Jack Charlton's Courage Shone Through as He Faced His 'Greatest Challenge'

Jack Charlton gave Irish people the confidence to reclaim the tricolor from men of violence, suggests the U2 drummer Larry Mullen in the documentary. Photograph: Ray McManus/Sportsfile/Getty Images
Jack Charlton gave Irish people the confidence to reclaim the tricolor from men of violence, suggests the U2 drummer Larry Mullen in the documentary. Photograph: Ray McManus/Sportsfile/Getty Images
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Jack Charlton's Courage Shone Through as He Faced His 'Greatest Challenge'

Jack Charlton gave Irish people the confidence to reclaim the tricolor from men of violence, suggests the U2 drummer Larry Mullen in the documentary. Photograph: Ray McManus/Sportsfile/Getty Images
Jack Charlton gave Irish people the confidence to reclaim the tricolor from men of violence, suggests the U2 drummer Larry Mullen in the documentary. Photograph: Ray McManus/Sportsfile/Getty Images

You may think there is nothing more that needs to be said about Jack Charlton given all the tributes, stories, and retrospectives that followed his death in July but there is plenty more to say and, thanks to Finding Jack Charlton, a powerful documentary, there will soon be more to see.

“The trailer [to be released on Tuesday] says: ‘He conquered the world, he transformed a nation, then he faced his greatest challenge,’” says Gabriel Clarke, one of the film’s directors. “Jack and the family showed great courage in enabling us to document it and celebrate his life. Because ultimately that is what they wanted to do: celebrate a life like no other.”

The greatest challenge refers to the dementia that beset Charlton in his final years. The family allowed the filmmakers into their home during that period and the resultant footage, when interspersed with scenes (some never before shown) from his glory years, is both sad and strangely uplifting. On one hand it is painful to see Big Jack in a diminished state, struggling to walk and communicate, unable to remember much about his life. On seeing his 1966 World Cup winner’s medal he exclaims: “Good gracious me!”

Depicting the cruelty of the illness, albeit tactfully, fits the blunt honesty for which Charlton was famous. What gives the film its power and joy is the message that life is short, hurt is inevitable but try boldly to make the most of it and there is no limit to the wonders to be wrought, the friends to be made.

Finding Jack Charlton is not a football film, although the sport features prominently. It is a true and sensitive chronicle of a man who was a great player and manager, a significant historical figure, a bon viveur and a character who could be formidably intransigent in his thinking, sometimes even vindictive, but also endlessly curious, fair, and compassionate. A man deeply attached to his roots in the north of England who formed a connection with Ireland that seemed easier than his relationship with his brother.

“Their relationship was a complex one and it was unresolved,” Clarke says of Jack and Bobby. “They had their difficulties. One of the things we were able to discover is that they remained estranged at the end. That is sad. It is not uncommon in families. But people like a happy ending …”

Jack Charlton and his Republic of Ireland players celebrate after beating Italy 1-0 at the 1994 World Cup in the US – one of the greatest days in Irish sport. Photograph: Andy Hooper/Daily Mail/Shutterstock
One of the gems the filmmakers found is an interview Jack and Bobby did in Italy during the 1990 World Cup. “It was really good to get that footage and also to show it to John [Jack’s son], to be able to show there were times when they were close and Bobby was proud of Jack’s achievements.”

Other seldom or never before seen treats from the archives include excerpts from after-dinner speeches given by Charlton, a gifted raconteur, plus a delightful clip from an old documentary he presented about Dunstanburgh castle in Northumberland. “Throughout his time in full health Jack was always wonderful with the camera,” Clarke says. “I found some fascinating material in the archives and what we noticed when we were filming with the family is that he would still relate to the camera. We had that sense of him being connected.”

Thanks to the use of the archives, the subject in effect narrates Finding Jack Charlton himself. Throughout it there is an endearing feel of even him being fascinated by the extraordinary turns his life takes, in particular his experiences with Ireland.

Although the film became much broader in scope, that was the angle on which its makers originally intended to concentrate. “The initial idea was to frame it around Jack and the transformation of Ireland – cultural, social, political – while the team enjoyed its success,” Clarke says. “I’d read various things about how one directly influenced the other and other suggestions that it was more about a sense of self-confidence and what the football team gave the national spirit.”

The film includes thoughts on that matter from people such as Roddy Doyle, Bertie Ahern, and Larry Mullen, as well as players including Niall Quinn and Paul McGrath, who admits he was initially opposed to an Englishman taking charge of his national team.

Appointed at a time when armed conflict was raging in Northern Ireland, Charlton ultimately helped to pave the way towards healing. Mullen goes so far as to suggest the man from Ashington gave average Irish people the confidence to reclaim the tricolor. “It had been taken by the violent republican movement,” the U2 drummer says. “That changed in 1990. We took the flag back and flew it with pride. Jack Charlton did that. Did Jack have any idea? Could it have been anyone else? I don’t think so.”

If the success that Charlton brought also helped to liberate some Irish people from fatalism and self-doubt, the way he did it shifted perceptions of English people. Charlton did a lot to humanize the English to the Irish. He was clever, spirited, funny, and interested in people; he thought clearly but accepted, even relished, idiosyncrasies; he got angry and held grudges. Even his flaws were appreciated at a time when many of the English people to whom the Irish were most exposed seemed to think they were perfect.

“A lot of viewers will find the footage we got from the team hotel in 1990 to be fantastic,” Clarke says. “To see Jack singing shows this was not just apocryphal stuff. This is proof of that connection he had and of how much he was the leader of that. It was a natural thing and it worked so well at the time.”

(The Guardian)



Swiatek Reaches her 1st Wimbledon Semifinal, Will Face Bencic Next

09 July 2025, United Kingdom, London: Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek celebrates victory over Russia's Liudmila Samsonova during their women's singles quarter-final match on day ten of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Photo: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire/dpa
09 July 2025, United Kingdom, London: Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek celebrates victory over Russia's Liudmila Samsonova during their women's singles quarter-final match on day ten of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Photo: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire/dpa
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Swiatek Reaches her 1st Wimbledon Semifinal, Will Face Bencic Next

09 July 2025, United Kingdom, London: Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek celebrates victory over Russia's Liudmila Samsonova during their women's singles quarter-final match on day ten of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Photo: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire/dpa
09 July 2025, United Kingdom, London: Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek celebrates victory over Russia's Liudmila Samsonova during their women's singles quarter-final match on day ten of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Photo: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire/dpa

Iga Swiatek reached the Wimbledon semifinals for the first time with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over 19th-seeded Liudmila Samsonova that went from a stroll to a bit of a struggle in the late stages Wednesday.

"Even though I’m in the middle of the tournament, I already got goosebumps after this win," said Swiatek, who will face unseeded Belinda Bencic on Thursday for a spot in the final. “I’m super happy and super proud of myself.”

Bencic beat No. 7 Mirra Andreeva 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal since the 2019 U.S. Open. The other semifinal is No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka against No. 13 Amanda Anisimova; they advanced with wins Tuesday.

Swiatek is a five-time major champion, with four of those titles on the red clay of the French Open, and the other on the hard courts of the US Open. She's also twice been a semifinalist at the hard-court Australian Open.

The grass courts of the All England Club always had given her the most trouble as a pro, even though she did claim a junior championship there in 2018. In her five appearances in the Wimbledon women's bracket before this year, she had made it as far as the quarterfinals just once, exiting in that round in 2023.

But the 24-year-old from Poland is enjoying a career-best run on the slick surface, thanks in part to being more comfortable with the footing required.
“I, for sure, feel like I really worked hard to progress here on this surface,” The Associated Press quoted Swiatek as saying. “So this year, I feel like I can just work with it and work with myself. I’ll just keep doing that.”

Before the start of Wimbledon, Swiatek was the runner-up in Bad Homburg, Germany, her first final at a tournament played on grass — and her first final at any event in more than a year, a drought that resulted in her falling from the No. 1 ranking and being seeded No. 8 at the All England Club.

Her rough stretch included a one-month ban last season in a doping case after an investigation determined a failed out-of-competition drug test was caused by an unintentional contamination of non-prescription medication for issues with jet lag and sleeping. On the court, a semifinal loss to Sabalenka at Roland-Garros last month ended Swiatek's 26-match French Open winning streak.

Swiatek led by a set and 3-0 in the second against Samsonova, who was appearing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal.

Soon, though, it was 4-all, then 5-all. But Swiatek held for a 6-5 lead, then broke to end it, and a smile spread across her face.

“I’ll just recover today, try not to celebrate too much, but already focus on the next one,” Swiatek said. “Prepare in the evening, and I’ll be ready tomorrow.”

Bencic, who at 28 is a decade older than Andreeva, is competing in her second major tournament since returning to the tour after giving birth to a daughter, Bella, in April 2024.

“I’m very proud, actually. All my career, I didn’t say it a lot to myself, but after having Bella, I really say it to myself every day,” Bencic said. “We are just enjoying life on tour with Bella, traveling. It’s been beautiful to create these memories together. And obviously, to play great is so amazing, but for me, it’s a bonus. I’m generally just really happy to be able to play again.”