The Two Roberts
by Damian Barr· 2025
This novel follows Robert Colquhoun and Robert MacBryde from their encounter at Glasgow Art School to London as the Second World War draws near.
Scotland, 1933. Bobby MacBryde is on his way. After years grafting at Lees Boot Factory, he's off to the Glasgow School of Art. On his first day he will meet another Robert, a quiet man with loose dark curls - and never leave his side.
Together they will spend every penny and every minute devouring Glasgow - its botanical gardens, the Barras market, a whole hidden city - all the while loving each other behind closed doors. With the world on the brink of war, they travel to Paris, Rome, and London. They will host parties with the likes of Lucian Freud, Francis Bacon and Elizabeth Smart.
The Two Roberts is a story of devotion and obsession, art and class. It follows MacBryde and Colquhoun, artists who tried to change the way the world sees - and paid a price.
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This novel follows Robert Colquhoun and Robert MacBryde from their encounter at Glasgow Art School to London as the Second World War draws near. Scotland, 1933. Bobby MacBryde is on his way. After years grafting at Lees Boot Factory, he's off to the Glasgow School of Art. On his first day he will meet another Robert, a quiet man with loose dark curls - and never leave his side. Together they will spend every penny and every minute devouring Glasgow - its botanical gardens, the Barras market, a whole hidden city - all the while loving each other behind closed doors. With the world on the brink of war, they travel to Paris, Rome, and London. They will host parties with the likes of Lucian Freud, Francis Bacon and Elizabeth Smart. The Two Roberts is a story of devotion and obsession, art and class. It follows MacBryde and Colquhoun, artists who tried to change the way the world sees - and paid a price.