The great-great-granddaughter of “Scotland’s worst poet” travelled from Spain to see a show about her famous relative.
Helen Stewart was at Dundee Rep Theatre on Saturday evening to see the McGonagall Chronicles — a new play charting the life of the city’s legendary wordsmith William McGonagall.
Her sister Ann Ross, who still lives in the city, was also in the audience for the dramatic re-telling of the life of the man who penned The Tay Bridge Disaster, among 200 other published poems.
Helen’s son, Steve McMurdo, even arranged for his mother and aunt to meet the cast after the show.
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“I do like surprises,” she said. “It was the first time in my life that I’ve felt famous. My son organised it without me knowing.”
Originally from Dundee, Helen moved to Spain six years ago and came home specifically to see the show.
She said it was a moving tribute to her famous forefather and his “unique” way with words.
“It was fantastic,” she added. “It was also quite sad. Especially when he was getting spat on in the street.
“As I get older I have become more interested in McGonagall’s work.
“When I was younger people used to ridicule him and say he’s Scotland’s worst poet, but I am proud of having him in the family tree.
“A lot of people can be quite ignorant about him.”
Helen’s interest in her great great grandfather’s life has led her to become a collector of menentos, including an edition of the McGonogall Library Omnibus dating to at least the 1960s. It still has the price label for 17 shillings and sixpence – around 18p in today’s money.
And the family heritage has led her into some unusual situations.
“When I was in labour about to give birth to my son, a doctor walked into the room, looked at my name (before her surname was changed to Stewart) and asked if I was related to the poet,” Helen added. “That was a strange thing to happen at that time.”
She also recalled being pulled up onto a stage in Fife in 1971 and given one line in a play about the poet.
The McGonagall Chronicles tells the story of the poet’s life written in “almost rhyming verse”.
Born in Edinburgh in 1825, McGonagall moved to Dundee to be apprenticed as a handloom weaver.
Among his most famous works are the Tay Bridge Disaster and the Famous Tay Whale.
