Big Flowers and the Makar's Misery Guts

I've driven past these giant flower sculptures in Cowcaddens, Glasgow, countless times.

They always make me smile with their jauntiness in an unlikely concrete setting. Tonight, I just happened to be sitting at the traffic lights (again) and snatched a quick iPhone pic (your honour...)

I was on my way to meet my friend, Louise, who'd got us tickets to see Misery Guts at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland performed by final year students.

Liz Lochhead, our Makar (national poet) has updated her 2002 version of Moliere's Misanthrope to a post-independence Scotland.

It was funny, irreverent and biting all at the same time. With wee moments of tenderness. A difficult play to act in, I'd think - since it's written in rhyme.

Liz was in the audience and Louise and I said hello at the interval as we've met her a few times through work.

'You got a few things off your chest there,' I said, Tourette-style, unable to edit myself down to a platitude.

The script had the lead character Alex Frew (superbly played by Josh Whitelaw) ranting and raving about all sorts of things, particularly his loathing of phoney people in cultural life.

Suffice to say, Liz doesn't paint a rosy picture of life after independence. There is a hilarious scene in which would-be poet Oscar Sgougall (played with cooky bendy brilliance by Cameron Crighton), looks reverentially to Alex for some honest feedback on his dreadful hackneyed 50 shades of grey influenced poem.

Both Louise and I were both mesmerised by the girl doing the signing for hearing impaired as Cameron had his character writhe around in mock ecstasy on the floor.

Take a bow nameless person (can't see her name in the programme). It was a stellar piece of signing!