# Is "The Beauty Queen of Leenane" by Martin McDonagh a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Beauty Queen of Leenane by Martin McDonagh (Methuen Drama, 1996) is identified by: Methuen Drama, London, 1996, slim individual playscript in wrappers, stating 'First published 1996 by Methuen.' Issued around the Druid Theatre premiere (Town Hall Theatre, Galway, February 1996) and the Royal Court run. The UK Methuen 1996 individual playscript is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Methuen Drama, London, 1996, slim individual playscript in wrappers, stating 'First published 1996 by Methuen.' Issued around the Druid Theatre premiere (Town Hall Theatre, Galway, February 1996) and the Royal Court run
- The true first is the individual wrappered playscript, not the later collected volume
- Publisher imprint reads Methuen Drama
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Martin McDonagh |
| Publisher | Methuen Drama |
| Year | 1996 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Methuen Drama, London, 1996, slim individual playscript in wrappers, stating 'First published 1996 by Methuen.' Issued around the Druid… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Methuen Drama, London, 1996, slim individual playscript in wrappers, stating 'First published 1996 by Methuen.' Issued around the Druid Theatre premiere (Town Hall Theatre, Galway, February 1996) and the Royal Court run. The true first is the individual wrappered playscript, not the later collected volume.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Methuen 1996 individual playscript is the true first. The US Vintage 'The Beauty Queen of Leenane and Other Plays' collection and the collected 'McDonagh Plays' volumes are later. This was McDonagh's debut play.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Methuen Modern Classics and Student Edition reissues, and the collected and US editions, are not the first. No separate book-club issue is recorded.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Beauty Queen of Leenane* by Martin McDonagh a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-beauty-queen-of-leenane
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.