Source: TheGuardian
Smile review – Dundee United's 'football pervert' brought to hilarious grimacing life
Dundee RepTitle-winning coach Jim McLean is played with raging mastery by Barrie Hunter in a two-hander that pulls some punchesHe was the manager described by one player as a “football pervert”. An obsessive with a ruthless drive to win, Jim McLean was a master of the pitch. He turned Dundee United from a team of no-hopers at risk of relegation into a powerhouse squad that could take on Europe’s finest. But in terms of interpersonal skills, he was lacking. The title of Philip Differ’s play is ironic: it could well be called Grimace.All of which makes McLean a tricky subject for dramatisation. As presented here in this funny two-hander, he is a man not given to reflection. When pressed, he’ll label himself a bad father and an unempathetic coach, but his devotion to the game overrides any guilt. “Je ne regrette fuck all,” he says. Continue reading......read full article
