Return of Tally’s Blood to the stage

That this House recognises the return to the stage of the modern Scottish classic Tally’s Blood, written by Scots-Italian playwright Ann Marie Di Mambro; welcomes that, in late 2023, audiences across Scotland got to enjoy the first full production of the play in 20 years, directed by Ken Alexander who also directed the 2023 production; understands that the play takes places between the 1930s and 1950s, and follows the lives and loves the Pedreschis, an Italian immigrant family who own a traditional café in Glasgow, in the run up to and aftermath of the Second World War; further recognises that the story is based on aspects of the playwright’s own Scottish-Italian heritage; appreciates that Tally’s Blood’s universal themes of love, family, war, identity and prejudice have resonated with audiences for decades, and are as relevant today as they were when the play was first performed at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh in 1990; further notes that that the play, which is a set text for the National 5 English curriculum in Scotland, helped raise awareness of the Arandora Star tragedy of 2 July 2040 when a passenger ship was torpedoed by a German U-boat while transporting Italian and German detainees to Canada, resulting in the loss of over 800 lives; is pleased that new audiences have had a chance to enjoy the play’s return to the stage; and is confident that the heartwarming story of Rosinella, Massimo, Lucia and Hughie will continue to delight audiences for years to come.