Best Scottish Theatre October 2023: 5 must-see theatre shows you can see this month

There’s still time to see a variety of brilliant theatrical productions this month.

From the cavernous grandeur of Glasgow’s King’s Theatre and Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre, to the more intimate atmosphere of Aberdeen's Lemon Tree and the Dundee Rep, Scotland has a wide range of wonderful venues in which you can catch a play. Here are five you can enjoy before the end of October.

Quiz (Glasgow)

There’s still time to see this touring version of the smash hit West End play written by James Graham. Rory Bremner stars as Chris Tarrant in a thrilling and entertaining ride through the infamous Coughing Major scandal which engulfed TV quiz show ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’. It’s playing at Glasgow’s King’s Theatre until Saturday, October 14.

England and Son (Dundee)

A Fringe First-winning hit at this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, standup comedian and political campaigner Mark Thomas delivers a remarkable performance in this story about a troubled young man growing up in Thatcherite England. It’s on for one night only at Dundee’s Tron Theatre on Friday, October 13.

Witness for the Prosecution (St Andrews)

Theatre can be an expensive business but in these tough financial times you can bag a ticket to see Agatha Christie classic ‘Witness for the Prosecution’ at St Andrews’ Byre Theatre from just £8 under their ‘pay what you can’ model. The courtroom drama is sure to have you on the edge of your feet from October 31-November 1.

Nae Expectations (Glasgow)

Comedian Karen Dunbar stars in the world premiere of Gary McNair’s adaptation of Charles Dicken’s classic ‘Great Expectations’. It promises to stay (relatively) faithful to the original but “with a Glasgow tongue and a gallus spirit”. Previews begin on Thursday, October 19, with the fun continuing at Glasgow’s Tron Theatre until Saturday, November 4.

Group Portrait In A Summer Landscape (Edinburgh)

You’ll have to hurry if you want to catch the secrets and lies contained within the plot of this play set in a Perthshire country house during the Scottish Independence referendum of 2014 – it’s only running at Edinburgh’s Lyceum until Saturday, October 14th. It’s the first production in the theatre’s intriguing and eclectic 2023/24 season.