A mother whose son killed himself after becoming a heroin addict is bringing a play about her experiences to Borehamwood.

Teacher Elizabeth Burton-Phillips watched powerless as her educated and intelligent twin son began the terrible journey from cannabis addiction to Class A drugs and heroin.

The journey ended with a knock at the door from the police in the early hours of the morning when she was told her son Nicholas killed himself in despair at his addiction.

Mrs Burton-Phillips’s novel about her horrific experiences, ‘Mum, can you lend me twenty quid?’, has been adapted into a play and will be performed at Maxwell Park Community Centre next Friday.

She said: “This is a very true and brutal tale about what happens when you get caught up in the world of drugs.

“My sons started smoking and very quickly they were groomed by others into full blown drug addiction. I was powerless to stop them

“My son Simon found the body of his brother after he killed himself. Thankfully he has managed to break his addiction and turn his life around.”

Mrs Burton-Phillips said the Borehamwood performance would be the play’s 47th since it was published in 2012.

She added: “This shows how popular the play has been with audiences.

"I have worked very closely with the actors to produce it and have been at every single performance.

"It was written to exorcise the stench of heroin from our lives and help others avoid the mistakes my son made.”

The play will be performed at the community centre in Maxwell Road at 2.30pm and 7.30pm.
For tickets, contact Paul Rubin at paul.rubin@lacauk.co.uk