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Alan Warner

アラン・ワーナー

Alan Warner

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1964 （Connel (near Oban), Argyll, Scotland）
Nationality
Scottish
Languages
English

Career

Occupations
novelist, professor
Active Years
1995-
Affiliations
University of Edinburgh (writer-in-residence), University of Aberdeen (senior lecturer in creative writing)
Memberships
Royal Society of Literature (Fellow)
Influenced By
Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Alan Paton, James Kelman, Samuel Beckett, Ian McDiarmid

Education

Ealing College
Country: United Kingdom
Attended in his early twenties
University of Glasgow
English literature
Country: United Kingdom
Wrote a dissertation on Joseph Conrad and the theme of suicide

Awards

Somerset Maugham Award
Work: Morvern Callar
Result: winner
Encore Award
Work: These Demented Lands
Result: winner
Saltire Society Scottish Book of the Year Award
Work: The Sopranos
Organization: Saltire Society
Result: winner
Granta: Best of Young British Novelists
2003
Organization: Granta
Result: selected
Man Booker Prize (longlist)
2010
Work: The Stars in the Bright Sky
Organization: Booker Prize
Result: longlisted
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
2013
Work: The Deadman's Pedal
Result: winner
Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
2013
Organization: Royal Society of Literature
Result: elected

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Morvern Callar

1995 Literary fiction 160 pages

Follows Morvern, who deals with the aftermath of her boyfriend's suicide and embarks on a new life; an existential novel set in a Scottish port town where music and atmosphere are central.

existentialismloss and renewalmusic
Adaptations
  • [film] Morvern Callar / Lynne Ramsay (2002)

The Sopranos

1998 Literary fiction 224 pages

Set on Scotland's west coast, it depicts the friendship and rebellious exploits of a group of girls; later adapted into a play and film.

friendshipyouthdeviance from society
Adaptations
  • [play] Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour / Vicky Featherstone (2015)
  • [film] Our Ladies / Michael Caton-Jones (2019)

The Man Who Walks

2002 black comedy / surreal 208 pages

An imaginative, surreal black comedy notable for its experimental tone and imagery.

surrealismhumour

The Stars in the Bright Sky

2010 Literary fiction 256 pages

A follow-up in spirit to The Sopranos, exploring the later lives and relationships of its characters.

friendshipmaturationnostalgia

The Deadman's Pedal

2012 semi-autobiographical novel 272 pages

A semi-autobiographical coming-of-age novel set in 1973-74, depicting youthful experiences, music and the social atmosphere.

coming of age1970smusic

Kitchenly 434

2021 satire 224 pages

A satirical novel set in the 1970s about a British rock star and the caretaker of his country retreat.

musicsatire1970s

Nothing Left to Fear From Hell

2023 historical retelling

A retelling of Charles Edward Stuart's escape after Culloden, revisiting historical events.

historyretelling

Bibliography

  • 1995 – Morvern Callar
  • 1997 – These Demented Lands
  • 1998 – The Sopranos
  • 2002 – The Man Who Walks
  • 2006 – The Worms Can Carry Me To Heaven
  • 2010 – The Stars in the Bright Sky
  • 2012 – The Deadman's Pedal
  • 2014 – Their Lips Talk of Mischief
  • 2021 – Kitchenly 434
  • 2023 – Nothing Left to Fear from Hell
  • 2020 – The Seal Club (co-written with Irvine Welsh and John King)
  • 2023 – Seal Club 2: The View From Poacher's Hill (co-written with Irvine Welsh and John King)
  • 2015 – Tago Mago: Permission to Dream (non-fiction)

Adaptations

  • Morvern Callar — film adaptation (2002, dir. Lynne Ramsay)
  • The Sopranos — stage adaptation 'Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour' (2015) / film 'Our Ladies' (2019, dir. Michael Caton-Jones)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
direct, rhythmic narrationoccasionally experimental (anti-novel techniques)black humour and incisive observation
Recurring Motifs
the fictional 'The Port' (based on Oban)1970s music and cultureyouthful deviance and friendshipreferences to Krautrock and bands like Can

Legacy

Alan Warner occupies an important place in British literature since the 1990s, blending Scottish local culture and musical sensibilities with existential themes and black humour. Several works have been adapted for stage and screen, and his archive is held by the National Library of Scotland.

Museums

  • National Library of Scotland (holds Alan Warner papers) Edinburgh, Scotland

Academic Societies

  • Royal Society of Literature

Archives

  • National Library of Scotland (Alan Warner papers Acc.13778 / Acc.14527)

In Popular Culture

  • Source for the play 'Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour' and the film 'Our Ladies'
  • Dedications to the band Can and recurring musical references have influenced music-aware readers

Quotes

  • I had presumed novels were an art form which only happened elsewhere and had died out in Scotland.
    Source: Scottish Review of Books (interview) (2011)

Trivia

  • Morvern Callar was adapted as a film (2002, dir. Lynne Ramsay), raising Warner's international profile.
  • He is a fan of Krautrock band Can and has dedicated multiple books to former members.
  • Appointed writer-in-residence at the University of Edinburgh in 2011 and senior lecturer at the University of Aberdeen in 2019.
  • Served on the jury for the 2016 Scotiabank Giller Prize.
  • Met his wife Holly in Spain and participated in the Spanish rave scene.
  • Has musical collaborations, including the 1998 'Superstar Vs Alan Warner EP'.