Renowned Scottish playwright and artist John Byrne dies aged 83

Byrne described as ‘one of the most inventive and versatile of all Scotland’s modern artists’

The renowned artist and playwright John Byrne, whose parallel careers spanned the acclaimed BBC television series Tutti Frutti, the Slab Boys theatre trilogy and an album cover for the Beatles, has died at the age of 83.

He died peacefully on Thursday with his wife, Jeanine, by his side, the Fine Art Society announced in a statement on Friday morning, describing Byrne as “one of the most inventive and versatile of all Scotland’s modern artists”.