Dear England – National Theatre
In 1996, Gareth Southgate stepped up to take the final kick in England's semi-final penalty shoot-out against Germany - and missed. That moment haunts Southgate, the team and the fans, exacerbating the "thirty years of hurt" and failure since England's World Cup win in 1966. James Graham's latest work explores the struggles of the England men's football team to turn failure to success, a metaphor for the plight of the country seen through the lens of football. Southgate, appointed manager of the England team in 2016, recognises that the team, while talented, are sabotaging their own efforts and brings in a psychologist to help them address their fears. One day, maybe, the nation would not be cowering behind the sofa in buttock-clenching terror every time an international match was d...