The Political Ideology of Trainspotting
is set in post-industrial Leith in the 80's during the height of poverty, unemployment, low aspirations and an aids/heroin epidemic. Although in the book, Thatcherism and it's policies is explicitly mentioned to influence the main characters- with Irvin Welsh claiming that Thatcher was the "invisible author" of the book- it results in a group that are products of their political and social environment. However in the film, which is made during the optimistic wave of new labour is a bit more ambiguous surrounding this concept. It is evident in the film that Thatcherism is very much in the background of the film influencing its characters. Not once in the film do we see a character working in a traditional work environment in Leith. The only time one of the characters gets a taste is when Spud, the least likely out of the group, secures a job interview. However upon turning up to the interview on speed, he "fucked it up good and proper" as Renton exp...
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