Cecilian Theatre Arts
LIMITLESS
Wed 15 — Sat 18 Apr 2026
Main Auditorium
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From the award winning makers of '406 DAYS - The Debenhams Picket Line' & 'May-17-74: Anatomy of a Massacre', comes the story of a life which transcends football on the island of Ireland.
Charlie O'Leary was born on the 1st of February 1924 in Townsend Street, Dublin the same year the Irish Free State played its first football match. In 1945, as a teenager, Charlie founded the Dublin football "Street Leagues" in East Wall. It would go on to spread across Dublin and afar leading to young participants becoming professionals in England and in the League of Ireland. The names Touhy, Brady, Dunne and Giles would go down in Irish football folklore.
Through the leagues, Charlie would become a referee climbing through the ranks to officiate in the League of Ireland. He would become one of the first Irish referees to be FIFA affiliated leading to assignments behind the Iron Curtain at Camp Nou, Barcelona and across the UK. In 1986 Jack Charlton would invite Charlie to become the Irish Football Kit-Man. He would be part of the greatest moments of Irish football.
Today Charlie O'Leary is 102 years of age. This is his story, from Johnny Cullen's Hill to the Olympic Stadium Rome.
Stay with us after the screening: Meet the Director Joe Lee, Producer Fergus Dowd, and Special Guests, post screening for a Free Q&A
"One of the players said to Charlie it was like playing for your country, you played for your street but you were amongst friends and it was really community based. I think in a sense we've really sort of lost that innocence - these kids had a jersey on, they were representing the road and their mothers and fathers were watching, so it was a massive community event." - Fergus Dowd, Producer
