri Card holders or £15/£10

When

you don’t know who to trust

Moderated by Lisa de Nikolits

You’d expect to be safe in your own home, but real-life murder statistics say the opposite Thriller-writers Shari Lapena, Gilly MacMillan and Louise Mangos discuss how they use the characters, settings and events of family life to add a dark twist to their tales with fellow author

Lisa de Nikolits

Keeping it real

Moderated by Iain Souter

Police Procedural authors Mari Hannah, Margaret Kirk and Tim Sullivan talk to real life (retired) police detective Iain Souter about how they research and recreate realistic police work, and when and why they sometimes have to get it wrong .

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Friday 16 June, 11.30am - 12.30pm

 For Noir & Fri Card holders

How to: Sense of place

In our ‘How to’ sessions, Shetland Noir guests share their wisdom and advice on the world of writing and publishing – with a chance for you to join in and ask questions . Finding your character and your story in your sense of place with Shona Maclean The workshop will use visual prompts to explore how character and story can evolve from our reaction to place. For all sorts of fiction writing, not exclusively crime . No previous writing experience is required . For Shona’s biography please see page 18 .

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Friday 16 June, 1.30pm - 2.30pm

 For Noir & Fri Card holders

Real Shetland Noir: Fighting crime Shetland style

In these sessions, hear from local experts about real life crime and crime-fighting in the UK’s most northerly locations . Former detective Iain Souter talks about his time policing Shetland’s wild and windy shores Over the past 20 years, Iain has been a detective for the Northern Constabulary and an Assistant Service Delivery Officer with Victim Support Scotland, he currently enjoys working as a Librarian at the Shetland Library .

 Mareel, Green Room

 Friday 16 June, 3pm - 4.30pm

 For Noir Card holders (priority booking)

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Friday 16 June, 3.30pm - 4.30pm

 For Noir & Fri Card holders

In Conversation: Carole Johnstone

Interviewed by Ann Cleeves

Ann Cleeves talks to Carole Johnstone , winner of the Shetland Noir Bursary, an award supported by Ann for a writer who is already getting into their stride, working at their craft and improving with every novel

Carole Johnstone grew up in Lanarkshire, Scotland, and in her twenties relocated to Essex to work as a radiographer . She has been writing as long as she can remember and is an award-winning short story writer She now writes full-time and lives with her husband in an old farmhouse outside Glasgow, though her heart belongs to the sea and the wild islands of the Outer Hebrides .

Mareel, Auditorium

 Friday 16 June, 5pm - 6pm

 For Noir & Fri Card holders or £15/£10

In Conversation: Val McDermid

Interviewed by Stewart Bain

Stewart Bain sits down with ‘Queen of Crime’, Val McDermid , one of the most successful and acclaimed crime fiction writers that has emerged from Scotland . Val has sold over 17 million books to date across the globe and is translated into more than 40 languages She is perhaps best-known for her Wire in the Blood series, featuring clinical psychologist Dr Tony Hill and DCI Carol Jordan .

Stewart Bain spent 14 years working at Orkney Library & Archive, where he launched the award winning @OrkneyLibrary Twitter feed and ran the Saturday Slaughters crime fiction reading group He has judged the Dagger in the Library Award, The McIlvanney Prize and is a regular contributor to The Graham Norton Book Club Podcast .

Mareel, Auditorium

 Friday 16 June, 8pm - 9pm

 For Noir & Fri Card holders or £15/£10

THURSDAY 15 JUNE

WELCOME RECEPTION

FRIDAY 16 JUNE

SPEED DATIN G, CRIME WRITER STYLE!

IN CONVERSATION: MARTIN EDWARDS

PANEL: WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW WHO TO TRUST

PANEL: KEEPING IT REAL

HOW TO: SENSE OF PLACE

REAL SHETLAND NOIR: FIGHTING CRIME SHETLAND STYLE

IN CONVERSATION: CAROLE JOHNSTON

IN CONVERSATION: VAL MCDERMID

SATURDAY 17 JUNE

LOCAL WRITERS’ SESSION

IN CONVERSATION: ELLY GRIFFITHS

PANEL: GROUND-TRUTHING

PANEL: TRAVELLING IN TIME

HOW TO: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EDITED

PANEL: CRIME ON DISTANT SHORES

IN CONVERSATION: RICHARD OSMAN

SUPPER DANCE

FI LM SCREENING: T HE THIRD MAN

SUNDAY 18 JUNE

IN CONVERSATION: D R J AMES GRIEVE

PANEL: NOT QUITE SO NOIR

HOW TO: HOWDUNNIT - WAYS TO PLOT AND STRUCTURE A PAGE-TURNING

.45am -

.15pm

PANEL: OLD BONES

REAL SHETLAND NOIR: THE FOX LANE MURDERS OF 1858

IN CONVERSATION: SHONA MACLEAN

AND THEN THERE WERE NONE... FINAL FUN & FAREWELLS

In Conversation: Elly Griffiths

Interviewed by Alex Gray

The latest Ruth Galloway novel The Last Remains was published in January 2023, its author Elly Griffiths discusses it - and more - with fellow novelist Alex Gray . Winner of the 2020 Edgar Allan Poe award for her novel The Stranger Diaries, Elly is the author of best-selling detective series featuring Ruth Galloway, forensic archaeologist of whom Val McDermid wrote “I refuse to apologise for being in love with Dr Ruth Galloway”. Elly also created the dynamic duo of Detective Inspector Edgar Stephens and magician Max Mephisto who feature in her other well-known series of novels set in Brighton in the 1950s…

Alex Gray is the Sunday Times bestselling author of the Detective William Lorimer series Born and raised in Glasgow, she has been awarded the Scottish Association of Writers’ Constable and Pitlochry trophies for her crime writing and is the co-founder of the international Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival

Mareel, Auditorium

 Saturday 17 June, 10am - 11am

 For Noir & Sat Card holders or £15/£10

Ground-truthing

Moderated by Catherine Jeromson

How do crime novelists reflect the communities in which they live?

Shetland’s own Marsali Taylor, Alex Gray from Glasgow and Trevor Wood from Newcastle discuss the advantages and challenges of portraying crime in their own communities with Catherine Jeromson from Shetland Library .

Local writers’ session

An opportunity to hear the voice of local Shetland writers, including those who are working in dialect

The full lineup for guests will be confirmed soon .

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Saturday 17 June, 11.30am - 12.30pm

 For Noir & Sat Card holders

Travelling in time

Moderated by Dr Jacky Collins

Not just page-turning plots, but a window into the past or the future too!

Historical crime authors David Bishop and Janet Oakley and futuristic thriller writer Lisa de Nikolits discuss how they create crime time travel with Dr Jacky Collins

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Saturday 17 June, 9am - 9.45am

 For Noir & Saturday Card holders

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Saturday 17 June, 1.30pm - 2.30pm

 For Noir & Sat Card Holders

In Conversation: Richard Osman

Interviewed by Martin Edwards

Richard Osman shares all with Martin Edwards on his best selling series The Thursday Murder Club and what the future holds after leaving the iconic TV show Pointless in 2022 to focus on his writing . Richard is an author, producer, and television presenter His first two novels, The Thursday Murder Club and The Man Who Died Twice were multi-millioncopy number one bestsellers around the world . The third book in The Thursday Murder Club series, The Bullet that Missed, became the fastest-selling British adult fiction hardback since records began .

Qualified solicitor Martin was the longestserving Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association Martin won the highest Diamond Dagger award from Crime Writers’ Association in 2020 for a lifetime contribution to crime writing .

Mareel, Auditorium

 Saturday 17 June, 5pm - 6pm

 For Noir & Sat Card holders or £15/£10

How to: The importance of being edited

In our ‘How to’ sessions, Shetland Noir guests share their wisdom and advice on the world of writing and publishing – with a chance for you to join in and ask questions . Edit your way to writing success - making your work the best it can be, giving yourself an edge in writing competitions and working out your path to publication

Dea Parkin, General & Competitions Coordinator of the Crime Writers’ Association and Editor-inchief at Fiction Feedback gives the insider track on successful approaches to writing

Crime on distant shores

An exotic setting can add an extra twist to a crime story – but why do authors choose a particular setting, and how do they make use of it in their novels? Talk about special settings with Wendy Jones Nakanishi aka Lea O’Harra, whose PP series is set in Japan, Alistair Liddle, whose Lieutenant Donadze operates in Georgia and Adam Oyebanji, whose novel A Quiet Teacher is set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

 Mareel, Green Room

 Saturday 17 June, 3pm - 4.30pm

 For Noir Card holders (priority booking)

Supper dance

Are you dancing? Enjoy a traditional Shetland celebration with a lively Supper Dance . Dance to the classics; ‘Strip the Willow’ or ‘The Boston Two Step’ with the popular Scottish Dance band, Leeshinat – complete with dance caller Sample some Shetland hospitality and try the delicious local fare . Soup, bannocks and fancies for your ‘Supper,’ to keep you dancing all night .

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Saturday 17 June, 3.30pm - 4.30pm

 For Noir & Sat Card Holders

Film Screening: The Third Man (1949)

A chance to see Ann Cleeves’ favourite Film Noir . An American abroad in post-war Vienna pursues his missing friend down a rabbit hole of intrigue and moral corruption “I love the writer Graham Greeneandthisfilmdevelopedfromhisnovella capturestheambiguityanddarknessofhiswork Thismightbesetinpost-warVienna,butaswe seenewscoverageoftheruinedcitiesofUkraine, ithasaresonanceforustoday. ”

Ann Cleeves

 Sound Hall

 Saturday 17 June, 7.30pm - 11pm

 £25 (Priority booking for Noir Card holders)

 Mareel, Screen 1

 Saturday 17 June, 8pm - 10pm

 For Noir & Sat Card holders

In Conversation: Dr James Grieve

Interviewed by Lin Anderson

Dr James Grieve talks to Lin Anderson about his work in forensic pathology and his links with Shetland . Brought up in Motherwell, James Grieve graduated in Medicine from Aberdeen University in 1977 . Following Pathology training in Aberdeen, an RAMC commission saw him spend time in Washington and London . In 1989 he became Senior Lecturer in Forensic Medicine at Aberdeen University where his patch included Shetland . Despite retirement in 2014, he now assists part-time, regularly giving in criminal courts and at FAIs .

Lin Anderson is best known as the creator of the forensic scientist Rhona MacLeod series of crime thriller novels, and for her part in founding the annual ‘Bloody Scotland’ crime writing festival, dedicated to promoting Scotland’s other great national export .

Mareel, Auditorium

 Sunday 18 June, 10am - 11am

 For Noir & Sun Card holders or £15/£10

Not quite so noir

Moderated by Dr Jacky Collins

Crime doesn’t have to be gory!

Cosy authors Merrilee Robson , Jonathan Whitelaw and Angela Wren talk to Dr Jacky Collins about how they use setting, characters and situation to make crime fun .

Old bones

Moderated by Dr Val Turner

Lin Anderson’s series protagonist is a forensic scientist working with the police; B K Bryce writes mysteries set in Orkney in Neolithic times; Dr Jason Monaghan’s hero is an archaeology lecturer . Shetland’s own county archaeologist, Dr Val Turner, asks them about their own fascination with ‘old bones’, and how they use the past to get a good story going .

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Sunday 18 June, 11.30am - 12.30pm

 For Noir & Sun Card holders

How to : HowdunnitWays to plot and structure a page-turning mystery

In our ‘How to’ sessions, Shetland Noir guests share their wisdom and advice on the world of writing and publishing – with a chance for you to join in and ask questions . Mysteries can be difficult to structure with so many characters, events, clues and false leads to consider .

David Bishop shares his advice for creating a gripping mystery to stay one step ahead of your reader David (D V ) Bishop writes the award-winning Cesare Aldo historical thrillers set in Renaissance Florence .

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Sunday 18 June, 2pm - 3pm

 For Noir & Sun Card holder

Real Shetland Noir: The Fox Lane murders of 1858

In these sessions, hear from local experts about real life crime and crime-fighting in the UK’s most northerly locations . Brian Smith talks about The Fox Lane murders of 1858, a real-life tragedy which took place behind closed doors just off Lerwick’s Commercial Street, known locally as “Da Street” Brian is Shetland’s Archivist and co-editor of The New Shetlander - Scotland’s longest running literary magazine . He is the author of Toons and Tenants: Settlement and Society in Shetland, 1299 - 1899.



Mareel, Green Room

 Sunday 18 June, 11.45am - 1.15pm

 For Noir Card holders (priority booking)

 Mareel, Auditorium

 Sunday 18 June, 3.30pm - 4.30pm

 For Noir & Sun Card holders

In Conversation: Shona Maclean

Interviewed by Dr Jacky Collins

Dr Jacky Collins talks to Shona MacLean about the forensic historical detail in her writing and latest novel The Bookseller of Inverness.

Shona was born in Inverness and brought up in a series of small Highland hotels run by her parents She studied History at Aberdeen University and has a PhD in 17th Century Scottish History . She is the author of both the Alexander Seaton and the Damian Seeker historical crime fiction series, as well as the standalone, The Bookseller of Inverness She has been shortlisted four times for the CWA Historical Dagger, winning it twice .

Dr Jacky Collins, lecturer in Spanish and Latin American Studies at Stirling University, is the Festival Director for Newcastle Noir

Mareel, Auditorium

 Sunday 18 June, 5pm - 6pm

 For Noir & Sun Card holders or £15/£10

And then there were none... final fun & farewells

All good things must come to an end - this event will see a suitable ending for an exceptional week of all things noir .

It’s time to bid farewell to Shetland Noir, but we have just enough time for one more spree Join in with the celebration and have a chance to chat and mingle with the authors and your fellow noir fans before the festival ends .

Complimentary drinks and nibbles provided.

About Ann Cleeves...

Ann Cleeves’ books have been translated into 20 languages. She’s a bestseller in Scandinavia and Germany, and her novels sell widely and to critical acclaim in the United States. Twelve series of Vera, the ITV adaptation of her novels starring Brenda Blethyn, have been shown in the UK and worldwide: series twelve ended on an amazing fiftieth episode, based on Ann’s novel The Darkest Evening. There have also been seven series of Shetland, based on the characters and settings of her Shetland novels, and an eighth is in preparation.

About Marsali Taylor...

 Mareel, Auditorium & Café Bar

 Sunday 18 June, 7.30pm - 11pm

 For Noir & Sun Card holders

Marsali Taylor writes puzzle-style crime novels set in contemporary Shetland, starring quick-witted sailor Cass Lynch and Inverness DI Gavin Macrae. Reviewers have praised their clever plotting, lively characters and vividlyevoked setting. Marsali’s interest in history is shown in her self-published Women’s Suffrage in Shetland and Norse-set crime novella, Footsteps in the Dew. Hobbies include sailing her 8m yacht, drama and learning to play the flute. She lives on Shetland’s scenic westside with her composer husband and three extremely spoiled cats.

Photo: JENNY LEASK