By Noel C
@LFCOffside
--A year ago, as part of their preparations for the World Cup, ESPN’s 30 for 30 series released a handful of documentaries focused on football. Leading the way was an honest, disturbing, and at times revelatory Hillsborough documentary that made for must-see viewing for anybody with even the slightest interest in the sport.
The only problem was that with the documentary revealing previously unreported details and a new inquest having only just begun at the time, a publication ban meant it couldn’t be viewed in the United Kingdom on its initial release. A year later, with those details no longer new or revelatory for those paying close attention to the inquest, the documentary can be seen, without region restrictions, on Youtube.
It can, at times, be difficult to watch. But even for those already well versed in the Hillsborough disaster it makes for essential viewing. For anyone who doesn’t know the full story, doesn’t know about the mistakes made by officials, the lack of proper planning, the hostility towards football fans from those positions of power, and of the disturbing lengths many went to to deflect blame and protect themselves, it is even more so.
It's a story every Liverpool fan—every football fan—should know, and there are few better ways to gain a real understanding of the Hillsborough disaster than through last year's 30 for 30 documentary.
