Production based on 1993 novel opens at Theatre Royal Haymarket in London in July, with original songs co-written by the author
It has been a book, a play and a film. It has also spawned three sequels, a prequel and two soundtrack albums. Now, Irvine Welsh’s 1993 debut novel Trainspotting is to find new life as a musical.
Opening at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London in July, Trainspotting the Musical will be adapted by the author with an original set of songs, plus others that were used in Danny Boyle’s celebrated film.
“It wasn’t the most obvious book to be successful,” said Welsh. “And it wasn’t the most obvious movie or stage play to be successful. It’s confounded expectations – especially my own.”
If the story of four friends who scam tourists, sign on and take heroin in the dark days of Edinburgh’s needle-sharing crisis sounds unlikely material for a West End show, the novelist points to the serious content of musicals such as West Side Story, Oliver! and Rent.
