Episode 159 - The Damned United

100 Things we learned from film

This week Planty is in his Element as both Derby County and Leeds get beat and Michael Sheen does a really good Brian Clough in The Damned United. John is less impressed.

Join us as we visit Saltergate, Elland Road, Old Wembley and The Baseball Ground.

We find out what happened to Derby Baseball Club, Batman Vs Don Revie and why films lie to us about cars and songs.

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The Damned United is a 2009 sports drama film directed by Tom Hooper and adapted by Peter Morgan from David Peace's bestselling 2006 novel The Damned Utd – a largely fictional book based on the author's interpretation of Brian Clough's ill-fated tenure as football manager of Leeds United in 1974.

Originally proposed by Stephen Frears, he pulled out of the project in November 2007, and Hooper took over. Filming took place from May to July 2008. Marking the fifth collaboration between screenwriter Peter Morgan and actor Michael Sheen, who plays Clough, the film was released in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2009 and in North America on 25 September.

Despite controversy due to the film's numerous historical inaccuracies and its poor performance at the box office, The Damned United received critical acclaim upon release, with particular praise given for Sheen's performance. It received numerous award nominations including the British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actor, the ALFS Award for British Supporting Actor of the Year, the Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama and Best Actor in a Supporting Role and the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Award for Best Feature Film Screenplay.

Don Revie, the highly successful manager of Leeds United, is appointed manager of England in 1974. Revie's replacement at Leeds is Brian Clough, the former manager of Derby County and a fierce critic of Leeds because of their violent and physical style of play under Revie. Clough's long-time assistant, Peter Taylor, has not joined him at Leeds.

The roots of Clough's conflict with Leeds originate in a 1968 FA Cup match between Leeds, the leaders of the First Division and Derby, who were struggling near the bottom of the Second Division. Excited, Clough had made many preparations to welcome Revie, but Revie failed to even acknowledge Clough upon entering the Baseball Ground. Derby lost 2–0.

Although Clough initially blames the brutality of the Leeds players, he and Taylor recognise that their side are not good on a technical level. They sign veteran Dave Mackay, along with several young players. Derby chairman Sam Longson is extremely anxious about the investment. In 1969 Derby are promoted to the First Division, but in their first league game against Leeds they lose 5–0. The club win their first ever League championship in 1972, earning them a European Cup campaign the following year. They go through to the semi-finals against Juventus. Against Longson's advice, Clough uses his best squad in the last match before the semi-final against Leeds, purely out of pride and determination to beat Revie. Several Derby players suffer injuries, and Juventus subsequently defeat them 3-1, and Clough publicly lambasts Longson.

Taylor suffers a heart attack, and Clough tries to secure his position by offering his and Taylor's resignations to protest Longson's unwillingness to fund further signings. He is outraged when the directors accept their resignations. Support by Derby fans and players raise Clough's hopes of being reinstated, but Mackay is appointed manager instead. He and Taylor are then offered jobs at Brighton & Hove Albion. They agree to take the jobs after taking an all-expenses-paid holiday in Majorca. There, Clough agrees to take control of Leeds after being approached by their representative. Taylor, however, argues the case for staying at Brighton, and after a bitter quarrel, the two go their separate ways.

Preparing for the 1974 season, Clough alienates his Leeds players in their first training session, first by accusing them of winning all of their awards by cheating, and then making them start with a 7-a-side game as if they were schoolchildren. When team captain Billy Bremner protests that Revie never made them do this, Clough reminds them that he is not Revie and threatens a severe punishment for any player who mentions the former manager's name or methods again.

The season starts with a widely anticipated Charity Shield match against Liverpool at Wembley. The event is marred when Bremner gets into a fight with Kevin Keegan. Both are sent off, and in turn throw their shirts off and walk off the pitch bare-chested in defiance. Leeds lose the match and Bremner is given a two-month suspension, forcing Leeds to start the season without their influential captain. As a result, Leeds suffer a horrendous start to the season and are in danger of relegation only one season after winning the title.

After Bremner and the players air their grievances to the board, the club terminates Clough's contract after just 44 days; he forces them to pay an enormous severance package. Afterwards, Clough agrees to do a final interview with Yorkshire Television, but finds Revie there to confront him. After a war of words, Clough brings up the incident at the 1968 FA Cup, and Revie claims to have not known who the rookie manager was at the time. After the interview, Clough drives down to Brighton and reconciles with Taylor.

The film's epilogue reveals that Revie failed as England manager and spent the rest of his career working in the Middle East, where he was accused of financial mismanagement. Clough and Taylor, meanwhile, reunited at Nottingham Forest, where they repeated their achievements with Derby by helping them win promotion to the First Division and then winning the title, and also two European Cups in succession, in 1979 and 1980. The film ends with the caption: "Brian Clough remains the greatest manager the England team never had."