PALS by Mirren Wilson (paperback)

by Mirren Wilson

A funny, heartfelt four-woman play about friendship, growing up
and the pressure to have life figured out.

Sadie, Flo, Claire and Taylor are best pals, approaching 30 and wondering when everyone else became proper adults.

Old schoolfriends seem to be buying houses, getting married, having babies, raising money for charity and ticking off major life achievements. Meanwhile, the four of them are still trying to work out what they want, who they are and whether they are somehow falling behind.

So, on a whim, they ditch a housewarming party and head for the Scottish hills.

What starts as an impulsive weekend away complete with bad packing, questionable decisions and relentless banter, soon becomes something more challenging. As the walk pushes them physically and emotionally, tensions rise, hidden worries surface and the friendship they have always relied on is tested.

At the centre of the play is Sadie, whose love of walking and photography connects her to her mother and to the Scottish landscape. As she struggles with increasing caring responsibilities at home, the trip forces all four women to confront the gap between the lives they think they should be living and the reality of where they are.

Funny, frank and moving, PALS: Perfectly Average Lassies of Scotland explores female friendship, millennial adulthood, social media, caring, Scottish identity and the pressure to be exceptional.

Ultimately, it asks a simple question: what if being perfectly average is something worth celebrating?

Perfect for

• Theatre companies looking for a contemporary four-woman ensemble play
• Drama schools, colleges and universities
• Students studying contemporary Scottish theatre and new writing
• Performers looking for strong, distinctive female roles
• Readers interested in friendship, identity and millennial adulthood

PALS premiered at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2024 and returned in 2025 with support from the Keep it Fringe Fund. The production was a WhatsonStage Pick of the Fringe and received a Fringe Theatre Award and an OffWestEnd OffFEST nomination.

CAST: 4 actors
DURATION: 75 minutes