A Practical Novelist

In a cramped Glasgow flat, Maxwell Lee dreams of turning his failing literary career into something tangible, while his wife Caroline keeps the household afloat with relentless sewing, and her brother Peter Briscoe watches the drama unfold with bemused cynicism. Tired of endless rejections and the stale conventions of the novel, Lee proposes a radical experiment: instead of merely writing, they will stage a story in real life, turning fiction into action. The trio’s conversation crackles with a mix of desperation and mischievous optimism, setting the stage for a daring venture that blurs the line between author and performer.

Their first move is audacious—Peter arrives with a lifeless-looking stranger, proclaiming that he has “bagged a hero” for Lee’s new creation. The stranger, a millionaire unexpectedly thrust into their parlour, becomes the unwitting protagonist of a plot that promises intrigue, humor, and the messy consequences of turning imagination into reality. As the characters grapple with the absurdity of their plan, listeners are invited into a witty, early‑19th‑century satire about the lengths artists will go to bring their stories to life.