The Proclaimers the 10 moments we’d walk 500 miles for!

Scotland’s famous duo reveal their 10 favourite moments.

Music, music, music

Craig: Our old man had been a Guardsman in his younger days and he had a record of the music from Trooping The Colour. My very earliest musical memory is of Charlie and me marching up and down in our Edinburgh flat to it.

I remember listening to the radio when I was about three, in 1965, and the Beatles were everywhere.

I knew music was what I wanted to do by the time I was 11 and I’d say the Beatles were the biggest single influence.

We heard them when we were wee, and by the 1970s we were able to appreciate just how good they were.

First gig to big break

Craig: The first time Charlie and I played in public was at the Victoria Hall in 1977. I was playing a beat-up drum kit and Charlie had a cheap guitar.

The first gig as The Proclaimers was at a community centre in Cowgate, Edinburgh. There was a sale of work and the 100 or so people milling about ignored us as we sang in the corner.

But it was a huge buzz. Writing songs and playing them live are still be the best things for us making records comes a distant third.

The biggest break was definitely getting the tour with the Housemartins at the end of 1986. I’d been unemployed for six years and was at a place in West Granton in Edinburgh where you had to go for assessment or they’d take your dole money away.

I was told there was a phonecall and I thought somebody had died. It was Charlie to say somebody had given the Housemartins a cassette of the first time we’d played Aberdeen.

We went down to Hull on the Friday night for a pub crawl with them and got the tour.

We went from playing pubs with 50 people to going in front of 2,000. It was absolutely terrifying, but we loved it.

Most iconic song

Charlie: We started playing 500 Miles acoustically on a tour in early 1988 before we even recorded it.

It sounded like it might be a single but we never thought any more about it.

Letter From America was far bigger, sales-wise, but 500 Miles has become more and more successful after being adopted by Comic Relief.

It grew into something bigger than us and it always will be.

Film fame

Charlie: The biggest gift we’ve ever been given was having 500 Miles used in the Johnny Depp film Benny & Joon and it was sheer luck.

In fact we sent a message of thanks to Depp’s co-star Mary Stuart Masterson as it was all down to her.

I think she has a Scottish background and when the director asked her to bring some music to get into the mood for a particular scene she played a tape of the Sunshine On Leith album and the whole crew picked up on the song.

It ended up being played in its entirety for the opening credits and spent months on the Billboard charts.

It made us in America and was fantastic for us. If she hadn’t taken out our album that day it would never have happened.

Playing at T In The Park

Craig: Our most special gig ever was playing T in the Park for the first time in 2001. We hadn’t had a record out since 1994 and we really didn’t know what lay ahead.

It was heaving. There were too many people in the tent and fights were breaking out.

It was the noise and the enthusiasm of youth and that’s where I knew there was still an audience for what we did.

It wasn’t the best we’ve ever played, nothing like it, but that was our most outstanding gig for me.

Brotherly love

Charlie: We’ve mellowed as we’ve got older but we’ve certainly had our rows. In our early days it definitely could become volatile.

At that time we were living in the same flat as well as working together so I guess it was inevitable there was going to be conflict.

But we were working towards the same goal and that’s what saved us. You can’t let a difference of opinion over a song get to the point it becomes destructive.

Because we’ve always been together it’s not a case of one backing down, just accepting the other has a different point of view.

Beatlemania

Craig: The biggest celebrity moment was when we were doing Top Of The Pops.

We were standing at the side of the stage when Paul McCartney came over to us and started chatting away.

When he heard where we were from he talked about the Aids epidemic in Edinburgh at the time and just generally broke the ice which was lovely of him.

He knows people are going to be awestruck and what are you going to say he’s not heard 100 times before? People have been gushing over him since 1963.

All in the game

Charlie: I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) and I’m On My Way caught on with sports fans. Obviously we’re massive Hibs fans so there’s that connection and they’ve been played for the national teams at Hampden and Murrayfield, which is brilliant.

We couldn’t do the Commonwealth Games but I loved watching Usain Bolt dancing to 500 Miles before he ran.

Another surreal moment was when we were doing the Champions League final at Hampden. We were to emerge from this giant glass fibre football but they were terrified it wouldn’t work and we wouldn’t get out and we nearly didn’t!

Stage to screen

Craig: When we first heard about the Sunshine On Leith musical we thought they’d never get it off the ground. But thanks to the writer and Dundee Rep, it started selling out.

The first time I saw it was in Glasgow and we were in the front row of the Circle, beside David Tennant and Matt Lucas, watching these actors and actresses sing our songs.

It was the single most surreal, weirdest moment of my life, and so emotional.

We initially weren’t sure about a film version but when we saw it at a preview in Soho we were just blown away. We’re so proud our stuff has been viewed on stage and film.

Life on the road

Charlie: We’ve had some amazing and odd gigs over the years. We played on screen for Emmerdale’s 40th anniversary and did the Henley Regatta, which was definitely a funny one.

It was a real fish-out-of-water moment, with our background, politics and leanings. Although there wasn’t a royal presence, it was as close to, with everybody in dinner suits and fancy frocks but they did pay us a good fee.

We were on tour in America when 9/11 happened and there was such a strange atmosphere at gigs as people tried to come to terms with their shock. I think they’d thought they were bulletproof until then.

We’ve played everywhere in the world and no matter how remote there’s always someone in a Hibs, Rangers or Celtic strip. We could play the South Pole and someone would show up in a signed strip.

The Proclaimers’ 10th studio album, Let’s Hear It For The Dogs, is out on Monday, April 27.