Rab McLaughlin (a.k.a. Second Prize or Secks for short) is a member of Rent Boy’s friend group. Like Begbie, Second Prize doesn’t use heroin, but he drinks so much that his own struggles with addiction are similar to a heroin user’s. After a brief but promising career in soccer, Second Prize got deeper and deeper into drinking. He often picks and loses fights in pubs, which is how he got the nickname Second Prize, and his nickname perhaps also signifies his lower standing within the friend group. Second Prize represents how heroin is not the only thing controlling the lives of the characters and how other addictions can be just as damaging.
Second Prize Quotes in Trainspotting
The Trainspotting quotes below are all either spoken by Second Prize or refer to Second Prize . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Get the entire Trainspotting LitChart as a printable PDF.
Second Prize Character Timeline in Trainspotting
The timeline below shows where the character Second Prize appears in Trainspotting. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Kicking
Her Man. Second Prize and Tommy are at a pub when suddenly, a curly-haired man in the pub punches...
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...Tommy punches the man, anyway, knocking him off his chair. A fight breaks out and Second Prize gets involved too.
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Tommy and Second Prize eventually leave the pub, cursing everyone in it. Second Prize feels queasy about what he...
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Relapsing
...he tells them the news about Granty. Across the bar, Lenny spots Spud, Tommy, and Second Prize , and he insults them as worthless junkies, unlike Granty, who valued life. Lenny’s friends...
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Blowing It
...a choice but doesn’t say so. Just then, Tommy himself walks into the pub with Second Prize . Tommy’s appearance makes it clear that he’s switched from speed to heroin. He tries...
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Home
...yelling at each other or him, so he keeps walking quickly. Eventually, he comes across Second Prize vomiting on the street. Second Prize is talking incoherently and even takes a punch at...
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...guy and no one should blame him for selling heroin to Tommy, implying that earlier Second Prize was blaming Rent Boy. In exchange for the compliment, Rent Boy tells some flattering stories...
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Exit
Station to Station. Begbie, Rent Boy, Second Prize , and Spud wait for a bus, with Begbie holding an Adidas bag. They have...
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...in particular can be clumsy and might mess up their scheme. Sick Boy turns to Second Prize , who used to be a fairly talented soccer player before he slipped into alcoholism....
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