Robin Cairns leads Travel Editions Scotland tours exploring Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Robert Burns and the country’s rich literary and cultural heritage.
Robin Cairns
Robin Cairns is a playwright, poet, writer, public speaker and performer who has led tours in Scotland for Travel Editions for many years. A natural storyteller with a deep enthusiasm for Scotland’s literature, art and cultural history, Robin brings the country’s people and places vividly to life through entertaining talks, readings and commentary.
Robin is particularly knowledgeable about two of Scotland’s most celebrated cultural figures: Robert Burns and Charles Rennie Mackintosh. A huge admirer of Burns, he has accompanied Travel Editions guests through Ayrshire and the landscapes associated with Scotland’s national bard, exploring the places, experiences and characters that shaped his life and poetry. As a poet and performer himself, Robin approaches Burns not simply as a historical figure, but as a lively, entertaining and sometimes provocative voice whose work still resonates today.
He has also delved deeply into the life and character of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, the Glasgow-born architect and designer who became one of the leading figures of the Glasgow Style. Robin’s play, The Life of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, has been performed in Glasgow, while his Travel Editions talks include Charles Rennie Mackintosh – Conjurer and Magician. His knowledge helps guests understand the triumphs, difficulties and creative relationships behind Mackintosh’s remarkable work.
Beyond his work with Travel Editions, Robin hosted Glasgow’s iconic Last Monday at Rio poetry event for ten years until 2017. He created the National Poetry Slam in Scotland and has appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe as his comic creation, ‘Morningside Malcolm’. His experiences of Scotland’s live poetry scene also inspired his book Please Don’t Punch the Poets – The Aggro and the Ecstasy of a Glasgow Poetry Night.
Warm, witty and highly entertaining, Robin combines detailed knowledge with a performer’s ability to hold an audience, offering an enjoyable and revealing introduction to Scotland’s creativity, character and cultural heritage.
