Queer Play Reading Club: The P Word by Waleed Akhtar
Tuesday 16th December 2025
The Railway, Clapham
The Queer Play Reading Club is a monthly event from Queer Theatre, held in partnership with Nick Hern Books, celebrating LGBTQ+ playwriting in a supportive, queer-run, social space. Each session begins with up to an hour of brand-new queer writing, giving LGBTQIA+ playwrights and writers the chance to share short scenes or monologues and receive supportive feedback. We then move into a group reading of a full-length published play, with relaxed discussion and Q&A with the author, facilitated by Queer Theatre’s Artistic Director, Andrew Keates.
This month’s play: The P Word by Waleed Akhtar
‘I’m not in your Britain. I’m in another Britain.’
Zafar flees homophobic persecution in Pakistan to seek asylum in the UK. Londoner Bilal (or Billy as he prefers to be known) is ground down by years of Grindr and the complexity of being a brown gay man.
In Soho, at 2am, worlds collide – and Zafar and Billy’s lives are about to change forever. The P Word is Waleed Akhtar’s sharp-witted and devastating play charting the parallel lives of two gay Pakistani men as they negotiate everything from casual hook-ups to the UK’s hostile environment. A story of who wins in the luck of life’s draw, it premiered at the Bush Theatre, London, in 2022, directed by Anthony Simpson-Pike and received widespread critical acclaim, winning the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Affiliate Theatre.
Special Guest Announcement
We are delighted to announce that Waleed Akhtar will be joining us for this session to discuss the play and answer your questions.
Itinerary
Tea, coffee and snacks from 6:30pm
Session starts at 7pm (sharing new writing with the group and receiving supportive feedback)
We read The P Word together.
Q&A with Waleed Akhtar and Andrew Keates
Drinks and socialising until 11pm
Getting There
The Railway, Clapham
18 Clapham High Street, London SW4 7UR
By Tube: A 1-minute walk from Clapham North (Northern line) and 5 minutes from Clapham Common.
By Overground: Clapham High Street Station is directly opposite the venue.
By Bus: Served by routes 50, 88, 155, 322, and 345.
By Train: Clapham Junction is a short bus ride away, with connections across London and the South East.
Accessibility
The event takes place in an upstairs space accessible only by stairs. If you have access needs or questions, please contact us in advance so we can support your visit as best we can.
Important Information
This is not a performance but an informal exploration of the play’s text. Scenes will be read aloud by members of the group who wish to participate. Roles may therefore be read in ways that differ from their original casting intentions, including across gender, race, age, sexuality, and lived experience. We actively welcome this openness while also encouraging those with lived experience reflecting the characters to volunteer where appropriate.
If you are a writer wishing to have your own work shared aloud in the opening section, please bring an excerpt of no more than five minutes to allow space for others. We may not have time to include everyone’s work on the night. If you need excerpts printed, please email us.
This event forms part of Queer Theatre’s commitment to ensuring LGBTQ+ theatre-makers always have somewhere to go each week to connect, create, and be inspired – alongside our 2B: Acting Classes, OutCast showcases, theatre trips, social events, masterclasses, parties and shows.
Find out more at queertheatre.co.uk/whats-on