Paul Mescal to return to Irish theatre in ‘pressure cooker of a play’

Paul Mescal is returning to Ireland

The Normal People actor has been cast as the lead in the play, which will open at the National Theatre in London.

The production will then head to Dublin's Abbey Theatre following its London run.

However, fans of Mescal will have to wait until 2027 to see him in A Whistle in the Dark.

Mescal will star as an Irish emigrant who moves to England to escape his violent family.

'Settled in Coventry with his new wife Betty, Michael Carney is attempting to lead a new life. But leaving Ireland couldn’t set him free, and once the Carneys descend there’s no way out.'

The play will be directed by the Abbey Theatre's artistic director, Caitríona McLaughlin.

McLaughlin said the production is "a pressure cooker of a play."

She will also direct The Playboy of the Western World for the National Theatre’s Christmas season. Irish actress Nicola Coughlan is set to star in the production.

She stated: "Every generation deserves to see these two seminal works of the Irish canon.”

"Both plays hold in common the opportunity to reinvent yourself, the desire to realise one’s own potential, and what happens when that opportunity is squandered or lost."

Paul Mescal won an Olivier Award for his portrayal of Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire.