The inspiring story and legacy of Northern Ireland’s pioneering women footballers, Rough Girls kicks off Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Theatre Company’s autumn season on Thursday 12 October at the Crescent Theatre.
Rough Girls is the debut play of Derry Girls star Tara Lynne O’Neill, who played fiery mum Mary Quinn in the hit series alongside Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (part of Birmingham City University) alumna Nicola Coughlan who starred as Clare Devlin. The play premiered in 2021, a century after the FA’s ban on women’s football.
With an all-female cast, the tenacious and humorous work chronicles the courage and determination of the women who became known as the suffragettes of soccer. Set in Belfast in 1917 against a backdrop of war and social upheaval, the women risked ridicule and rejection by kicking a ball but went on to play to increasingly huge crowds and contest the first international fixture.
Over a century later, and on the heels of Northern Ireland's women's team recently qualifying for the Euros, this high-energy play directed by Russell Bolam celebrates the courage of sporting trailblazers past and present. Rough Girls is at the Crescent Theatre until October 14.
