THEATRE REVIEW: An Evening With Gary Lineker at Rotherham Civic Theatre

THE programme blurb for An Evening With Gary Lineker invites audiences to travel back to the summer of 1990, when England flew out to Italy in pursuit of World Cup glory.

Margaret Thatcher was still in No 10 (just), the World Wide Web was barely the kernel of an idea and Sky TV was only starting out.

All food for thought, especially for those who can fondly recall the golden summer of Italia 90.

But not as striking as reading on to discover the lead in Rotherham Rep’s current revival of Arthur Smith and Chris England’s play wasn’t born until 13 years later!

The Rep have long boasted strength in depth and in Jack O’Boyle they appear to have unearthed another gem.

Plucked from the academy side — or rather the sixth form at Wickersley School — and thrown into the first team, A Level student O’Boyle proves himself a natural on the Civic stage.

Such is his apparent comfort in the role of football-obsessed publisher Bill, you’d be forgiven for thinking he was a grizzled veteran rather than a debutant — if it weren’t for his fresh-faced appearance.

The teenager has pulled off a man-of-the-match display. The boy done good, as they say.

O’Boyle is ably supported by a great team effort from some more experienced Rep players, notably Steven Coward as scene-stealing, laddish writer Dan, and Kate Howard, in her first major part for the Rep, who proves herself a safe pair of hands as Bill’s long-suffering wife Monica.

High-fives too for Yvette Sayles, who has fun with holiday rep Birgitta’s sparky personality and fascination with the idiosyncrasies of England slang, all the while maintaining an impressive German accent, and Mark Hone in the role of dull family friend Ian, who has a ball as the dad-joking antithesis of cool (sample gag: “Geet a beer, for Birgitta”).

The action unfolds in a Majorca hotel room, opening as Bill and Monica prepare, she rather less enthusiastically, to watch England’s World Cup semi-final against West Germany on TV.

Relations are strained — and not just because Bill is more concerned with the fortunes of Spurs and England than the sorry state of his marriage.

Monica is all set to give Bill the red card, and the opening scene imagines her revealing she’s leaving him in favour of the England legend of the title.

Bill’s reaction? Delight, mainly because Gary’s his hero, compounded by realising she could end up as “Monica Lineker”.

In reality, Monica can’t choose between honouring her contract with Bill or demanding a transfer. It’s easy to sympathise, especially when you meet the alternative.

Humour relying on archaic stereotypes initially jars but on reflection is in keeping with both the period setting and the culture of both football fandom and Brits abroad, while the sweary script is also reasonable in the context, Dan and Bill’s outbursts bringing some of the biggest laughs.

You don’t need to be a season ticket holder or even an armchair fan to identify with Bill and Dan’s refusal to face their problems when there’s a match on, Monica’s frustration with the pair’s intransigence or Ian’s sheer indifference to the apparent drama being played out on the unseen TV.

A simple set of a sofa and two chairs facing the audience and a small balcony area is enhanced by a gently flickering red footlight at stage front playing the critical role of the TV set, a clever touch by set designers Liz Cooper (also putting in a Pep Guardiola-standard performance as director) and Tony Carver (doubling as stage manager).

Anyone with a passing knowledge of England’s World Cup history will know how the story ends but the cast and crew deserve a Mexican wave of appreciation for creating palpable tension when it comes to the crunch and showing plenty of flair throughout.

The show is at The Civic until tonight (Friday).