SHE was one of the most colourful, complicated characters of the Scottish independence movement, a forward-thinking human rights activist and dedicated campaigner.
So how come no-one has heard of Wendy Wood?
Poet, writer and performer Imogen Stirling is about to put that right, with her debut play, Starving.
Presented in association with Raw Material, as part of Oran Mor’s lunchtime theatre series A Play A Pie and A Pint, this fiercely funny drama tells Wendy’s story, beginning at the point where she is on hunger strike – in her 80s - in support of home rule for Scotland.
“I chanced upon Wendy’s story when I was researching something else, and I was fascinated by her – her life was so bold and technicolour, so full of action and movement that I couldn’t believe I had never heard of her before,” says Imogen.
“She was a controversial figure, who divided opinion, often for good reason.
“Our media at the moment seems to be so full of tormented men – Oppenheimer, for example – and that whole idea of flawed genius.”
She adds: “Women are never given the same space. It’s as if women have to be perfect and pure to be remembered and celebrated, and that disturbs me.”
Imogen, who lives in the West End, is an award-winning performance poet who received critical acclaim for her show Love The Sinner, with Vanishing Point, and has been personally commended by the late Benjamin Zephaniah.
Her roots are in musical theatre, however, so returning to the world of the stage is a “full circle moment”, she explains.
“It is really exciting,” says Imogen.
“It’s been an interesting journey for me. It’s a big adjustment from poetry, having to hand over your work and trust in others to bring it to life. There’s vulnerability in it, but also empowerment.
“The team at PPP are wonderful. In my experience, people go to the theatre ready to critique, to make sure their opinions are heard, but it’s not like that here.
“People genuinely seem to come just for the experience, to immerse themselves in the stories and be surrounded by new art, and I love that.”
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Starving began life almost as a biopic, explains Imogen.
“I was uncomfortable, though, about taking someone’s life and piecing it together into a stage play,” she says.
“What interested me was Wendy’s commitment to action, despite expectation or gender, or age - she went on hunger strike in her 80s, which is such radical thing to do.
“So the play starts when she is on hunger strike, and timelines change and merge, so she comes to share a space with a modern-day 30-year-old woman, who is riddled with anxiety.”
Imogen adds: “It’s about women today, the power and peril - and what freedom means, as a woman, as a country. Wendy Wood has been all but written out of Scottish history, so I knew my goal was to make her famous, to secure her back in modern consciousness.”
Starving is at Oran Mor from Monday, March 4 to Saturday, March 9.
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