Welsh Does Warsaw, or Porno-rific!

Well, Tuesday was a great night to be in Warsaw. Irvine Welsh, author of cult favorites such as Trainspotting, The Acid House, Marabou Stork Nightmares, Filth and Glue, among others, was in town on the first leg of a four-day tour of Poland, co-sponsored by the British Council. Welsh’s novel Porno has recently been published in Polish.

After a rehearsal reading of his play You’ll Have Had Your Hole at the Rozmaitosci Theatre on Marszalkowska Street, Welsh did an extended Q&A session with audience members and discussed various aspects of his work, as well as offering some comments and opinions about the current state of the arts in Britain.

Perhaps the most quotable line of the night came when Welsh said “I learned more from failure than I ever did as a successful writer.”

The audience was diverse in terms of age, although the largest group clearly consisted of students and 20-somethings. Based on the enthusiastic response he received, it’s clear that Welsh has as strong and devoted a following in Poland as he does in the other countries where his work has been published.

Hope you enjoy the pics.