Acclaimed play kicks off Scottish tour in West Lothian

Daily Record

22-07-2025

The Junkie Miracles is being taken on tour around small theatres in various locations mainly in the west central belt.
An acclaimed play by one of Scotland's best writers kicks off its Scottish tour in West Lothian in September.
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The Junkie Miracles, which premiered three years ago at the Gaiety Theatre, in Ayr, is being taken on tour around small theatres in various locations mainly in the west central belt.
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This innovative production tells the stories of four addicts from different walks of life who have hit rock bottom and are tumbling into the abyss. Only four miracles can save them.
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In an inexplicable coincidence each of them, on the same day, is hit by the realisation that all hope of getting back to some semblance of their previous existence, is gone, if they don't do something immediately.
Some of the main performers are recovering from their own addiction – whether that's alcohol or drugs – and their stories reflect their own and others' roads to recovery.
The play is the concept of highly successful Glasgow writer, Des Dillon, who said: 'I asked these people to tell me about the worst day of their lives, the day they hit rock bottom, and what made them want to recover.
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'Here, they do that with great effect. Their stories are unique but also largely unheard because of the stigma around substance abuse...how they got there in the first place, the depth to which they plummeted and how they tried to get onto the road to recovery and whether or not they succeeded.'
He added: 'Coming back out of that in some way or another, doesn't mean they are all necessarily happy endings either.'
When the play was premiered at the Gaiety Theatre in Ayr, in the late summer of 2022, one observer noted the empathy felt for the characters by the audience which was drawn from all parts of the community. Since then the production has been under self-scrutiny, development and planning.
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The tour opens at the Regal Bathgate, on Friday September 5. It then heads to Stirling, and venues in Ayrshire and Lanarkshire before closing at Dumbarton Civic Centre on September 27.
The Junkie Miracles performers represent a large, but largely hidden, proportion of Scottish society whose voices have been stifled because of the stigmatic predicament in which they find themselves.
Scotland's drug problem remains the worst in Europe with an estimated 60,000 people blighted by addiction – and an unknown number of regular users.
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The latest statistics from Public Health Scotland (June 2025) say that Scots are drinking 50 per cent above the safe limits, with those in more deprived areas six times more likely to be hospitalised or die from alcohol related causes compared to those in less deprived communities.
The Junkie Miracles will be performed at the Regal Theatre in Bathgate on Friday, September 5. For ticket information visit the Regal's website.