Neil Munro

(born June 1863 - died December 1930) - Inveraray

Neil Munro is best known for his 'Para Handy' stories these days but his writing career encompassed journalism, poetry and criticism, as well as his novels, making him one of the most visible literary figures of his time. His books fell out of fashion for a while but reprints of his work in the early 1990s and the appearance of a biography has brought him to the attention of a new audience.

Born in Inveraray in Argyll, in 1863, he came from a family of Gaelic speakers and though the language was beginning to lose its currency in that part of Scotland and Munro wrote in English, its influence can be felt strongly in his writing.

He began his career as a journalist on newspapers in the Glasgow area. After the publication of a short story collection, followed by two or three novels, he cut back on the journalism to concentrate on his writing. The appearance of a new character, Para Handy, in a short story in 1905 introduced a new comic strain in his work and the three collections of Para Handy stories (including The Vital Spark) were immediately successful. They transferred to the small screen in two separate sitcom series with the eponymous hero played by Duncan Macrae in the 1950s/60s and Gregor Fisher in the 1990s.

Munro returned to journalism during the First World War, becoming editor of a Glasgow evening paper in 1918. He died in Helensburgh in 1930.

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Gilian The Dreamer - Paperback
Neil Munro is best-known for his Para Handy tales, but his historical novels have been ranked alongside the works of Stevenson and Scott. This is the story of a fatherless boy whose creativity is marginalised by an unsympathetic community.
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Jimmy Swan, The Joy Traveller - Paperback
Jimmy Swan, the enigmatic commercial traveller, is another comic character from the pen of Neil Munro. The result of Swan's experiences give an insight into life in the West of Scotland at the turn of the century.
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The New Road - Paperback
First published in 1914, The New Road is a tale of Jacobites, high adventure, murder and mystery. Often compared to the Robert Louis Stevenson masterpiece Kidnapped, it was Munro's last and most accomplished historical novel.
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Para Handy: The Collected Stories From 'The Vital Spark', 'In Highland Harbours With Para Handy' And 'Hurricane Jack Of The Vital Spark' - Paperback
This is a collection of stories about Para Handy, who originally appeared in the Glasgow Evening News nearly a hundred years ago. The mariner and his crew recall the age of puffers sailing between West Highland ports and Glasgow.
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The Vital Spark: The Illustrated Para Handy - Hardback
The hilarious exploits of Para Handy and his crew are now part of Scotland's genetic make-up. This new edition brings together a classic of Scottish literature with the breathtaking watercolours of Hamish Haswell-Smith.