Playwright James Graham has said he will update the script of his Dear England play about Gareth Southgate to include the disappointment of the Euro 2024 final.
It has already been announced that the hit play about the football manager and England’s journey to the 2022 World Cup will be turned into a TV drama for the BBC, with Joseph Fiennes reprising his starring role.
The plot is a fictionalised account of the struggles and successes of England’s football teams, based on extensive research and interviews.
Asked if he was going to change the ending to reflect the drama of the Euros, following England’s final defeat to Spain on Sunday, Graham told BBC Breakfast: “I am. You have to, don’t you?
“The audience would be sat there knowing what happens in Germany, so we are going to update it to include this ending over the upcoming days and weeks.”
Discussing Southgate’s future as head coach of the national men’s team, Graham said: “Gareth Southgate is going to reflect on what his position is going to be but no matter what, the last eight years of English football have been remarkable.
“If you remember what it was like to be an England fan in 2016, when at that point we hadn’t reached a semi-final in 26 years, and here we are, we have reached three in the past six.
“Something has happened that has been completely transformational.
“For me personally, I didn’t need to get to the very end of that story for it to be impactful, beautiful, meaningful, emotional.
“We are on a journey, aren’t we? It’s not a destination, it is a journey and Gareth Southgate has laid some extraordinary tracks that will get us to that destination, that terminus at some point very soon.”
The four-part adaptation of the play will be written by Graham, and will be directed by the play’s director Rupert Goold.
The drama will be produced by Left Bank Pictures, the company behind Netflix juggernaut The Crown.
The play had a sell-out run at the National Theatre before it transferred to the West End last year.
