First presented at the Cambridge Theatre, London on 13th September 1960, with Albert Finney in the title role. This proved so successful that a film directed by John Schlesinger was released in 1963 with Tom Courtenay as Billy.
Set in Stradhoughton a typically dull and dreary industrial town in Yorkshire, a 19-year-old Billy lives with his parents and an aged grandma. Bored by his job as a lowly undertakers clerk he longs to escape, so spends his time in a fantasy world where he is a successful scriptwriter, living in a big city.
However with three girl-friends on the go, his tendency to over imagination comes at a cost, as his life becomes a tangled web from which he cannot escape.
Finally when his life is a total mess, and nobody believes a word he says, an opportunity to just run away and leave it all behind presents itself, Billy has a difficult decision to make...
The play is a snapshot of life before the explosion of the pop world and the rise of the 'Teenager', before computers, mobile phones, CD players, DVD's etc. An innocent time when young people were mirrors of their parents, and had some respect for parents, teachers and employers, although not necessarily sharing their views. This was a world without vandalism, graffiti or mugging, where murders were rare; kids could walk to school and then play in the parks and streets without fear.
I have tried to present this delightful play exactly as the original production, without up-dating the words or references. The only changes made are to words, which may offend our black community, as modern times dictate different rules, and political correctness, although I am sure few would be offended by this intriguing play.
