All Aboard for this Thrilling Drama!

Naomi MacKay watched The Girl on the Train at Milton Keynes Theatre – running until Saturday 14 June.

Rachel Watson longs for a different life. Her only escape is the perfect couple she  watches through the train window every day, happy and in love. Or so it appears. When Rachel learns that the woman she’s been secretly watching has suddenly disappeared, she finds herself as a witness and even a suspect in a thrilling mystery in which she will  face bigger revelations than she could ever have anticipated. 

Based on the bestselling novel by Paula Hawkins, we follow Rachel (Laura Whitmore), an emotionally vulnerable woman, lost in alcohol as she tries to come to terms with her divorce and her ex-husband’s new family.

Laura is absolutely mesmerising as Rachel – I really only knew her as the former Love Island host and had no idea what an accomplished actor she is. The role of Rachel is complex – she’s half-cut most of the time, and that could make her quite unlikeable, so being able to show her vulnerability and how she is manipulated is vital to the success of the character.

When she joined the tour, Laura said: ‘I read the book when it first came out and I was  obsessed by it. I love it when you find a book and all you can think about is that story. You  wake up a little bit earlier to read the book and stay up too late to finish it. I am excited to  show people my portrayal of Rachel this summer.’

And excited she should be – she is magnificent!

She is ably supported by a fabulous cast, including Samuel Collings, the hurt and confused husband of the missing woman, Zena Carson (the new Mrs Watson) and her husband Tom (Ed Harrison). Missing Megan Hipwell is played with a wonderful ethereal quality by Freya Parks, as she appears and disappears throughout the story.

The staging is incredibly effective using a series of background screens, smoke and sound on a simple stage to portray Rachel on the train. And a simple but oh so clever touch, where Rachel swings her coat over her shoulder to transition between scenes.

I was a huge fan of the book, and wondered how they would portray quite a complex story on stage – but it just works, from the opening scene to the last, the production is utterly compelling.

Just like the last train from Euston, this is one you don’t want to miss!

Book your tickets at atgtickets.com/MiltonKeynes.