‘a heartfelt, history‑soaked solo show that binds Ireland and Liverpool through football, memory, and identity’
There are one‑woman shows, and then there are one‑woman events – and Obscured View, presented as part of the Liverpool Irish Festival, sits firmly in the latter camp. Directed by local ‘creative’ Amber Buttery and written and performed by Geraldine Moloney Judge, an ‘Irish‑Scouser’ with storytelling in her bones, the piece charts a lifelong love affair with football that begins not in a stadium, but in a living room in 1990, as the Republic of Ireland qualify for their first ever World Cup. It’s a moment that sparks something seismic in our narrator: pride, belonging, and the sense that football can be a home as much as a hobby.
Moloney Judge moves through her memories with an easy, conversational rhythm, guiding the audience from Italia ’90 to the USA in ’94, where she travelled to watch Ireland compete on the world stage once again. These recollections are vivid, funny, and full of the kind of detail only true fans carry – the heat, the colour, the chaos, the sense of being part of something bigger than yourself. Then comes Roy Keane’s infamous ejection from the 2002 World Cup, delivered with a mix of disbelief and wry humour that lands beautifully with the crowd. The piece also includes a moving reference to the sad demise of Diogo Jota.
But Obscured View isn’t just a nostalgia tour. It digs deeper, acknowledging the darker chapters that sit alongside the joy. The section on Hillsborough is handled with quiet, devastating clarity, reminding us how the disaster rippled far beyond Liverpool, touching families and communities across Dublin and beyond. Moloney Judge speaks of it not as an outsider, but as someone who understands the shared grief and the shared fight for justice.
The play also refused to shy away from the uglier sides of fandom – the sexism, the racism, the parochial attitudes that can sour the beautiful game. These moments are sharp, necessary, and grounded in lived experience, adding weight to a piece that could easily have coasted on charm alone.
The finale – a breathless sprint through Liverpool’s miracle night in Istanbul – is joyous, chaotic, and utterly infectious. It ties the show’s threads together: Ireland and Liverpool, resilience and identity, football as a lifeline and a legacy. Moloney Judge is magnetic throughout. Warm, witty, and emotionally precise, she delivered a show that feels both deeply personal and universally resonant. Obscured View is a love letter to football, to community, and to the ties that refuse to break.
Reviewer: Kevin Eccleston
Review Date: 21st October 2026
Star Rating: FOUR