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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Mark Fisher

Conteh review – the dazzling rise and bruising fall of a 70s boxing great

Aron Julius as Conteh in defensive boxing stance in ring with Mark Moraghan behind.
‘Who wouldn’t want him to win?’ … Aron Julius as John Conteh with Mark Moraghan as his manager in Conteh at Royal Court theatre, Liverpool. Photograph: AB Photography

Don King is singing the praises of his new signing. The boxing impresario, played by Zach Levene with an extravagant bouffant, sees something special in John Conteh, the light-heavyweight champion. It is a talent that goes beyond the ring. “He walks into a room and the air changes,” he says.

Impressively, this is a quality captured by Aron Julius. Playing the Kirkby kid who became WBC light-heavyweight champion in 1974, he is muscular, light-footed and graceful. More than that, he sparkles. With a needling Liverpool wit, he is as cheeky as he is charming. Who wouldn’t want him to win?

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