A packed audience turned up to the SEC Armadillo on Thursday evening to witness the opening night gala performance of The Celtic Story.
The stars were out in force, with appearances in the crowd from the likes of Fergus McCann and Neil Lennon, as well as Kit Loferski and Rachael Johnstone of Celtic FC Women.
It was a special night as plenty of fans flocked to the Armadillo to watch what was a very entertaining show, which had been added as an extra date in support of Celtic FC Foundation.
The show started with a song all about how Celtic do things first. Whether that be winning nine titles in a row or winning a treble, Celtic were there leading the way.
A brilliant performance of Grace on the violin followed and the core values of Celtic’s formation were detailed from the point of view of Brother Walfrid. Names were thrown around before Walfrid thankfully agreed on the name of Glasgow Celtic.
There were plenty of tongue-in-cheek jokes as well as renditions of Over and Over and Celtic, Celtic, That’s the Team For Me.
Willie Maley was then introduced and his 43 years as Celtic manager were documented as well as the effects of the First World War on Celtic and Scottish football. The workers’ strikes of 1920 were also covered before tributes to Celtic’s greatest goalscorer Jimmy McGrory and Patsy Gallacher, with a hilarious nod to his great-granddaughter Aimee who currently plays for Celtic FC Women.
A coffin was carried across the stage in a fitting tribute to John Thomson before we celebrated ‘Hampden in the Sun’ and the 7-1 win over Rangers.
Act 2 set the scene of the barren years of the early ’90s and how Fergus McCann saved the club. Fergus’s five-year plan was covered with a funny but interesting presentation culminating in ‘stopping the ten’ following the appointment of Wim Jansen and the signing of the King of Kings Henrik Larsson which received a raucous applause.
With that, Fergus’s work was done and a tribute to those who made the pilgrimage to Seville for 2003’s UEFA Cup final followed.
Further tributes were made throughout the show to the 2016/17 Invincibles, Neil Lennon, Brendan Rodgers, Ange Postecoglou and Fran Alonso.
The final chapter was titled The Bhoy from Calton where the actor cast as Tommy Burns gave a great speech with plenty of iconic Celtic quotes from, “You are here and you’re always here,” to, “The Celtic jersey doesn’t shrink to fit inferior players”.
The show closed with a rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone which had the audience on its feet singing along.
It was a fitting end to a great night.
The Celtic Story is running at the SEC Armadillo until 16 September 2023. Tickets can be purchased HERE.
JAMES MCKENZIE
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