The film follows the story of British playwright Joe Orton (Gary Oldman) from when he met the more reserved Kenneth Halliwell (Alfred Molina) at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. Both dream of becoming writers, but it is Orton who finds success, causing Halliwell to become increasingly jealous and enraged at his partner.

Dated 22nd May 1986, this script was used for costume continuity from scene to scene by the wardrobe department for various characters, cataloguing which clothing items were worn during filming. Bound in a black springback cover, the revised script is comprised of 112 single-sided A4 pages and contains 164 original polaroid photographs from the production, with handwritten notes relating to the character’s costumes throughout. Photographs include images of Joe Orton, Kenneth Halliwell, Peggy Ramsay (Vanessa Redgrave), Wallace Shawn (John Lahr), Anthea Lahr (Lindsay Duncan), Elsie Orton (Julie Walters), RADA judge (Rosalind Knight), Mrs Sugden (Janet Dale) and others.

The cover page of the script displays several signed messages and drawings from cast and crew members including Gary Oldman (signed as Joe Orton), Alfred Molina, Janet Dale, Stephen Frears (director), Alan Bennett (screenplay), Sarah Quill (still photographer), Lee Cleary (second assistant director), Michael Zimbrich (first assistant director), Elaine Carew (makeup supervisor) and Oliver Stapleton (Cinematography).

The springback cover displays some sign of damage and pages within the script show signs of production-use including marks, folds in the corners and minor creases. However, in spite of this wear, the script remains in overall good condition and is a great insight into the making of the film.