THIS IS THE SORT OF PLAY THAT IS SURE TO GET NEW THEATREGOERS THROUGH THE DOORS

By Sophie Clark | Muck Rack Portfolio ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Press Invite

World Cup fever took over the West End for one night only at The Garrick Theatre, with Alex Hill’s triumphant, honest, at times heartbreaking Why I Stuck A Flare Up My Arse For England.

The 75-minute Fringe sensation is a one-man (many character-ed) play based on a picture of a man, known in the play as Billy Kinley, who went viral in 2020 for, well, you can guess.

Full disclosure, I foolishly put my faith in TfL and one broken-down bus and a full-blown sprint through Trafalgar Square later I missed the first five minutes of the play. Which, according to Hill is “the best part” as he really does stick a flare up his arse. I’m afraid I cannot confirm this, as I have not seen it.

That said, despite missing a critical opening (no pun intended), I thoroughly enjoyed the play.

In a summer already defined by footballing madness (come on Arsenal), Hill found true heart and soul in Kinley as we travel with him from being a kid who loved to kick a ball about with his best friend, to a young man who can’t seem to find his way out of extreme football hooliganism.

Whilst never shying away from how ugly football fandom can get, Hill approaches the subject with a clear love for his character, and deep empathy for how that type of football fandom can appeal to someone who feels lost and left behind.

He also built the play around such a culturally English arc; starting as a man who tells the press he put a flare up his arse “coz it was funny,” to piece by piece unpacking how he actually found himself in that situation. Turns out it wasn’t as much of a laugh as he thought it was.

In a sacrine world of Dear England and Ted Lasso, Why I Stuck A Flare… is unafraid to explore the darker side of football fandom. Hill still approaches the fundamentals of English football culture with deep empathy, but does not shy away from the grim reality of the violence, drug use, and racism that fans too casually brush aside in the name of “the beautiful game.”

That said, the play is still very funny. Hill proved why he was the deserving winner of the Best Physical Theatre award at the Adelaide Fringe, with his boundless energy and a sidesplitting piece of audience interaction.

Although the plot was slightly predictable, Hill still delivered it with such heart and honesty, that I still found myself in awe of the emotional arc he was able to draw on stage. His charming, affable, nature as a performer, and his incisive playwriting abilities are sure to make him the latest major star to come out of the Edinburgh Fringe.

In a theatre world constantly looking to put on revivals and musical versions of movies to appeal to a wider audience, I really hope that the West End commissions more plays like Why I Stuck A Flare… as this is the sort of play that is sure to get new theatregoers through the doors, and will have the impact that theatre is intended to have; making people look at themselves at the part they have played in their own culture.

With a potentially very exciting England run at the World Cup this summer inextricable from the dire consequences extreme “fandom” can have on women and minorities, it’s more important than ever that we have art that holds up a mirror to the source of both our pride and joy, and our darkest impulses; football.

Why I Stuck A Flare Up My Arse For England was performed at Garrick Theatre on Sunday 21 June.

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Photo Credit: Rah Petherbridge