Willy Russell
Willy Russell
Willy Russell’s career spans more than four decades; born in Liverpool in 1947, he left school at 15 and became a women’s hairdresser and part-time singer/songwriter performing on the local folk scene before returning to education and becoming a teacher.
Whilst at St Katharine’s College, Willy began writing drama and, in 1972, took a programme of three one-act plays to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where they were seen by writer John McGrath. Suitably impressed, McGrath recommended Russell to the Liverpool Everyman, who commissioned Russell to adapt a play called The Tigers Are Coming - OK. The resulting work, retitled When The Reds…, was Willy Russell’s first professional work for theatre.
Russell’s breakthrough work, commissioned by Liverpool Everyman, was John Paul George Ringo…and Bert, which transferred to the West End, winning the Evening Standard and London Theatre Critics Awards for Best Musical.
Alongside further stage works One For The Road (1976) and Stags and Hens (1978), Russell proved himself a gifted and accomplished screenwriter with the television films Death of A Young Man, Daughters of Albion, Our Day Out and One Summer, all consolidating his reputation as a serious writer whose work could reach a wide audience.
Commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company, Educating Rita is now a modern classic. Since its 1980 premiere and long West End run, the play has been translated and produced in almost every part of the globe, garnering awards both for its author and for many of the actors who have played the roles of Rita and Frank.
Returning to the Liverpool Everyman in 1986, Russell created the iconic Shirley Valentine, which went on to an acclaimed West End run, earning Olivier awards for both its author and star Pauline Collins. The show transferred to New York for a highly successful Broadway run, earning a Best Actress Tony Award for its star, Pauline Collins. Like the earlier Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine became an international hit with successful productions mounted throughout the world.
Both Educating Rita and Shirley Valentine became highly successful feature films. Michael Caine, Julie Walters and Pauline Collins all earned Oscar nominations for their respective roles, as did Russell for his Educating Rita screenplay.
Willy Russell's other worldwide theatrical success has been Blood Brothers, a "Liverpudlian folk opera" about a pair of twins separated at birth and brought up in completely different environments. Blood Brothers won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 1983, and its 1987 revival played over 10,000 consecutive performances during its 24-year West End run. Simultaneously, UK touring and international productions (including a two-year run on Broadway) brought further critical and public acclaim.
Originally a celebrated TV film, Russell’s Our Day Out was first adapted for the stage in 1983 and rapidly went on to become one of the most widely produced plays of all time, its popularity still as strong as ever amongst professionals, amateurs, schools and youth theatres across the UK.
In 2010, Willy Russell (with musical collaborator Bob Eaton) further developed Our Day Out and created Our Day Out The Musical. This modern musical retelling retains all the characters and plot of the original but with the action updated and a new score and lyrics. Productions in 2010 and 2011 at Liverpool’s Royal Court Theatre drew huge audiences and rave reviews.
Russell's critically acclaimed novel The Wrong Boy was published in 2000 and translated worldwide.
In 2004 Willy Russell returned to his singer/songwriter roots, releasing his own album, Hoovering The Moon, which he toured with Tim Firth ending at the Edinburgh Fringe, in a unique mix of music and spoken word that became known as The Singing Playwrights.
In 2013, the Liverpool John Moores University established the Willy Russell Archive, a comprehensive representation of all his work to date.
Major UK and international productions of Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine and Blood Brothers are staged every year; 2017 marked the 30th year of the Blood Brothers UK Tour.
Willy Russell continues to be one of the most celebrated and widely produced writers of his generation, with works regularly being produced in the UK and throughout the world.
Perform Willy Russell
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Blood Brothers (Play Version)
Willy Russell
Short Play, DramaBlood Brothers (Play Version)
Short Play, Drama / 3w, 5m, 5any gender (adult)
This is the non-musical play version of the hugely successful musical (which is currently being performed professionally, and is thus not available for performance). Newly reissued by Oxford University Press in their Oxford Playscripts series. It tells of twin brothers and what happens when their mother decides to have one of them adopted. Their contrasting upbringing and the hand fate deals them is fast-moving, perceptive and ultimately tragic. This original version is simple to stage, rewarding to act, and is ideal for a large mixed cast.
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Breezeblock Park
Willy Russell
Full-Length Play, Dramatic ComedyBreezeblock Park
Full-Length Play, Dramatic Comedy / 4w, 5m
Superior council house dwellers Betty, Reeny, Vera and their men regard themselves as a close knit family team despite their concealed jealousies and occasional recriminations.
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Our Day Out (Revised Musical Play Version)
Willy Russell, Bob Eaton
Short Musical, DramaOur Day Out (Revised Musical Play Version)
Willy Russell ,Bob Eaton
Short Musical, Drama / 16w, 23m
When Mrs Kay's 'Progress Class' are unleashed for a day's coach trip to Alton Towers they can hardly believe their luck.....
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Blood Brothers (Musical)
Willy Russell
Full-Length Musical, DramaBlood Brothers (Musical)
Full-Length Musical, Drama / 3w, 5m
This powerful musical, by the author of Educating Rita and Shirley Valentine, is a haunting rags-to-riches tragedy of our times. After a struggling mother surrenders one of her newborn twins to her childless employer, the brothers grow up streets apart, never learning the truth. In the end, however, the separation of twins commands a heavy price.
THIS TITLE IS NOT RELEASED FOR PERFORMANCE RIGHTS IN THE UK AND IRELAND.
If your performances are outside the UK/Ireland, please apply for a licence to check availabilty. (US/Canada performances would apply through our US website. Navigate there by selecting 'US' instead of 'UK' in the top right corner of this website.)
Shop Willy Russell
View all-
Blood Brothers (Play Version)
Willy Russell
Short Play, DramaBlood Brothers (Play Version)
Short Play, Drama / 3w, 5m, 5any gender (adult)
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Breezeblock Park
Willy Russell
Full-Length Play, Dramatic ComedyBreezeblock Park
Full-Length Play, Dramatic Comedy / 4w, 5m
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Our Day Out (Revised Musical Play Version)
Willy Russell, Bob Eaton
Short Musical, DramaOur Day Out (Revised Musical Play Version)
Willy Russell ,Bob Eaton
Short Musical, Drama / 16w, 23m
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Blood Brothers (Musical)
Willy Russell
Full-Length Musical, DramaBlood Brothers (Musical)
Full-Length Musical, Drama / 3w, 5m
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