Celebrating Wilson’s Tales
Celebrating Wilson’s Tales, from The Wilson’s Tales Project, delivered a series of events to celebrate Tweedmouth-born writer John Mackay Wilson and his stories, sharing these fascinating local yarns with new audiences of all ages.
John Mackay Wilson (b.1804, d. 1835) was a Tweedmouth-born writer, and editor of the Berwick Advertiser, who penned “Wilson’s Tales of The Borders”, a series of collections of local stories. These hugely successful tales were constantly in print throughout the English-speaking world in the 19th century. However, by the time the 1934 centenary edition was reprinted in 1947, the Tales as a published body of work were slipping into obscurity.
The Wilson’s Tales Project is a volunteer-led initiative that aims to stimulate a revival of interest in the Tales.
With a grant from Destination Tweed’s Community Grants Scheme, in 2024/25 The Wilson’s Tales Project delivered a series of events to celebrate Wilson and his stories, breathing new life into these fascinating local yarns.
A ‘Beans and Bacon’ dinner was held to celebrate Wilson and his tales on the anniversary of his death, 2nd October. Held at the historic Kings Arms Hotel Assembly rooms – which once hosted Charles Dickens – this event included additional celebration of Wilson’s life and works with the presentation of his poetry, a premiere of the dramatisation of one of his Tales, and the final of the annual ‘100Words’ tale competition.
An event at Paxton House, “Wilson at Play”, featured six short plays developed from separate Tales and presented by The Borders Pub Theatre Company, with an introduction to the Wilson and the tales for the audience.
Finally, a family-focussed event in Berwick consisted of a puppet show based on one of the tales, Muckle-Mouthed Meg, included multiple educational and audience participation opportunities for the children as well as take away material and activities.
Thoroughly enjoyed the evening. We really enjoyed the plays. Lighthearted and good fun. Wilson is a discovery!
Feedback from event attendee
Total project costs: £4373.99
Grant awarded: £4373.99 (100% of total costs)
30 volunteers contributed over 80 hours of their time
during planning and delivery of this project
3 events delivered
Over 100 attendees
The Wilson’s Tales Project continues to shine a light on one of Berwick’s most prolific writers through their website, events and their annual ‘100Words’ writing competition. Find out more over on their website:
The Community Grants Scheme was made possible by funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund Scotland.
Find out more about Destination Tweed’s Community Grants Scheme