LEADING cultural figures from across Scotland will join a takeover of the SNP’s social media channels this weekend as the final election push gets under way.
Award-winning actors Alan Cumming and Brian Cox will be among those taking part in the party’s Get the Vote Out rally on Sunday night with just days left to go until the all-important Holyrood election.
They’ll be joined by an array of writers, musicians and other performers – with more big names still to be announced.
The night will also feature an interview with SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, and general “politics, discussion, music and fun”, the party said.
Mhairi Black (above), the SNP’s shadow spokesperson for Scotland, will be in attendance. She said encouraging voters to cast their ballots on May 6 is key.
“At this election, turnout will be absolutely crucial,” she told The National.
“We need every single SNP voter and supporter of independence to do their bit and vote SNP on Thursday, May 6.”
The MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire South said her party will now be stepping up their campaign in the real and digital worlds.
“An online Get the Vote Out rally – hosted by Alan Cumming – will run live on Sunday evening at 7pm on our party digital channels.
“Alan will be joined by a host of Scottish cultural figures including Brian Cox, Iona Fyfe and others to be announced.
“It will be a fantastic night of politics, discussion, music, fun, and an interview with the SNP high heid yin, Nicola Sturgeon.”
The event is set to be held on Sunday night from 7pm, streaming across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Twitch.
The news comes after a Savanta ComRes poll predicted the party could lose two seats in Thursday’s election. Different polling companies have reported contrasting projections for the vote, with others suggesting the SNP are on track for a majority on May 6. Tony and Olivier Award winner Cumming, who is hosting the virtual rally, has been an outspoken independence supporter for many years.
Speaking last summer as polls showed their highest ever recorded support for Yes, he said: “I think if anything has changed since the last referendum in the political situation it would be to me, that it is more obvious now that Scotland can do better itself and that Westminster does not have Scotland’s interests at heart.
“You don’t have to be a brain surgeon to see that, and I think more and more people are realising that and feeling that in terms of the way they are being treated.”
On Brexit he said he hopes it will bring about independence faster, adding that would be “the only positive thing to come from this debacle”.
Earlier this year the star, known for his film and TV roles including The Good Wife and Spy Kids, signed up to The National’s Yes Challenge. The project saw thousands of participants pledge to help convince one undecided voter each to back Yes.
Meanwhile Dundee-born Cox (above), who last year won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his role in the hit show Succession, has also been open in his support for self-determination.
The prolific actor, 74, was this week among 170 cultural figures backing Europe for Scotland, a new campaign group supporting Scottish EU membership.
Writers, professors, political thinkers and musicians from across the continent backed the open letter to leaders in Brussels and government heads of the EU27. It stated that “the EU and its member states should make a unilateral and open offer of membership [to Scotland]: an exceptional proposal to match Scotland’s exceptional circumstances”.
Last year Cox gave his recognisable voice to a powerful SNP campaign video on independence, which premiered during the party’s conference.
The video saw Cox look around the world comparing Scotland to other small states and setting out why our nation has what it takes to join them as an independent country.
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