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‘Trainspotting’ author set to embark on new documentary

Irvine Welsh, the author of the groundbreaking Trainspotting, is set to offer a rare inside view of his life in a new feature-length documentary, I Am Irvine Welsh.

Choose a life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television. Choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players, and electrical tin openers… The unmistakable rhetoric from Irvine Welsh’s 1993 debut novel Trainspotting

Catapulted to fame on the release of his debut novel Trainspotting in 1993, author Irvine Welsh has begun filming a feature-length documentary  I Am Irvine Welsh, which is set to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the iconic bestseller next year.

Trainspotting
Credit: Terry Paddock

Welsh has agreed to let cameras follow his every move over the course of the next eighteen months as he works on a new musical version of Trainspotting, a spin-off TV series with Robert Carlyle reviving his iconic character Begbie. Welsh will also be working on the new novel that he is developing with Bret Easton Ellis and is slated for release in September of this year, The Long Knives, a satire on America’s tabloid culture featuring the charismatic and troubled detective Ray Lennox. So, it’s going to be a very busy eighteen months to say the least. 

An official announcement on the documentary states: “I Am Irvine Welsh is an illuminating documentary offering a rare glimpse into the mind of a prolific artist at work and play.

With insights into his early childhood in Leith, his teenage years in the 1970s, his rise to literary stardom, and the strong friendships he has made along the way, with the likes of Iggy Popp, and comic book author Grant Morrison. The documentary is also set to feature interviews with director Danny Boyle, Robert Carlyle, Ewan McGregor, and Oasis legend Noel Gallagher.

No word yet on the release date, but keep your eyes peeled for the 30th anniversary of his debut novel Trainspotting next year.