This stellar adaptation of James Graham\u2019s award-winning play is a stirring take on national identity \u2013 even if not all the actors look like the real footballers. Put it this way, Wayne Rooney will be very pleased indeed<\/p>\n
To watch Dear England (Sunday, 9pm, BBC One) \u2013 the BBC\u2019s stellar adaptation of James Graham\u2019s Olivier award-winning play \u2013 you must first understand the incomparable damage to the national psyche that arose from Gareth Southgate missing a penalty in the Euro 96 semi-final. For those born outside England or too young to remember, imagine the apocalypse mixed with the death of your childhood pet and you\u2019re just about halfway there. I was 11 at the time and almost three decades later still remember going to bed crying as my dad explained over my tear-strewn pillow: \u201cThis is what it is to be an England fan.\u201d<\/p>\n
You\u2019d better get your therapist on speed dial: the four-part fictionalised account of Southgate\u2019s revolutionary reign as England manager begins with a real-life clip of his penalty miss. Fast forward to 2016 and England is in crisis, with the men\u2019s squad crashing out of the Euros to Iceland while Brexit looms large. Meanwhile, Southgate (Joseph Fiennes, reprising his critically acclaimed West End role) \u2013 now middle-aged and managing the under-21 men\u2019s team \u2013 is watching football on the TV and looking pensive.<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/9cb4e37f27781c7ab24dfd934ab1ffdf5125314d\/182_0_3569_2855\/master\/3569.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=ecd3c8b3b209f147c1dd4ddeb5658cf9\" "\\"Dear")
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