The story of the greatest literary hoax of all time.

1760 – Scottish poet James Macpherson sets the world ablaze with stories of the third-century Scottish bard, Ossian. This tartan-trimmed tale of Highland history spreads far and wide, capturing the imagination of thousands– but is it built on deceit?  

2026 – Scottish poet Martin O’Connor reads Macpherson’s epic and questions his own relationship with Scottish culture. The sporrans, the stags, the shortbread – do these ‘gift-shop’ images of Scotland hold us back, or bring us forward? What does it mean to be authentic, and is the truth sometimes better told in a lie?

Written and performed by Martin O’Connor

Directed by Lu Kemp

A National Theatre of Scotland Production