David Simon is known for creating the smash HBO dramas The Wire and Treme. Considering the televised grit of those shows, it comes a bit out of left field to learn Simon’s next project is a stage musical based on the music of Irish-by-London folk punks The Pogues.
Rolling Stone reports (via Dublin’s Evening Herald), that Simon has turned in a first draft of his script to Irish theatre company Druid, though it could still be years before the curtains are ready to rise. Simon was reportedly working on the musical with Pogues’ Phil Chevron before the guitarist’s death from cancer in October. No details on the production’s plot have surfaced yet, though the story is said to be based on the lyrical content of the songs.
This may seem like a surprise move from Simon, but the writer has never shied away from his Pogues fandom. In a blog post on his website, Simon responded to a fan’s question about The Pogues by saying, “Love them hard. Consider [Shane] MacGowan to be among the great lyricists and storytellers of our time,” before hinting that he was “working with them on a particular project.” (That, of course, being this musical.) The character Jimmy McNulty from The Wire is a fan of the band, and Treme‘s James “Slim Jim” Lynch is played by The Pogues’ Spider Stacy. In fact, you can hear the band’s “Body of an American” in no less than three episodes of The Wire, including the clip below of McNulty’s wake. (Ed. Note: Speaking of McNulty, wouldn’t Dominic West make a great Shane McGowan? Just saying…)
