THIS YEAR marks the 20th anniversary of Danny Boyle's cult classic Trainspotting - and as Renton and Begbie are getting jacked up and ready to film the sequel next month, 'Lizzy' has instead been focussing on the launch of her first novel, Armadillos.

Far from a life deeply embedded in the Edinburgh drug scene, Pauline Lynch, who played the girlfriend of Kevin McKidd's Tommy in the iconic film, lives in the tranquil countryside of Biggar with her husband and two boys.

The 43-year-old, whose character is remembered in Trainspotting for dumping Tommy after he wrongly believes he returned a sex tape they made to the video shop, looks back on the film fondly.

And although the gritty movie helped launch dazzling careers for several of the young cast including Ewan McGregor, Pauline has decided to focus on pursuing her love of writing.

Peeblesshire News:

Pauline as Lizzy, with boyfriend Tommy played by Kevin McKidd
 

She recently completed a master’s degree in creative writing at Glasgow University and published Armadillos at the beginning of the month.

The mother of two said: "I have always written and loved writing, from a small girl I was always scribbling down stories, and even when I was acting - but I never thought I had a novel in me. I just started writing one day not thinking it was going to be a full book, but it just drew me in and I wanted to see where I could go with it."

The novel, set in remote Texas, is about a girl who runs away from home and the abuse she suffers at the hands of her father and two brothers. The story follows young Aggie through her life as she tries to escape her past, until she discovers that she can never actually be free from from it.

"Aggie runs away but realises that everything is carried with her. It's about how mistreatment can really be set into a person and dictate everything they do and say for the rest of their lives.

"I am actually surprised at how people have reacted to it. I told my uncle before he read it that it was pretty bleak, and his response was Bleak! Bleak isn't the word Pauline!

"It's very raw and real. But I actually think Aggie is a very sassy and admirable character too. I really like her."

An early draft of the novel won Pauline the Sceptre Prize for Fiction in 2013 and, with the prize money she went on a two-week trip to Texas to help her complete the book.

Pauline hasn't sugar coated the haunting, harsh reality of a her character's life - not unlike the plots of Irvine Welsh's novels, of which the Trainspotting actress is a massive fan.

"There is no mercy in his books at all is there. They're so earthy and, brutal, sometimes. I'm really looking forward to the next film coming out which I know is based on his book, Porno.

"I remember reading Porno many years ago and there was only a tiny mention of Lizzy – working in a corner shop, I think."

Pauline, who grew up in Glasgow, was 23-years-old when she featured in Trainspotting.

"When we were filming, there was a real sense of camaraderie amongst all the cast - there were no egos, even among Robert Carlyle, Peter Mullan, or Danny Boyle who were hugely respected. We had no idea how big a success the film would be.

"I remember when it came out, my family thought it best that my granny didn't see it," Pauline laughed. "She was housebound at the time and really reliant on others to get her places and we thought we had done quite well. Until one day she was getting out of the car, she whispered in my ear 'I saw your film, but I waited until your granddad went off to bed - I thought that would be best.'

"And that was great! We both just laughed. It was quite a moment."

Pauline was initially worried about migrating from the city to the sticks, but loves life in Biggar. She has just finished recording a radio play is now working on her second novel which she said will be set closer to home, in Scotland.