FEW theatregoers around the world have seen Scottish playwright David Greig’s 2002 play Outlying Islands, but a lucky few in and around Salisbury now have a second opportunity.  The play was staged on a short tour in 2004 after its premiere in Scotland, and it featured Sam Heughan, now a global superstar as the leading character in Outlander.

It returns to the cathedral city next week, when the ever-versatile and adventurous members of Studio Theatre give six performances at their Ashley Road base.

The story is set on a remote Scottish island in the summer of 1939, when two ornithologists – the impulsive young Englishman Robert and the reticent and naive Scot, John – are sent to catalogue the bird colonies on the island. For that summer, the only human inhabitants of the island are the two young men, Mr Kirk the leaseholder and his niece Ellen.

Greig lays bare the motivations of his characters, as they work their way through the painful triangle that develops between John, Robert and Ellen. The play pits nature against technology as the threat of world war looms closer.

Joanna Daniel directs the Studio Theatre production, assisted by Tamsin Jacson. The cast is Jack Cunningham as John, Michael Harvey as Robert, John Jenner as Kirk and Sophie Cuerden as Ellen, with Alistair Faulkner as the ship’s captain.

Performances are at 7.30 from Monday 16th to Saturday 21st February. Visit the Studio Theatre website for more details.