Dua's Monthly Read for April 2026
“I first read Jerusalem at 15, studying for my English GCSEs, and Johnny ‘Rooster’ Byron has stayed with me ever since. When I finally saw legendary actor Mark Rylance perform the role onstage in 2022, it was everything I had imagined. Now, I want you to have that experience.
“From the very first page, Rooster is mixing himself a hangover smoothie of sour milk, eggs, vodka and… speed. He's a former daredevil now living in a caravan in the English countryside, spending his days dispensing booze, drugs and tall stories to local teenagers. He’s also been served an eviction notice for unauthorised encampment. It’s not his first warning, but it feels like it might be his last.
“Jez gives you a man who could easily feel alienating – and then makes you love him. Beneath all the chaos and comedy (and there is real comedy here) is something sadder. Rooster is a dying breed: a wild and independent spirit utterly out of step with box-ticking officials and small-town England. The setting may appear far from your own experience, but the feelings at its centre may not.
“What I love most about Jerusalem, and why I’ve chosen it as our first play, is how alive it is on the page as well as the stage. One moment you’re deep in English folklore: giants, fairies, ancient drums. The next, someone is arguing about Girls Aloud (if you don’t know, get to know!). It is funny, it is tragic and it is the best possible reminder that reading plays is not only for school.” – Dua Lipa
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