Irvine Welsh says Trainspotting The Musical could return after its planned UK tour was cancelled because the production could not afford it. Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, he tied the decision to sales pressure outside London, even as the show continues its West End run at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London.
“Unfortunately, we had to cancel the tour because we just cannot afford it,” Welsh said, adding that it was “very hard” to tell the cast the plan was being abandoned. He said the musical is still drawing “packed houses and standing ovations” in London, but that the economics change sharply once the production leaves the capital.
London run, five-month tour
The planned five-month tour was due to open and close in Edinburgh and also visit Aberdeen, Dunfermline and Glasgow. Tickets for the UK tour went on sale in May, and the cancellation means those buyers are now left with a production that will not reach the cities originally built into the schedule.
The show was co-written by Irvine Welsh and Stephen McGuinness, worked on with Caroline Jay Ranger and backed by Phil McIntyre. It was launched to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the film’s release, which made the cancelled road trip a commercial test as much as an artistic one.
Kieran Brown and 19 per cent
Kieran Brown said on social media that the show was “was not selling” and added, “If Edinburgh, of all places, is stuck on 19 per cent sales - you know you’re f***ed.” That figure gives the clearest view of the problem: if one of the planned stops was only at 19 per cent, the tour would have needed a far stronger response across the rest of Scotland to cover transport and accommodation costs.
Welsh said he wants a revival if conditions improve in the UK economy, and that is the real takeaway for the production team. The musical has a functioning London base, but the abandoned tour shows how quickly a title can move from packed houses in the West End to numbers that no longer support the road.
For readers who bought tickets for the UK tour, the practical change is simple: the London run continues until September 5, and any return to the road now depends on whether the economics outside London improve enough to make the numbers work.
