Marcus de Burca, author of The GAA . . . A History, pointed out a number of inaccuracies in Flatley's take on Bloody Sunday . . . not least the fact that the dancer portrays the events in Croke Park happening before the 1916 Rising. Bloody Sunday occurred on 21 November, 1920, when British troops opened fire on the crowd, killing 14 spectators and one player.

In Flatley's show, a footballer plays with a ball in front of a video screen featuring a cheering crowd. The crowd is then replaced by a tank which rolls towards the player and eventually blasts him away. "That never happened, " says de Burca, whose own father was among the spectators in Croke Park that day.

"There was no tank in Croke Park.

There was a solitary armoured car parked in James's Avenue which fired warning shots, but it wasn't part of the action." De Burca also points out that the footballer is playing "keepy-uppy" . . . a soccer skill . . . with a soccer ball. His red and green kit bears no relation to the colours of either Dublin or Tipperary . . . opponents on the day . . . and he wears the number 19 on his back . . .

"strictly speaking, this lad would be a sub, in which case he wouldn't have had a ball, much less a soccer one."

In Celtic Tiger, the Bloody Sunday sequence is followed by 'A Call To Arms', featuring Flatley taking on the British troops armed only with a bodhran.

After reading out an extract from the Proclamation of the Republic, Flatley's rallying drumming results in a pitched battle between dancers representing British troops in red coats and wigs and Irish peasants in cotton trousers (apart from Flatley's which are leather) while the GPO blazes in the background.

While acknowledging that Flatley has used artistic licence in his portrayal of historical events, De Burca suggests that audiences unfamiliar with Irish history might accept the Celtic Tiger version of events as gospel.

"To me, it's entirely intended for a second-generation Irish audience and there is a danger that it could be taken seriously. On the DVD, you can see people in the audience punching the air singing along with 'A Nation Once Again'. It could give a dangerous message."

According to Flatley's website, "Ireland's history provides a dramatic storyboard for Michael Flatley, challenging his creative ability to produce a spectacle that is at once provocative and sensitive. Join us for a journey through the pages of history. Discover how the people of Ireland found their place in the world through courage, ingenuity and an unfailing sense of their own destiny."

The historical events portrayed include the Famine, during which British soldiers dance a hornpipe to 'Rule Britannia' before torching a thatched cottage, forcing its scantily clad and dying inhabitants out. They are followed by Flatley, dressed as a priest who, after reciting the 'Our Father', is shot by the troops. "What he's done is amalgamated aspects of Irish history, " said a spokesperson for the dancer.

"To analyse it as a piece of history would be quite wrong because it wouldn't stand up. It's not a history lesson; it's a piece of entertainment."

Meanwhile, the GAA denied suggestions that its decision to turn down Celtic Tiger's application to play in Croke Park was related to the show's interpretation of Bloody Sunday. "A couple of us did go over to the States to see it, " said stadium director Peter McKenna, "but we felt that it wouldn't work in Croke Park because it was very stage specific. It was turned down for technical reasons. We weren't looking at it from a content point of view. Croke Park is just too big for something like that."