Trainspotting Author Stages his First Musical with QMU Drama Students
Irvine Welsh, author of the celebrated novel ‘Trainspotting’, had the premiere of his first musical ‘Blackpool’ at the Gateway Theatre in Edinburgh. The world premiere of Blackpool ran for two weeks in 2002 at the Gateway, a building in Elm Row, Leith, which, at the time, was home to the then Queen Margaret University College’s School of Drama. Welsh was born in Edinburgh, making the Gateway an ideal place in which to present his first musical, which was directed by Welsh's regular collaborator, Harry Gibson. Acting and drama students not only performed in the show, but they also contributed to the development of the production by offering ideas and writing songs.
Maggie Kinloch, who was Director of the Gateway and Head of the School of Drama at the time, was instrumental in providing the students with the opportunity to work on a hard-hitting, contemporary piece by one of Scotland’s most successful writers.
