A FILM-MAKER has been blown away by the response to his documentary on influential Scottish bands after it aired on Sky Arts.

Teenage Superstars focused on the success of a new generation of Glasgow bands, featuring the likes of Primal Scream, Teenage Fanclub and The Jesus and Mary Chain.

Grant McPhee directed and produced the documentary, which features rare and archive footage, as well as interviews with a number of those who were there.

The Haddington resident said of the response he had received: “It has been pretty amazing really.

“I think The Observer had it as one of the picks of the day and since then it got pick of the day in The Guardian, The Independent, The Times, The Sun and the Radio Times.

“It is pretty mind-blowing for a Scottish film about Scottish bands to get that mainstream attention; it’s great.

“On Twitter, I have just been spending all my time trying to reply and thank the people who sent nice messages.”

Grant McPhee is celebrating after his documentary, Teenage Superstars, was broadcast on Sky Arts

Grant McPhee is celebrating after his documentary, Teenage Superstars, was broadcast on Sky Arts

Grant told the Courier that the idea for the documentary dated back more than a decade, from when he was working on another programme, Big Gold Dream.

The 44-year-old, who has worked as a digital imaging technician on Outlander, which was partly filmed in East Lothian, said: “It started off probably 12 years ago.

“My day job is working in the camera department in film and television and I wanted to do a project of my own.

“I have always been really interested in music and this idea of making a film, which eventually became Big Gold Dream, which was more about a slightly earlier era of music than Teenage Superstars.

“Big Gold Dream is featuring bands primarily from Edinburgh’s post-punk scene.

“As we were making it, the idea developed.

“As you speak to more people, the bigger the story gets and soon it became apparent to me to make a much wider story of Scottish music.

“I just wanted to expand on that and tell as much of the story as possible.”

Big Gold Dream was premiered on BBC in April 2016, with Teenage Superstars continuing the musical journey.

Grant McPhee is celebrating after his documentary, Teenage Superstars, was broadcast on Sky Arts

Grant McPhee is celebrating after his documentary, Teenage Superstars, was broadcast on Sky Arts

As well as featuring musicians such as Edwyn Collins, Bobby Gillespie and Jim Reid, there is also an appearance from Alan McGee, the founder of Creation Records and a close friend of Primal Scream.

Grant, who has lived in Haddington for about a decade, was quick to stress it was very much a team effort putting together the 107-minute documentary.

The Hardgate resident was hopeful it would inspire people to track down the music of the bands, as well as encourage youngsters to follow their own creative path, whether that be through music or film.

Grant told the Courier how much it meant to him to see the documentaries reach the television screen.

He said: “The very, very most I expected was it to be a few people having DVDs.

“I expected to be making up burnt DVDs and handing them out to people. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect it to be on television.

“When it was on television, it was exciting to see feedback from people on Twitter talking about the music and inspiring people to go and explore YouTube and look into all those bands.”

Teenage Superstars was aired on Sky Arts on January 23 but can still be downloaded to watch on Sky TV.