Gareth Southgate will be portrayed by Joseph Fiennes in a new play on the pressure of penalties at the National Theatre.
According to author James Graham, Dear England will showcase Southgate’s “soft revolution” in the team’s culture.
It is inspired by Southgate’s path after his notorious penalty miss for England in 1996, and how he has contributed to the evolution of masculine ideals.
Graham intends to investigate “the identity of a football team and a nation.”
The award-winning author told BBC News,
“I think what has occurred to the men’s England football team over the past six years has been quite extraordinary.”
Gareth’s quiet revolution has been buzzing in the background for a while, but we’re just beginning to grasp its significance.
Graham stated that Southgate assumed the position when the England squad was at its “very lowest ebb” in 2016, amid an “existential crisis over why we’d lost our way” following the Brexit vote.
With the assistance of psychologist Pippa Grange, the new manager began to “ask huge questions about identity” and how his players could rid themselves of the baggage of the past, particularly England’s terrible record in penalty shootouts.
“What makes it Shakespearean is undoubtedly his missed penalty in Euro 1996, when he felt the full weight of history, pressure, and expectations,” the author added.
“Twenty-two years later, he overcomes the penalty curse for the English football team, allowing them to win their first World Cup penalty shootout.”
Graham noted that Dear England, which takes its name from an open letter issued by Southgate to England fans in 2021, will also address “ghosts and demons” from the recent past, including the racist abuse endured by England players who missed penalties at Euro 2020.
In June, the play will premiere at the National’s Olivier Theatre.
While the roles of players such as Marcus Rashford and Harry Kane are yet to be cast, the producers have recruited an international superstar in the form of Fiennes.
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