‘Def-i-nitely Back’: Subversion of Kailyard and Clydeside in Charles Endell Esquire

Abstract

This article examines a significant, but neglected, Glasgow-set STV drama serial from 1979, Charles Endell Esquire. The article examines the way in which Charles Endell Esquire exploits and subverts classic tropes of Scottish identity to construct a liminal narrative and generic space between comedy and drama, subverting the stereotypical models of Kailyard and Clydesideism. Using the idea of ‘place-myth’, the article examines the ways in which the series’ use of location filming sets up a structuring paradigm between tradition and modernity within the city of Glasgow, and between gritty urban Glasgow Clydesideism and the rural Kailyard of the Scottish countryside.