Tartan and hysteria: Musical tells story of Scotland's biggest boyband

The five members of the Bay City Rollers pose arm-in-arm for the camera. Alan wears a trendy mullet with a white sweater and a red jacket with large lapels, Derek, also sporting a mullet, wears a black and white striped jumper, Les, in an impressive bouffant hairstyle, wears a tight white sweater with yellow flower trim, Woody leans forward with his spiky mullet and a white cricket jumper, and Eric keeps it tartan with a white, tartan-trimmed shirt and an impressively layered face-framing hairstyle. They stand outside with a closed wooden door behind them.
The Bay City Rollers in 1974 - Left to right: Alan Longmuir, Derek Longmuir, Les Mckeown, Stuart "Woody" Wood, Eric Faulkner [Getty Images]

The hits of Scotland's biggest boyband are to be turned into a new musical to mark the 50th anniversary of their first number one hit next year.

The Bay City Rollers took the world by storm in the mid-70s, trimmed in tartan and causing scenes of hysteria wherever they went.

Now, the fans who followed them obsessively and screamed their loyalty to the cheeky Scots, are to appear centre-stage in Rollers Forever.

The new show will feature the band's biggest hits, including Bye Bye Baby, Keep On Dancing, Shang-a-Lang and Summer Love Sensation.

The show will follow the story of two Bay City Rollers superfans, who meet up for a Saturday night and relive their teenage years following their idols.

A crowd of Roller fans scream in delight as their idols perform on stage, all wearing bits of tartan with their hands in the air. The girl at the front is wide-eyed and open-mouthed in excitement as she raises her hands in the air.
The faces say it all - the crowd of Roller fans scream in delight as their idols perform on stage [Getty Images]

Sprinkling some tartan stardust on the project is original Roller Stuart “Woody” Wood, who is serving as artistic consultant.

Woody joined the band at the age of 17 in 1974, just before their success exploded with the hit Shang-a-lang.

He said the great thing about the musical was that it was about the fans, who - like the band - have been around for 50 years.

"Thank god for the fans. They've kept it alive all these years," he said.

"I cant wait to be in the audience and watch them react to it. I think they’ll have their tartan out – their scarves and probably dress up for the occasion."

Remembering their thousands of fans screaming and trying to tear the band members to bits, Woody said it all descended into a "mass of crazy".

Although they had great fun at the time, Woody said being a teenage sensation was not for the faint hearted.

He said he would not be able to handle it all now and, at the age of 67, would rather stay at home.

The play is written by award-winning playwright Danny McCahon and directed by acclaimed theatre director Liz Carruthers.

Also involved is current "Roller" John McLaughlin.

John - a successful songwriter, producer and performer - was responsible for organising the band's most recent reunion.

Now he gets to roll alongside his childhood heroes after Woody asked him to join the band.

John says producing the musical and playing in a band that had him in "total awe" as a child was a full circle experience.

"It's like getting to play for your favourite football team," he said.

Stuart 'Woody' Wood stands in front of a drum kit. He has grey short hair with yellow tinted small round glasses. He wears a black jacket that has yellow tartan accents for the collar and pockets.
Stuart "Woody" Wood will be artistic consultant for the musical [BBC]

John said the Rollers fans were unique and became so identifiable because of their tartan-clad outfits.

"It's like an army", he says.

"Even today, they turn up to gigs with tartan scarves, all happy, all joyous."

He says fans will be able to have a great night out at the show by celebrating the band and their songs.

The show follows Susan and Jenny who reminisce over clothes, boys and music - in a time where the height of technology and fashion were phone boxes, mail order catalogues and crispy pancakes.

Every moment is accompanied by a hit from the Bay City Rollers.

From the first time they see the band on TV to a rousing dance in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle, the lives, loves and emotions of the women are governed by the Rollers.

And meeting their idols becomes the most important thing in their lives.

One of the band members plays guitar on stage, wearing a white suit. The shirt has tartan shoulders and the trousers have tartan stitching. Each person in the crowd has their arms outstretched and clawing at the boy on stage.
The tartan-clad band were loved by thousands [Getty Images]

The musical sets out to be a celebration of the music and legacy of the "tartan teens" who wore the look once described as "young love personified".

One of those real-life tartan teenagers was Gail Shackley from Manchester.

Gail said she had been a "die-hard fan" since Bye Bye Baby was number one in March 1975.

Being from Manchester, she said the Edinburgh band were like “the boys next door”.

So, loving the band became easy because they were easily accessible to UK fans.

“They were ours, you latch onto your own,” she said.

She fell away from the band when they became a global success and toured the UK less but years later she was able to roll back to them after attending a gig in 1994.

She said she was shocked to have remembered every word to every song.

“It was like riding a bike, you never forget,” she said.

In this black and white shot, three ecstatic fans are brought to their knees with excitement at a Bay City Rollers concert. The first is openly sobbing, kneeling on the floor in her tartan cropped bell bottoms. Her friend, in a similar outfit, cries as she leans against a wall. The third is bent down, holding her head in her hands.
Three ecstatic fans are brought to their knees with excitement at a Bay City Rollers concert [Getty Images]

Gail met Les McKeown, the original frontman of the band, at an intimate gig of his band Egotrip in 1997.

She fondly remembers how her “teenage heartthrob” had brought out food and drinks to the 20 or so fans at the gig.

"After that, I was back on the scene like I'd never been off it,” she said.

She remained a close follower of McKeown, who died in 2021, and is now working with his wife and son to raise funds to be able to get a dedicated bench for the late singer in Edinburgh’s Princes Street Gardens.

The superfan says that now is a good time for a play like this since it has become "cooler" to like the band.

She says she is interested to see how it will pan out and hopes it will be relatable to fans like her.

“Who doesn’t like a trip down memory lane?”, she says.

Rollers Forever will open at the Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow, in August 2025.