Dear England: the play about Southgate's England squad scores again

When it premiered in 2023, James Graham's play Dear England was about the run-up to and consequences of the squad's 2018 World Cup semifinals, their defeat in the 2020 European Championship final and their failure to make it past the 2022 World Cup quarterfinals.

Slathered with praise and gilded with trophies (unlike the squad themselves), the play was a big success at the National Theatre, transferred to the West End's Prince Edward Theatre and was broadcast in cinemas via National Theatre Live.

Now it's back for extra time at the National's Olivier Theatre before a run at the Lowry in Salford and a victory-lap tour around England from September onwards.

And Graham has updated it so that it covers all of manager Gareth Southgate's eight years in charge of the team, including their defeat at the 2024 Euros and his subsequent retirement.

I know all this because I've done my research. I'll confess to knowing nothing about football. I've only ever been to one match in my life, when I was a youngster, and the only bit I enjoyed was the Bovril at half time.

But although Dear England is about football, like the best plays it's about so much more. It's about masculinity, racism, mental health and, as Southgate drills into his players, caring about people and being kind.

When the manager bemoans the fact that "something has gone wrong in England" he doesn't just mean as regards the team he's been brought in to oversee, he's also talking about the country in general.

I've seen enough of Southgate on TV to know that Gwilym Lee (taking over from Joseph Fiennes) has got his inflections down pat. Likewise Ryan Whittle as Harry Kane and the rest of the cast as Marcus Rashford, Raheem Sterling, Harry Maguire et al.

These are more than mere copycat performances, though. They cut to the very essence of people who are driven by passion and riddled with fear, as Graham's script delves into why what's happening upstairs (ie the brain) is just as important as what's happening downstairs (ie the physical). 

It's very funny, albeit a little obvious at times, such as having Fabio Capello's every moment underscored by the theme from The Godfather. And even though I'm not a fan of the so-called beautiful game, it's a beautifully-crafted and stunningly-staged piece - with choreographed matches on an oval-shaped pitch and sound design that sends imaginary balls coursing around the auditorium.

Southgate walked away with mission unaccomplished. Statistically, he was England's most successful manager since 1966 but, my football-loving brother reliably tells me, his overly-cautious approach meant the team was boring to watch. The same cannot be said of the show.