Arts & culture

The Steamie is back!

The endlessly popular play – centred around four women doing their laundry at Hogmanay – is returning in August for its 35th anniversary

It’s the show no one ever wants to wash their hands of – with an enduring appeal that’s lasted over three decades.

The play was a point of nostalgia for those that remembered Glasgow’s famous steamies, but it’s the story of friendship and family that really resonates, with the four women at the heart of the tale putting the spotlight on their lives with a series of heart-warming anecdotes pre-Hogmanay.

Rehearsals in motion for the new production of The Steamie at Dundee Rep

Set in Glasgow in the ’50s, we hear hilarious and gossiping musings of hope for the future and times gone by as the women meet to do their last laundry before the bells – from thoughts on men’s obsession with football, to Mrs Culfeathers’ meandering blethering about Galloway’s mince.

Written by Tony Roper in 1987, the theatre classic will open Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre’s 2022-2023 season. The new production, celebrating its 35th anniversary, is directed by Becky Hope-Palmer and will star Jo Freer, Ewan Donald, Irene Macdougall, Tinashe Warikandwa and Suzanne Magowan as the legendary characters of Dolly, Andy, Mrs Culfeathers, Doreen and Magrit.

Tickets are on sale here from £15. The show runs from Saturday 13th August – Saturday 10th September