Mark chooses a life in theatre (From Stroud News and Journal)

Mark chooses a life in theatre

He started out as a financial journalist but soon got bored with the FT Index and decided to follow his dreams of life in the theatre. Within years his stage production of Trainspotting inspired the film that would become the most iconic movie of the 90s and more recently his West End shows have met widespread acclaim. The prolific Stroud-based producer is undoubtedly at the top of his game. James Davis reports.

HE has delighted thousands with his blockbusting West End classics such as Saturday Night Fever and Fame.

A workaholic, Mark always has a number of jobs on the go and with each taking years of planning his London life is particularly hectic.

And being a stickler for perfection getting each job done is no small asking but Mark admits he knows when a show has under-performed and he has re-run several to achieve his desired vision.

But dissatisfaction is rarely used synonymously with a Mark Goucher Ltd production and few visiting the West End to see Rent or High Society will offer anything but praise for the entertainment.

The path he took in becoming one of the country's most highly rated and respected producers is hardly textbook.

But then Mark argues such a thing is a fallacy.

"You can't train to become a producer - there's no course you can go on," he says.

Mark studied geology at university for six months before switching to English and drama.

After completing his degree he was headhunted by the Daily Telegraph to be a financial journalist and worked for the paper for a year.

"I always knew I would leave and go to Edinburgh and do a show," he says.

And in 1987 he did exactly that and found his vocation.

"I didn't ever try to be an actor as I knew I wanted to be in charge," he says. One of the biggest aspects of his job today is convincing businessmen and bigwigs to part with their cash for his next venture.

"On the scale we produce it's a big business and if it works can make a lot of money," he says.

"But there's huge competition with something new out every week and often if you get it wrong it goes horribly wrong.

"We have produced some real turkeys in the past."

As well as being renowned for producing spectacular shows with explosions of song and dance, Mark's more serious theatre productions have also received widespread acclaim.

Ten years ago he produced a stage version of the hard-hitting Irvine Welsh novel Trainspotting, which went on to become the most iconic British film of the 90s.

"The play is a lot more shocking than the movie,' he says.

"The first time I saw my own production it was in a small, claustrophobic theatre and I passed out."

The gritty tale of the group of heroin-abusing Glaswegians launched actor Ewan McGregor's career - soon making him a Hollywood heavyweight.

"All of the producers and directors came to watch and I would like to think I was instrumental in the movie's success," he says.

And the ripples from his adaptation go on and on with a 10th anniversary production of the show on the road at moment.

Although he spends most of the week in London, working like a 'megalomanic control freak', Mark is actually no stranger to the quiet life.

He retreats from the hustle and bustle of the city and the endless meetings with financial backers, directors and crew to his Frampton Mansell home most Thursday evenings.

Originally from Surrey, Mark moved to the area just over seven years ago and now considers the Stroud Valleys home.

And as he goes to the theatre almost every night when in London he keeps engagements to a minimum when back at his Cotswold sanctuary.

He says: "I sometimes get invited to amateur productions in Stroud but often I have to turn them and say to people I am taking the night off."

* Catch Mark's touring shows Completely Hollywood, Carmina Burana, Anything Goes and Saturday Night Fever at the Bristol Hippodrome in coming months.