People saying essentially like the country had been taken away from them, there was too much immigration, etc. In a first-time collaboration between National Theatre of Scotland and Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Enough of Him will be at Pitlochry Festival Theatre from 20 October to 29 October then touring to CatStrand, Castle Douglas; Platform, Glasgow; Lanternhouse, Cumbernauld; The Brunton, Musselburgh and Perth Theatre from the 1 to 19 November 2022. Two major productions turn the spotlight on this – namely Rona Munro’s immense James IV and now the National Theatre of Scotland’s Enough of Him – playing in much smaller spaces but every bit as powerful. But the walls of Ballindean do not keep secrets - their affair unsettles Lady Wedderburn, whose bitter loneliness is only deepened by the close bond her husband has with Knight. Joseph will endure bondage no longer. What happens when Joseph's dreams clash with those of the man who owns him? What becomes of us all when past brutalities bleed into our present realities? The way the film projects it is a bunch of old white men all punching the air triumphant – it’s like we’ve just ended slavery blah blah blah.

Sporting a dual Scotland and Jamaica tone, sound design by Pippa Murphy and composition by John Pfumojena sees a joining of steel drums beneath Highland lyric, Burns’ Parting Glass song calling ahead to Knight’s inevitable departure. Lighting projected onto the portrait makes itself a character in the piece, transforming to red when Wedderburn is at his angriest and most dangerous, the trees blurring and changing to blues and yellows when Knight recalls memories of Jamaica or when boundaries blur. Rachael-Rose McLaren embodies the unloved wife of Wedderburn, turning to stomach-churning acts of self degradation to grasp the attention of her husband. For his part, Matthew Pidgeon spits insulting prose deftly. The twisted aristocrat crumbles as the play progresses and Pidgeon commands deadly silence as this unfolds. Sumbwanyambe previously wrote The Trial of Joseph Knight– a drama focussing on the trial and its case, which was broadcast as a radio play on BBC Radio 4 in 2018. Although set in Scotland, memories of the hell on Earth that was the slave colony in Jamaica are ever present in Knight and Wedderburn’s minds. Knight—played with tremendous dignity, humour and controlled anguish by Omar Austin—lives with that trauma.

He is depicted as a man who cannot escape the psychological consequences of the appalling crimes he committed in Jamaica. Joseph’s journey to freedom wasn’t easy, as initially the Justice of the Peace Court in Perth sided with John Wedderburn. The story of a man who used the Scottish justice system to free himself from slavery has been turned into a new play. When enough is used with an adjective and a noun, two positions are possible but the meaning changes.

Joseph Knight is portrayed in the play as a man of empowerment to reflect the role he played in helping to change history. Enough of Him is a thrilling exploration of power and its attendant tensions: between those who are enslaved and those who are free, servants and masters, and husbands and wives. Catriona Faint plays the role of Annie, a young Scottish servant in the Wedderburn household who has a close bond with Joseph Knight. Catriona has most recently performed in The Tempest (Tron Theatre) and ‘Tis a Pity She’s a Whore (Sam Wanamaker Festival). Despite its heavy plot, there are moments of real light in this otherwise difficult play. As King and Thomson kindle a friendship, moments of genuine relief for the pair mirror the position they would have undoubtedly been in. It pays off showing these less dramatic moments in rounding off the characters assembled before us. Exploring the dynamic within the Wedderburn house offers a fascinating insight to who really held the power in the aristocracy. History often omits women, but Sumbwanyambe passes the microphone to both Margaret Wedderburn and maid Annie Thompson at different points, highlighting their own pressures and perspectives.In a first-time collaboration between National Theatre of Scotland and Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Enough of Him will open at Pitlochry Festival Theatre, in their new studio space, from 20 October to 29 October before touring to CatStrand, Castle Douglas; Platform, Glasgow; Lanternhouse, Cumbernauld; The Brunton, Musselburgh and Perth Theatre from the 1 to 19 November 2022.

As Knight, Omar Austin exudes the power Knight would have had to possess to earn his place at Wedderburn’s table and the humility to stay there. It’s a delicate balancing act but Austin is pitch-perfect. And the sexual dysfunction, well, maybe that has something to do with Wedderburn’s 10 years in Jamaica where his appetite for human “bed warmers” was characterised by violence and humiliation. His colonial experiences in the Caribbean have so disturbed him that he has contracted Margaret never to mention Jamaica. Playwright and historian May Sumbwanyambe is behind the play about Joseph’s four-year battle for emancipation. Sumbwanyambe previously wrote The Trial of Joseph Knight, a drama focussing on the trial and its case, which was broadcast as a radio play on BBC Radio 4 in 2018. Joseph embarks on a relationship with Margaret's maid Annie (Catriona Faint) which sparks John's jealousy and his ownership over his life. Enough of Him is not an easy watch but nor should it be. The language is jarring and difficult to listen to. It's beautiful to look at with Emma Jones' lighting design and having it staged in the studio theatre at Pitlochry made it more intimate and intense.

Concern about ‘very dark road’

For the National Theatre of Scotland, director Orla O’Loughlin plays it like a slow square dance, the actors taking their time on a set dominated by Alexander Nasmyth’s view of Loch Katrine, a landscape where wilderness and civilisation collide. In Fred Meller’s design, the painting boils up into a volcanic red at moments of intensity, while Knight turns on Wedderburn to put him right: whether they both lost fathers or not, a master and slave can have nothing in common. Importantly, Sumbwanyambe has drawn Wedderburn with the same level of complexity. The slave owner is given a compellingly tortured characterisation by actor Matthew Pidgeon. It’s refreshing to have these uncomfortable truths thrust at us. It’s not an easy watch, but Enough of Him compels in its staging of the life of Joseph Knight – the man who established that Scots law did not recognise slavery, as he planned for a life outside of the stately home of his once Master, John Wedderburn. Enough of Him is written by May Sumbwanyambe and directed by Orla O'Loughlin and opens in Pitlochry before touring Scotland in October and November 2022. Discover wonderful wildlife tours to book and experience in Scotland, including bird watching safaris, whale watching, farm tours and much more!