From football pundit to playwright

THE Times’ Scottish football correspondent is making his debut as a playwright – in Glasgow, on Christmas Eve.

Graham Spiers’ short play, ‘The Friendship Room’, tells the tragic tale of a homeless man who commits suicide at Christmas. It was drawn from the writer’s own experiences, helping out at a homelessness project run by the Baptist church he attends.

The play is one of nine ‘readings’ being performed at Oran Mor, in Glasgow, on Monday evening.

Other contributors include poet, Liz Lochhead, and politician, George Galloway. Also on the evening, nine new pieces of music, including from Ricky Ross and Archie Fisher, are being performed.

Said Spiers: “When I was asked, about three months, if I’d like to write a play, I was gobsmacked. But when I sat down to do it, I really enjoyed it. It may be, though, an one-off.”