The Playboy of the Western World

A new edition of John Millington Synge’s riveting story of youth and self-discovery, published to coincide with the National Theatre's 2025 revival

At the edge of the earth, you could be anyone.

Pegeen Flaherty’s life is turned upside down when, on a normal day, a young man walks into her pub claiming that he’s killed his father.

Instead of being shunned, the killer Christy Mahon becomes a local hero. The welcome murderer wins hearts and races as he beds himself into village life. That is until a second man unexpectedly arrives on the scene…

John Millington Synge’s riveting story of youth and self-discovery has been celebrated for decades. This new edition was published to coincide with the National Theatre's 2025 production with a cast that included Nicola Coughlan as Pegeen Flaherty, Éanna Hardwicke as Christy Mahon and Siobhán McSweeney as Widow Quin.

Features notes by Christopher Collins, University of Nottingham.