The new artistic director of the National Theatre of Scotland, Jackie Wylie, says she wants the company to appeal to as wide an audience as possible, and hopes to find plays that increase its appeal to young people.

Ms Wylie, 36, from Edinburgh, is the third artistic director of the company (NTS) and is the former artistic director of the now-closed arts venue in Glasgow, The Arches.

As artistic director between 2008 and 2015, the year it was shut, the venue became known for cutting edge theatre, new writing and performance art.

Unlike her predecessors, Ms Wylie, the first Scot to hold the post at the NTS, will not be directing plays herself but sees her role as a "creative producer", bringing together writers, directors and actors to work on theatrical projects.

Ms Wylie, who will assume the post early next year, said it was too early to identify themes or issues she would like to address in her tenure but said: "I am incredibly proud of what we did at The Arches, the artists we worked with and the connections we made nationally and internationally.

"But the NTS has a much broader canvass than that, to work on a national level and to try and attract a whole range of audiences."

She added: "I see myself as an artistic leader but I work through the programming, and the curatorial practice - my role is a creative producer."

Although she said it was too early to discuss specific plans, she said she was interesting in "new forms of theatre, new voices, and doing all I can to attract new and younger audiences."

On being Scottish, she said she felt pleased she had been appointed as the "best person for the job."

The Arches, a popular and influential venue in central Glasgow, in the arches underneath Central Station, was shut down in 2015 after pressure from Police Scotland led to the city's Licensing Board to remove its late licence, ending the clubbing events which financially underpinned its cultural programme.

The police said they were concerned over drug use and other issues at during its club nights, which were not part of its artistic programme.

Ms Wylie is currently co-director of Take Me Somewhere, a new city-wide festival, based at The Tramway in Glasgow.

She will take over the NTS after it has moved into its first purpose-built headquarters, Rockvilla in north Glasgow.

Mr Sansom earlier this year said he hoped the NTS would not become the 'National Theatre of Glasgow'.

She said: "It is so important that the NTS is a national company, it is at the very heart of what it means - and it is so important that there are stories to be found throughout the whole of Scotland: I don't have any worries about that."

She added: "It’s an incredible privilege to be given the opportunity to lead the National Theatre of Scotland.

"Ten years ago it pioneered the ground-breaking model of a theatre without walls and since then it has combined world-class artistic distinction with a particular commitment to involving the entire population of Scotland.

"I look forward to continuing that spirit of innovation, building on the organisation’s many existing successes and relationships whilst also bringing in new voices, seeking out exciting collaborations at home as well as looking outwards, across the world."

Chair of the NTS, Seona Reid, said Ms Wylie was "wonderfully energetic and passionate" and had an impressive series of connections and networks nationally and internationally.

She said: "The Arches produced a particular style of work that was experimental and innovative, but the NTS has to be broader than that."

Ms Reid added: "Jackie brings great energy and a passion for theatre-making that is far-reaching and collaborative and we look forward very much to Scotland’s national theatre entering its second decade with her at the helm.

"Under her leadership, we will see a commitment to building on the National Theatre of Scotland’s exceptional reputation for world-class theatre whilst engaging further with new forms of theatre, new audiences, new communities and new talent."

Ms Wylie was born in Edinburgh and studied Film and Television and Theatre Studies at the University of Glasgow.

During her time at The Arches, she worked with Scottish theatre-makers such as Rob Drummond, Cora Bissett, Nic Green and Kieran Hurley, among others.

She commissioned work that toured to the National Theatre in London, Barbican, Brits off Broadway New York, Spoleto Festival Charleston, Brighton Festival, Push Festival Vancouver, Cultura Inglesa Festival Brazil, NZ, Sydney, Hong Kong and Luminato Festivals.

Ms Wylie also established The Arches’ annual international festival, Behaviour.