Tynecastle drama
Hearts 25/26 season on stage
Two Halves Productions is set to return to Tynecastle Park this Fringe, with A Play of Two Halves: a theatrical double bill which reflects on Hearts’ season that came within minutes of seeing them crowned league champions.
Hearts’ unlikely challenge to Scottish football’s traditional dominance, fuelled by Tony Bloom’s investment and data-led vision, carried supporters through months of hope, tension, joy and heartbreak.
First half: Moved, by Paul Beeson.
Inspired by the season that made Hearts supporters believe, A Play of Two Halves explores that remarkable campaign – not by telling the story of the season. Rather, it is the story of the people who lived through it, in two distinct but connected stories by Two Halves Productions co-founders Paul Beeson and Bruce Strachan.
Moved, written and performed by Beeson and directed by Strachan, explores what it feels like to live inside hope. Season in Bloom, written and directed by Strachan and performed by Ria McLeod and Jenna Stones, explores how hope spreads through a community.
This is our story
Commenting on the new production, Strachan said: “Tynecastle has always been more than a venue for us—it’s part of the storytelling.
Every production we’ve created has found a different theatrical language to tell a different Hearts story. This season demanded something new again. We became fascinated not by the football itself, but by what believing did to people.”
Beeson adds: “”Supporting a football club can shape how you feel about yourself, your relationships and the week ahead. These plays explore the joy, anxiety, obsession and hope that supporters carry with them long after the final whistle. Every Hearts supporter has their own version of last season. This is ours.”
Second half: Season in Bloom by Bruce Strachan.
A Play of Two Halves will be performed in the 1874 Supporters Bar at Tynecastle Park in the period Monday 10 to Monday 31 August 2026. Individual dates will be announced around once dates of football matches at Tynecastle have been confirmed, with tickets on sale at the end of July.
Priority access
For priority access before the general release join the list here: https://forms.gle/qWFjqq36aMe6zQ3V9
Two Halves Productions was formed in 2023 by Paul Beeson and Bruce Strachan, and has built a reputation for creating distinctive theatre inspired by Heart of Midlothian and the people connected with the club.
Previous productions include the critically acclaimed A War of Two Halves (★★★★★ Heart-rending), Sweet FA (★★★★★ Earthy), Never Trouble Trouble (★★★★☆ Emotional football) and This Is Our Story (★★★★☆ Glorious fun).
All four productions combined authentic storytelling, humour and emotional depth while attracting audiences well beyond traditional football supporters. Sweet FA was nominated for the Critics’ Awards for Theatre in Scotland.
important chapters
Lianne Parry, Hearts Head of Heritage, said: “We are delighted to welcome Two Halves Productions back to Tynecastle. Their previous productions have celebrated important chapters in the club’s history with warmth, authenticity and humour, and we look forward to audiences experiencing their latest creative response to one of the most memorable seasons in modern Hearts history.”
Paul Beeson, Ria McLeod, Luis Garrow and Nikki Auld in This is Our Story (2024) Pic Robin Mitchell
Hearts legend, Gary Mackay, added: “I really enjoyed the productions Two Halves created to celebrate Hearts’ 150th anniversary. They tell stories from a supporter’s perspective, with warmth, humour and just the right amount of maroon-tinted spectacles. I’m looking forward to seeing how they capture the emotions of a season that every Hearts fan will remember for years to come.”
First Half: MOVED
One man. One season. Was it worth it? After the crowds have gone home, one Hearts supporter remains alone in a quiet Edinburgh pub, looking back on the season that consumed him.
As Hearts begin to believe that the impossible might just be possible, football reaches far beyond ninety minutes on a Saturday afternoon. Victories lift him. Defeats follow him home. The possibility of history begins to shape his relationships, his identity, his happiness and his mental wellbeing.
Following one man’s emotional journey through the campaign, Moved asks what it costs to care so deeply about something you can never control. Ultimately, every supporter must answer the same question: When the dream ends… was it worth it?
Second Half: SEASON IN BLOOM
Across one unforgettable football season, seven conversations unfold inside a Tynecastle pub. A journalist arrives in Edinburgh searching for a story. A lifelong supporter has seen almost everything before. A young member of the bar staff can’t understand why any of it matters. A club director carries pressures few supporters ever see.
Old relationships resurface. New friendships are formed. As Hearts move closer to history, the season begins to shape lives far beyond the stadium, revealing the humour, hope, fear and humanity behind every result.
Warm, funny and deeply moving, Season in Bloom is a portrait of a community living through an extraordinary moment together.
Poster for A Play of Two Halves
ENDS
