The Miracle of Istanbul. Ten years on. Re-live the glory.
Beating Berlusconi! by John Graham Davies
starring Paul Duckworth
One man, one city, thirty characters – laughter and tears.
In May 2005, despite threats from his wife and bank manager, middle-aged Kenny Noonan travels to Istanbul to watch Liverpool play AC Milan in the Champions’ League final. He carries the scars of thirty years as a Red - Heysel, Hillsborough - and of living in a city which has been demonised.
What happened to Liverpool FC in the second half is legend. What happened to Kenny in the AC Milan directors’ box is stranger than fiction.
That's the magic of this production: it's not the story of one man, it's the story of the many who make up Liverpool. It's not a show about football, it's a show about the heart of a city and how and why it beats. 9/10 LIVERPOOL ECHO
In Paul Duckworth’s extraordinary, thirty-character performance Kenny and wife Marie look back from their not so comfortable middle-age at their city's ups and downs. As it traces Kenny's life as a Red, Beating Berlusconi! passes through a number of political events: the 1981 UK riots, the Thatcher years, Heysel and Hillsborough, the Blair election and the Iraq war.
You don’t have to be a Red to join in the glee...wit, anger, pride... THE TIMES
Based on the now famous true story of a real Liverpool fan who ended up sitting next to Silvio Berlusconi at the Attaturk Stadium, Beating Berlusconi! is a laughter and tears tale of one man’s attempt to re-discover his belief in himself, his club, his city and his class – and save his marriage.
It’s a long way from The Sandon in Anfield! Five years on and Beating Berlusconi! has toured to every corner of the country and Ireland, and has a brilliant, sellout production in Norway. It’s been published in Italy to rave reviews in the quality press (No one can write about football better than the British - what an irresistible sense of humour! CORRIERE DELLA SERA) with an Italian production slated for next year. Now Paul Duckworth (Feste in Twelfth Night) and his thirty characters arrive at The Everyman in this hilarious, lump in your throat comedy. And The Everyman is where this passionate, Everyscouse story should be……
Mesmerising…hilarious scattergun scenes. Duckworth is outstanding. The gags flowed all evening. LIVERPOOL ECHO
This show isn’t just based on a true story – it’s based on thousands. A show that can genuinely bring out the laughter and tears in equal measure is worthy of any stage. 5 STARS. LIVERPOOL POST
