From Bad to Verse
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Produced by Renfrew Community filmmaker Paul Russell, From Bad to Verse remembers the life and work of Walter McCorrisken, also known as the Renfrew Rhymer.
Walter McCorrisken came to notoriety via a ‘Scotland's Worst Poet’ competition ran by the Glasgow Herald in 1976 (which he won by ‘a country mile’) and went on to become a fixture on the local folk scene, top the Scottish bestsellers book list and make many TV and radio appearances, including on Michael Parkinson's chat show, twice!
Despite his self-styled infamy, Walter was a comic-verse writer of no small talent, using old Scots to depict modern concerns of the working man such as fish suppers, having a wee drink, paens to beloved pet dugs and hilarious humourous epitaphs. The film, produced with the assistance of Walter’s son Richard, features contributions from those who worked and performed with Walter.