Willy Russell

Breezeblock Park is set on a northern council estate and takes a look at the suffocating effect of possessions and possessiveness: "Trenchantly observed...hilarious, upsetting and somewhat seditious." (Variety); Our Day Out is about a school coach trip, an exuberant celebration of the joys and agonies of growing up - "a Dickensian fairytale...I have rarely seen a show that combined such warmth and such bleakness."(The Times); Stags and Hens "takes place in the gents and Ladies loos of a tacky Liverpool club, where Dave and Linda have decided, unbeknownst to each other to hold their stag and hen parties...a bleakly funny and perceptive study of working-class misogyny, puritanism and waste" (Guardian); Educating Rita: "one way of describing Educating Rita would be to say that it was about the meaning of education...another would be to say that it was about the meaning of life. A third, that it is a cross between Pygmalion and Lucky Jim. A fourth, that it is simply a marvellous play, painfully funny and passionately serious: a hilarious social documentary; a fairy-tale with a quizzical, half-happy ending." (Sunday Times)

Willy Russell’s 1983 play with music tells the story of twin brothers separated at birth because their mother cannot afford to keep them both. One of them is given away to wealthy Mrs Lyons and they grow up as friends in ignorance of their fraternity until the inevitable quarrel unleashes a bloodbath.After its premiere at the Liverpool Playhouse, the musical has gone on to receive productions around the world and ran for decades in London’s West End, as well as extensively touring the UK.This revised Student Edition includes a commentary by Rebecca Hillman, which offers accessible and vivid insights into the play and the context in which it was written through a 21st-century lens. As well as helping us appreciate the play today, it also conveys how how ground-breaking Blood Brothers was at the time in representing working-class lives on stage, as well as explicitly exposing the flaws of the British class system.

'One way of describing Educating Rita would be to say that it was about the meaning of education ... Another would be to say that it was about the meaning of life. A third, that it is a cross between Pygmailion and Lucky Jim. A fourth, that it is simply a marvellous play, painfully funny and passionately serious; a hilarious social documentary; a fairy-tale with a quizzical, half-happy ending.' Sunday TimesThis new student edition includes an introduction covering the play's context; chronology; dramatic devices; critical reception; production history; and key themes such as class and identity, popular culture and education. Educating Rita portrays a working-class Liverpool woman's hunger for education. It premiered at the RSC Warehouse, London, in 1980 and won the SWET award for Best Comedy of the Year. It was subsequently made into a highly successful film with Michael Caine and Julie Walters and won the 1983 BAFTA award for Best Film.Commentary and notes by Katie Beswick, University of the Arts London.

Nominated for Best Revival at the Olivier Awards 2024I’d fallen in love with the idea of living... because we don’t do what we want to do, do we? We do what we have to do and pretend that it’s what we want to do.Shirley Valentine is the joyous, life-affirming story of the woman who got lost in marriage and motherhood, the woman who wound up talking to the kitchen wall whilst cooking her husband’s chips and egg. But Shirley still has a secret dream. And in her bag, an airline ticket...One day she may just leave a note, saying: ‘Gone! Gone to Greece.’Willy Russell’s celebrated one-woman play originally premiered in 1986 and became an instant classic, winning the Olivier Award for Best New Comedy and later being adapted into a successful film. This revised edition was published to coincide with the 2023 revival starring double Olivier Award and BAFTA winner Sheridan Smith.

Educating Rita, about a working-class Liverpool girl's hunger for education, is 'simply a marvellous play, painfully funny and passionately serious; a hilarious social documentary; a fairy-tale with a quizzical, half-happy ending.' Sunday Times Educating Rita premiered at the RSC Warehouse, London, in June 1980. Voted Best Comedy of 1980, it was subsequently made into a highly successful film with Michael Caine and Julie Walters.

A Liverpudlian West Side Story: twin brothers are separated at birth because their mother cannot afford to keep them both. She gives one of them away to wealthy Mrs Lyons and they grow up as friends in ignorance of their fraternity until the inevitable quarrel unleashes a blood-bath. 'Willy Russell is less concerned with political tub-thumping than with weaving a close-knit story about the working of fate and destiny ... it carries one along with it in almost unreserved enjoyment" Guardian One of the longest-running and most successful ever West End musicals, Blood Brothers premiered at the Liverpool Playhouse in January 1983.

A Liverpudlian West Side Story, Blood Brothers is the story of twin brothers separated at birth because their mother cannot afford to keep them both. One of them is given away to wealthy Mrs Lyons and they grow up as friends in ignorance of their fraternity until the inevitable quarrel unleashes a blood-bath. Blood Brothers was first performed at the Liverpool Playhouse in 1983 and subsequently transferred to the Lyric Theatre, London. It was revived in the West End in 1988 for a long-running production and opened on Broadway in 1993.

'One way of describing Educating Rita would be to say that it was about the meaning of education ... Another would be to say that it was about the meaning of life. A third, that it is a cross between Pygmailion and Lucky Jim. A fourth, that it is simply a marvellous play, painfully funny and passionately serious; a hilarious social documentary; a fairy-tale with a quizzical, half-happy ending.' Sunday Times Educating Rita, which portrays a working-class Liverpool woman's hunger for education, premiered at the RSC Warehouse, London, in 1980 and won the SWET award for Best Comedy of the Year. It was subsequently made into a highly successful film with Michael Caine and Julie Walters and won the 1983 BAFTA award for Best Film. Commentary and notes by Steve Lewis.

A new collection of plays from Willy Russell, one of Britain's best-loved dramatists, features the smash hits Blood Brothers, Our Day Out: The Musical and Shirley Valentine as well as the previously unpublished John, Paul, George, Ringo . . . and Bert.Blood Brothers: A Liverpudlian West Side Story, this is the story of twin brothers separated at birth because their mother cannot afford to keep them both. 'One of those rare exceptions, where a show continues to pack a punch after many years on the road and in the West End' - What's On Stage, (5 stars)Our Day Out: The Musical: Mrs Kay's 'Progress Class' are unleashed for a day's coach trip to Conway Castle in Wales - in an exuberant celebration of the joys and agonies of growing up and being footloose, fourteen and free from school. 'One of those truly magical theatrical experiences that should very definitely not be missed' - StageShirley Valentine: The story of a put-upon mother and housewife who leaves the drudgery of cooking dinner for her husband, packs her bags and heads for the sun. 'Shirley is the star of her own monodrama, her gabbing made theatrical in a stream of stories and impersonations that are rooted in essential loneliness and reaction against domestic frustration . . . memorable and joyous' - IndependentJohn, Paul, George, Ringo . . . and Bert: Russell's first major hit, a musical about the Beatles, won the Evening Standard and London Critics' awards for Best New Musical of 1974. 'Why has no-one done it before? Perhaps only a scouser like Willy Russell could have the self-confidence to tackle Liverpool’s great phenomenon . . . it’s funny, incisive, well-acted and makes its points without any arty philosophising' - Time Out.Willy Russell Plays: 2 features an introduction from the playwright.

Written specifically for GCSE students by academics in the field, the Methuen Drama GCSE Student Editions provide in-depth explanatory material alongside the play texts frequently studied at Key Stage 4. Whether for use in the classroom or independent study, these editions offer a fully comprehensive and lightly glossed play text with accompanying notes specifically directed towards readers of this age, which unravel essential topics and challenge all students to delve further into literary analysis. A well established modern classic, Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers tells the story of Mickey and Eddie, twins separated at birth who grow up to lead very opposite lives, but which constantly and inevitably intersect. In addition to some on-page explanatory notes and the play text, this edition contains sub-headed analyses of themes, characters, context and dramatic devices, as well as background information on the playwright. The Methuen Drama GCSE Student Editions never lose sight of their readership, and offer students the confidence to engage with the material, explore their own interpretations, and improve their understanding of the works.

In Our Day Out Mrs Kay's 'Progress Class' embark on an anarchic school trip to Conwy Castle in Wales. Assisted by the authoritarian Deputy Headmaster, Mr Briggs, the students conspire to steal animals from the zoo and cause as much chaos as possible along the way. This edition also includes the following short plays: The Boy with the Transistor Radio, Terraces and I Read the News Today.

Twin brothers, Mickey and Edward, are separated at birth as their mother cannot afford to keep them both. Raised only streets apart in the heart of Liverpool, the boys' lives take two very different paths. However, following a chance meeting, the pair form an unlikely friendship. But what will happen if they ever find out the secret of their shared history?

This revised version of Willy Russell's much loved play won rave reviews when it opened in Liverpool in 2009. Slightly updated and featuring more songs, it retains all the humour and appeal of the original.This educational edition in Methuen Drama's Critical Scripts series has been prepared by national Drama in Secondary English experts Ruth Moore and Paul Bunyan. Building on a decade of highly effective work and publications endorsed by national organisations and supported by teachers and consultants across Britain, each book in the series: meets the new requirements at KS3 and GCSE (2010) features detailed, structured schemes of work utilising drama approaches to improve literary and language analysis places pupils' understanding of the learning process at the heart of the activities will help pupils to boost English GCSE success and develop high-level skills at KS3 will save teachers considerable time devising their own resources.Mrs Kay's Progress Class are off to Alton Towers - until Mr Briggs gets on board. The destination might have changed in this new version of Willy Russell's classic play, but mixing humour, lively songs and the poignancy of the original, this drama of a class day out to remember is ideal for Year 9 and above.

York Notes for GCSE offer an approach to English Literature that aims to help readers achieve a better grade. This series has been completely updated to reflect the needs of today's students. The new editions are filled with detailed summaries, commentaries on key themes, characters, language and style, illustrations, exam advice and much more.

The hilarious, bittersweet novel from the playwright behind EDUCATING RITA, SHIRLEY VALENTINE and award-winning musical BLOOD BROTHERS.Dear Morrissey,I'm feeling dead depressed and down. Like a streetlamp without a bulb or a goose at the onset of Christmas time.Anyroad, I thought I'd pen a few lines to someone who'd understand...It's 1991. Raymond Marks is a normal boy, from a normal family, in a normal northern town. Only lately, he's been feeling dead down. His dad left home after falling in love with a five-string banjo. His fun-hating grandma believes she should have married Jean-Paul Sartre: 'I could never read his books, but y' could tell from his picture, there was nothing frivolous about John-Paul Sartre.' Felonious Uncle Jason and Appalling Aunty Paula are lusting after the satellite dish.And so he turns to the one person who'll understand what he's going through: Morrissey. Told through a series of heartfelt letters to the frontman of The Smiths, this is a laugh-out-loud funny, incredibly poignant tale from a character you can't help but love.'Big-hearted, wonderfully funny and engrossing' THE MIRROR'A warm, funny, poignant story. I loved The Wrong Boy - and so will you' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH'A comic masterpiece' BEL MOONEY, MAIL ON SUNDAY

Educating Rita, about a working-class Liverpool girl's hunger for education, is 'simply a marvellous play, painfully funny and passionately serious; a hilarious social documentary; a fairy-tale with a quizzical, half-happy ending.' Sunday Times Educating Rita premiered at the RSC Warehouse, London, in June 1980. Voted Best Comedy of 1980, it was subsequently made into a highly successful film with Michael Caine and Julie Walters.

A Liverpudlian West Side Story: twin brothers are separated at birth because their mother cannot afford to keep them both. She gives one of them away to wealthy Mrs Lyons and they grow up as friends in ignorance of their fraternity until the inevitable quarrel unleashes a blood-bath. 'Willy Russell is less concerned with political tub-thumping than with weaving a close-knit story about the working of fate and destiny ... it carries one along with it in almost unreserved enjoyment" Guardian One of the longest-running and most successful ever West End musicals, Blood Brothers premiered at the Liverpool Playhouse in January 1983.

'Stags and Hens takes place in the Gents and Ladies loos of a tacky Liverpool club, where Dave and Linda have decided, unbeknownst to each other, to hold their stag and hen parties ...a bleakly funny and perceptive study of working-class misogyny, puritanism and waste' Guardian 'Combines comedy with acrid truth in the style Willy Russell has made unmistakably his own ...and hits off brilliantly the herd instinct driving both sexes onward and bedward' Daily Telegraph 'Firmly in the centre of the playwright's best achievements: lively, coarse, well-organised, truthful and very funny' Financial Times Stags and Hens premiered at the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool, in October 1978. This edition was updated to coincide with the Liverpool Royal Court's production in February 2008, and includes a new introduction by the author.

Hairdresser Rita feels that life is passing her by. She wants an education, but does Frank have anything to teach her? This edition is part of a series of pre- and post-1914 works chosen especially for 14-18 year olds. The series features fiction, anthologies, poetry, plays and non-fiction.