Archie Hind
Encyclopedia
Archie Hind the author of The Dear Green Place, was a Scottish
writer.
Hind was brought up in the Carntyne
district of Glasgow
. His father was a nutter and wife beater, but never, as said before, an alcoholic, according to Sheila and Martin Hind. The young Archie often had to avoid the public baths because of his bruises. His father's pressure for money forced him to leave school and take on menial jobs. He was called up to serve in the medical corps in Singapore and Ceylon at the end of the World War II
. After he was “demobbed” he was determined to become a writer. His big break came when he was accepted in 1950-51 to study a creative course at Newbattle Abbey College, Midlothian, where the principal, Orcadian
poet Edwin Muir
, reportedly became his mentor and helped inspire him.
The success of The Dear Green Place, a reference to his birthplace and hometown of Glasgow, turned Hind from a trolleybus
driver/former slaughterhouse worker into a successful and notable writer. He won 1966’s Guardian First Book Award
. Hind went on to publish journalistic articles and wrote several plays and theatrical revues, notably for Glasgow's Citizen's Theatre.
He had been due to appear on 7 March 2008 with famous writers from around the world at the Aye Write! literary festival in Glasgow's Mitchell Library
to mark the reprinting of ‘’The Dear Green Place’’, along with the Fur Sadie manuscript and examples of his writing. However he died from cancer, aged 79, on 21 February. The organizers held a memorial service on 8 March 2008.
The unfinished manuscript of Fur Sadie was thought to have been lost or destroyed, but it was pieced together by Alasdair Gray
and journalist/literary agent John Linklater, and was published along with The Dear Green Place on 15 March 2008 by Polygon, an imprint of Birlinn Publishing.
, but the umlaut was later dropped to reflect Glasgow dialect, the story tells of Sadie, a housewife in the Parkhead district of Glasgow who rediscovers her childhood love for the piano as a means of escaping her middle-aged misery.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
writer.
Life and work
The Dear Green Place was his only completed work (published in 1966), but it won four major awards and has been listed as one of the best 100 Scottish novels of all time. The book was reprinted in March 2008 along with Hind's incomplete novel, Fur Sadie.Hind was brought up in the Carntyne
Carntyne
Carntyne is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde, and to the east end of the city...
district of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
. His father was a nutter and wife beater, but never, as said before, an alcoholic, according to Sheila and Martin Hind. The young Archie often had to avoid the public baths because of his bruises. His father's pressure for money forced him to leave school and take on menial jobs. He was called up to serve in the medical corps in Singapore and Ceylon at the end of the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After he was “demobbed” he was determined to become a writer. His big break came when he was accepted in 1950-51 to study a creative course at Newbattle Abbey College, Midlothian, where the principal, Orcadian
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
poet Edwin Muir
Edwin Muir
Edwin Muir was an Orcadian poet, novelist and translator born on a farm in Deerness on the Orkney Islands. He was remembered for his deeply felt and vivid poetry in plain language with few stylistic preoccupations....
, reportedly became his mentor and helped inspire him.
The success of The Dear Green Place, a reference to his birthplace and hometown of Glasgow, turned Hind from a trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
driver/former slaughterhouse worker into a successful and notable writer. He won 1966’s Guardian First Book Award
Guardian First Book Award
Guardian First Book Award, issued before 1999 as Guardian Fiction Prize or Guardian Fiction Award, is awarded to new writing in fiction and non-fiction.-History:...
. Hind went on to publish journalistic articles and wrote several plays and theatrical revues, notably for Glasgow's Citizen's Theatre.
He had been due to appear on 7 March 2008 with famous writers from around the world at the Aye Write! literary festival in Glasgow's Mitchell Library
Mitchell Library
The Mitchell Library is a large public library and centre of the public library system of Glasgow, Scotland.-History:The library was established with a bequest from Stephen Mitchell, a wealthy tobacco manufacturer, whose company, Stephen Mitchell & Son, would become one of the constituent members...
to mark the reprinting of ‘’The Dear Green Place’’, along with the Fur Sadie manuscript and examples of his writing. However he died from cancer, aged 79, on 21 February. The organizers held a memorial service on 8 March 2008.
The unfinished manuscript of Fur Sadie was thought to have been lost or destroyed, but it was pieced together by Alasdair Gray
Alasdair Gray
Alasdair Gray is a Scottish writer and artist. His most acclaimed work is his first novel Lanark, published in 1981 and written over a period of almost 30 years...
and journalist/literary agent John Linklater, and was published along with The Dear Green Place on 15 March 2008 by Polygon, an imprint of Birlinn Publishing.
Fur Sadie
Originally titled Für Sadie, because Hind was influenced by Beethoven's piece Für EliseFür Elise
Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor for solo piano, commonly known as "Für Elise" , is one of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions. It is usually classified as a bagatelle, but it is also sometimes referred to as an Albumblatt.- History :The score was not published until 1867, 40 years after...
, but the umlaut was later dropped to reflect Glasgow dialect, the story tells of Sadie, a housewife in the Parkhead district of Glasgow who rediscovers her childhood love for the piano as a means of escaping her middle-aged misery.