DEAR ENGLAND AT THE LOWRY, SALFORD - REVIEW BY NATALIE ANGLESEY

Dear England at The Lowry, Salford Until 29 June 2025

Review by Natalie Anglesey

Wow! That was my initial reaction on leaving the Lowry after seeing this stunning new touring production of James Graham’s Olivier Award-winning play, Dear England, which packed out the Lowry in Salford. This highly anticipated staging of the National Theatre’s smash-hit production has a four-week run in Salford until 29 June. 

 Written by award-winning playwright James Graham (Punch, Young Vic; Sherwood, BBC One) and directed by the Almeida Theatre’s Artistic Director Rupert Goold (Patriots, Ink; Almeida Theatre/West End/Broadway), it’s a stark look behind the scenes at football politics. 

Dear England tells the uplifting, at times heartbreaking, and ultimately inspiring story of Gareth Southgate’s revolutionary tenure as England manager in this gripping examination of a nation and its game. This production, which won ‘Best New Play’ at the 2024 Olivier Awards, has been updated following last year’s UEFA EURO tournament to reflect Southgate’s final chapter as England manager.

 Incidentally, as this theatre is keen to point out, Dear England is also part of Lowry’s 25th Anniversary programme, which has been curated to encapsulate what this theatre is all about which is creativity, opportunity and making the arts accessible to all. I was pleased to see I was far from being the only woman in a packed auditorium and we were vocal in our enthusiasm. It was the starriest audience I have seen at the Lowry in a while as I was seated between the casts of all the major TV soaps and it was great to see a plethora of young football fans in the audience. 

 An energetic cast was led by Gwilym Lee (SAS Rogue Heroes, Bohemian Rhapsody) who plays the iconic role of Gareth Southgate alongside Liz White (Life on Mars) as sports psychologist Pippa Grange. The cast also includes returning performers Josh Barrow as Jordan Pickford, Gunnar Cauthery as Gary Lineker, Tony Turner as Greg Dyke, John Hodgkinson as Greg Clarke and Ryan Whittle who is this time taking on the role of Harry Kane. They are joined by new cast members Matt Bardock as Mike Webster, Jude Carmichael as Marcus Rashford, Gamba Cole as Raheem Sterling, Ryan Donaldson as Harry Maguire, Felixe Forde as Alex Scott, Kadell Herida as Jadon Sancho, Joshua Hill as Jordan Henderson, Tom Lane as Eric Dier, Martin Marquez as Sam Allardyce, Tane Siah as Bukayo Saka and Tristan Waterson as Dele Alli. 

This hard-working company also includes Jass Beki, Courtney George, Will Harrison-Wallace, Miles Henderson, Jordan Ford Silver, Philip Labey and Ellouise Shakespeare-Hart. The cast also play additional roles as part of the ensemble. The wider creative team for Dear England includes set designer, EsDevlin; costume designer, Evie Gurney; lighting designer, Jon Clark; co-movement directors, Ellen Kane and Hannes Langolf; video designer, Ash J Woodward; co-sound designers, Dan Balfour and Tom Gibbons with additional music by Max Perryment. 

 They are joined by revival director, Elin Schofield; casting director, Bryony Jarvis-Taylor; dialect coach, Richard Ryder; voice coaches, Cathleen McCarron and Shereen Ibrahim; associate set designers, Alice Hallifax and Anna Niamh Gorman; associate lighting designer, Ben Jacobs; revival movement associate, Thomas Herron; associate video designer, Hayley Egan; associate sound designer, Johnny Edwards; casting associate Lilly Mackie and staff director Connie Treves.

 It’s time to change the game. The country that gave the world football has since delivered a painful pattern of loss. The England men’s team has the worst track record for penalties in the world, and manager Gareth Southgate knows he needs to open his mind and face up to the years of hurt to take team and country back to the promised land. 

As a non - football fan I thoroughly enjoyed this stunning production and I advise you fight to get a ticket. You will not regret it. 

 Dates: 29 May - 29 June 2025 Address: Lowry, Pier, 8 The Quays, Salford, Manchester M50 3AZ Assisted Performances: BSL Performance: Saturday 7 June, 2pm & Wednesday 11 June, 2pm Captioned Performances: Wednesday 11 June, 7pm Audio Described: Wednesday 18 June, 7pm & Saturday 28 June, 2pm