Unashamedly nostalgic, but still bleedin’ rapid

Simon Delaney and Hazel Clifford in The Snapper at the Gate Theatre, Dublin

The Snapper

By Roddy Doyle

Gate Theatre, Dublin

Rating:****

Runs until September 15

Nobody ever mentions the word ‘rape’ in Roddy Doyle’s stage adaptation of his much-loved 1990 novel The Snapper. That might strike modern audiences as odd, since the 20-year-old Sharon Rabbitte is obviously far too drunk to consent when a middle-aged neighbour impregnates her in a pub car park. Nor is there more than a fleeting reference to abortion, with Sharon’s ...