More Fixtures, Events and an Exhibition Announced as part of the Love It If We Beat Them Autumn 2024 North of England Tour
Emmerson & Ward Productions, in association with Live Theatre, are thrilled to announce the final fixtures for the highly anticipated North of England tour of the critically acclaimed play Love It If We Beat Them. Written by Rob Ward and directed by Bex Bowsher, this evocative drama delves into the intertwining worlds of Labour politics, love, and the Beautiful Game.
Love It If We Beat Them will kick off its tour at Live Theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne on Tuesday 10 September, with a three-week run before travelling to five away venues - Hull Truck Theatre, the National Football Museum in Manchester, Hartlepool Town Hall, Shakespeare North Playhouse and Blackpool Grand Theatre, as well as nine community spaces across Northumberland, County Durham, and Cumbria, presented by Highlights Rural Touring Scheme.
Set against the backdrop of the infamous 1995/96 Premier League season, when Newcastle United’s title hopes under Kevin Keegan captured the nation, and Tony Blair’s New Labour was on the cusp of electoral victory, Love It If We Beat Them is a story of love, loss and the strength of community in a rapidly changing world.
Accompanying this urgent and gripping drama is a special exhibition curated by Emmerson & Ward with support from Dr Alex Jackson of the National Football Museum. The exhibition offers audiences the chance to step back in time and relive the football and political landscape of the 1990s through memorabilia from the era. A version of the exhibition will also be accessible online throughout the tour, allowing more people to engage with this momentous period in British history.
Tim Desmond, Chief Executive at the National Football Museum, expressed his excitement:
"We are very excited to host Love It If We Beat Them at the museum later this year and collaborate with Emmerson & Ward on an exciting day of community activities. Our visitors love participating in playful, creative experiences, and we are thrilled to integrate this with our wider Football Creates strategy.”
The tour will also feature post-show discussions, where ticket holders can engage with the cast and creative team to explore the intersections of football, politics, and writing. These free panel discussions, talks, and workshops are designed to explore the play and its themes.
Writer Rob Ward said:
"I first put pen to paper on Love It If We Beat Them shortly following the 2019 General Election, when Labour was wiped out, nowhere more so than in its North East heartlands. In many ways the questions the play sought to ask then - what is Labour and who do they represent? - are more relevant now with the party in power following a remarkable five-year turnaround. I’m incredibly excited to take the show on the road this autumn, to engage audiences all across the North on the big political questions of our time.”
David Nellist will reprise his role as Len, an ex-miner and local Labour activist whose political rise could only be outshone by his beloved NUFC winning the league. Jessica Johnson will return to play Jean, the passionate charity worker and wife of Len, who has turned her pain into action. Eve Tucker will revisit Victoria, the Labour Party’s newest star and contender for the newly available North East seat. Daniel Watson will join these original cast members as Michael, a down-on-his-luck miner struggling to find work or hope in the rapidly changing world around him.
Love It If We Beat Them is a must-see event for all football enthusiasts and those who remember the politically charged atmosphere of 1996. Tickets are now on sale.
To book tickets for the run at Live Theatre from Tue 10 - Sat 28 Sep 2024 go to https://www.live.org.uk/whats-on/love-it-if-we-beat-them-1
For more information and to book for the rest of the tour, visit www.emmersonandward.com/love-it.
This production has been made possible using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
