The writer Billie Collins spoke to Damon Fairclough about The Walrus Has a Right to Adventure.

How would you sum up your new play, The Walrus Has a Right to Adventure? 

It’s about three people in three different countries who have encounters with wild animals. These encounters force them to re-evaluate their lives, what’s important to them and their relationship with the world around them. 

Where did the inspiration for this play come from? 

It’s loosely inspired by a number of true stories in the news – including the time a white stag ran around Bootle town centre in 2021!  

Human beings don’t seem to know what to do about these encounters. The authorities will put out statements saying, ‘leave it alone and it’ll go away’, but because we humans are the way we are, ‘leaving things alone’ isn’t our strong suit.  

I was interested in that pattern – what happens when animals are forced into “our” world? How do we react? I’m curious about how our relationship with things that aren’t us is changing, and how we might see the world differently as a result. 

How did you begin to develop the idea? 

I first pitched the idea as part of my application to join The Bank, which is a development programme for writers, directors, and producers at Sheffield Theatres. The Sheffield team were fantastic and helped me develop a structure for it. We had some really valuable workshops, and I was able to redraft it and get it into its current form. 

What brings the play to the Everyman? 

Being from the Wirral originally, I have a long-standing relationship with the Everyman. As a teenager I used to come along to A Lovely Word which is a poetry night here, then when I realised I wanted to be a playwright, I pestered the literary team to let me be a script reader so I could read as many plays as possible! I’ve been doing that for a good few years, and it’s a theatre I feel very close to.  

One of the characters is a Scouser, so when looking for a home for the play, the Everyman felt like a natural fit. I sent the script to the New Works team; we had a few chats and they said they’d like to put it on – which I was not expecting! I’m immensely grateful and feel very lucky to be doing it at the Everyman. It’s a big deal for me. 

The play revolves around three main characters. Could you tell us a little more about them? 

We have Oskar, a tour guide from Oslo in Norway. He comes from a long line of fishermen who don’t really approve of his career choices. He shows up to work one day to find a walrus on his boat, and the question then facing him is what does he do about it, and how can he continue to make a living? 

Then we have Hazel who lives in Colorado Springs with her boyfriend, Aiden. She’s very witty and sharp, but a bit of a people pleaser. She’s reached the point in her life where everyone else seems to be settling down and starting a family – but something happens that forces her to ask whether the track she’s on is the one she really wants. 

Finally, we have Rio, who is from Liverpool and works in their local Tesco. Rio is quite earnest, quite sweet, and has an ‘encounter’ on the nightshift that prompts them to look inwards and question certain aspects of their identity. 

What are the play’s main themes? 

The play explores themes of nature and climate, and the gap between our idea of these things and what they’re really like. But I think it’s also about responsibility and freedom. Each character is struggling in some way with a weight of obligation – to their families, their jobs, their community… What happens when you realise you’re not really living the life you want? How can you make a change?

In the face of it, the script has a very ‘stripped back’ style, but it weaves the three characters’ stories together in a clever and complex way. Why did you choose this style? 

At its heart, it’s about storytelling. The play shifts between narration and dialogue – the characters tell their own stories, but also play roles in each other’s.  

I’m interested in the idea of myth making and how people create their own legends. So this style seemed like a good fit, especially when we’re cutting between different locations and perspectives very quickly.  

I think it feels really theatrical, as well as being fun and playful. 

The play features three wild animals, and in your script you suggest that the show’s creative team should “steer away from the literal”. Have you thought about how they could be brought to life on stage?  

My favourite thing about being a playwright is collaboration; working with a team of artists to bring something to life. When writing, I didn’t have a specific idea about how the animals should be realised. I wanted to leave space for the team to make an offer. That’s the real magic for me – when everyone’s ideas come together. How do we get an audience to imagine a walrus onstage, for instance? Our director Nathan Crossan-Smith and sound designer/composer Oliver Vibrans have come up with a really brilliant answer to that question. It involves a lot of microphones.   

How would you describe this play in just a few words? 

I always want to mention that it’s funny, but it’s also surprising, fast-paced, tender and human.  

Who do you think will love The Walrus Has a Right to Adventure? 

Anyone who likes a good yarn will like it. I think one of the exciting things about having three characters who are at such different points in their lives is that, hopefully, people of all ages and experiences will be able to see something of themselves in the play. There’s a queer narrative in there too which feels close to my heart, so I hope LGBTQ+ audiences will connect with it.  

 I think something that brings these characters together is the idea that it’s never too late to start again – which anyone who’s ever felt a bit lost or stuck might be able to relate to. It’s a very hopeful play – I’d love it if audiences left thinking about how they want to connect with the humans (and non-humans!) around them. 

Unexpected wild animal encounters are a big feature of this play, so if a wild animal broke into your world, what would you like it to be? 

My serious answer is that I hope that doesn’t happen – we really should be leaving these animals alone! 

But… everyone who knows me knows I’m a big bird nerd. I have a bird feeder on my window by my desk, and a woodpecker once came to it. That was extraordinary! So I’d love to meet some kind of bird of prey or owl or something… Or an albatross! 

In those moments – when you encounter something so out of the ordinary – it feels like you wake up to things a little bit.  

—