Back in 2003, I travelled to an office building in Clydebank to interview a successful businessman, arts aficionado, RSAMD alumni and former actor named Richard Findlay.
He was then the chief executive of Scottish Radio Holdings, and had just been appointed as the first chairman of the National Theatre of Scotland (NTS), which at that point existed more in theory than in practice. He wanted to talk about his next task: finding the NTS first artistic director. That person, he said, should know "what Scotland is trying to do as a nation. We will not be an elitist company but something that can appeal to all: we are looking for a saint basically.'' Well, perhaps saint is not the correct term for Vicky Featherstone (especially as they tend to be martyred) but she was certainly a successful first leader of the NTS. His board chose well.
Now Mr Findlay is chair of another key Scottish arts institution. He is the new chairman of Creative Scotland, the nation's arts funding body. He will meet the press on Monday and perhaps we will hear more of his views on various matters. I will be interested to see what he thinks of the case of Scottish Youth Theatre, which Creative Scotland deemed was not worthy of regular funding, but the Scottish Government did (and leapt in with a £1m package for them and other youth bodies)
Mr Findlay already has a lot of experience in the board rooms of the arts and cultural scene in Scotland. Unlike his predecessor, Sandy Crombie, he comes from a broadcasting and business rather than banking background. Findlay chaired STV group from 2007 until 2013, and as well well as being a graduate, he was also a governor of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He also also chaired the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh for six years in the 1990s. Mr Findlay was made a CBE for services to the arts and creative industries in 2013.
What will be in his in-tray as chairman? He says it is a "pivotal" time for Creative Scotland. It has set its long-term funding for companies already. I know the body as a whole is keen to be see a shift in tone, to be seen as a champion of the arts as much as a funder of the arts. And chief executive Janet Archer has overall steadied the ship since its controversial early years.
One of the issues will be the vexed matter of a film studio. Creative Scotland had already said, in its screen strategy, that it believes the building of a film studio would be good for the screen industries in Scotland. It has set aside money to contribute to a funding package. But the government-led Delivery Group has yet to deliver anything. In the meantime, a wholly private bid to build a £135m complex in Straiton, near Edinburgh, is seeking planning permission in Midlothian. I wonder if Mr Findlay, the businessman, thinks that is a cause worth backing.
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