Five years is a long time in anyone's life but for most Liverpool fans, five years feels like only yesterday.
Memories of both the anguish and ecstasy they endured on a warm night in Istanbul's Ataturk Stadium are not distant ones after seeing their team come back from the point of no return to defeat AC Milan in the Champions League final.
Every supporter has their own story to tell and none more so than Mark Radley, whose 10-minute encounter with Silvio Berlusconi has been immortalised in a story that had a sell-out crowd doubled over in laughter one minute and wiping back tears the next.
Radley's brush with the perma-tanned Italian premier forms the basis of 'Beating Berlusconi', with Backbeat's Paul Duckworth taking audiences on an emotional rollercoaster through the eyes of Kenny Noonan, a long-suffering Kopite now living in Kirkby.
Duckworth's one-man performance brings to life 40 characters who played their part in over three decades of highs and lows of Liverpool life, as the elation of European triumphs blended with moving portrayals of the Toxteth riots, Heysel and Hillsborough showing events good and bad.
But the story culminates in that historic victory in the Turkish metropolis and Radley's confrontation with Berlusconi, whosse patronising of Noonan when his side were three goals to the good draws similarities with the Scousers down-trodden by Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.
The transition by Duckworth between the lead role and the voices and faces he encounters in the show is nothing short of brilliant, and a testament not only to his acting abilities but also the strength of John Graham Davies' script which shows the world-renowned Scouse wit at its best.
Footage from the history of the city, the club and, most importantly, Istanbul adds to the intensity and reality of the raw emotion in the show. This play may have been tailor-made for local audiences but it is this that has made it such a nationwide success.
Whether or not Liverpool go all the way and lift the Europa League this season, the homecoming performances of 'Beating Berlusconi' at the end of May which relive one of the greatest nights in sporting history makes this show a must-see for anyone, football-obsessed or otherwise.
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