Monthly Archives: September 2014

Two Shakespeareans remembered: Donald Sinden and Jeffery Dench

I was sorry to hear of the death on 11 September 2014 of Donald Sinden, like Jeffery Dench who died in March an actor who had made a considerable contribution to productions of Shakespeare’s plays in Stratford-upon-Avon. Both men will … Continue reading

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If music be the food of love, play on! Music Notes at the RSC

Music and theatre have always been closely associated. You might not always be aware of it when you visit a theatre, but it is often created live by a team of largely unseen musicians.  The RSC, after its formation, insisted … Continue reading

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Thomas Platter’s visit to Shakespeare’s theatre

On 21 September 1599 a Swiss tourist, Thomas Platter, visiting London, went to the newly-opened Globe Theatre to see a play. As it happened, he saw Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. The occasion made quite an impression on him, so much so … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and Education

Recently the Huffington Post published an article written by a teenager about how Shakespeare should be taught, specifically to ten-year olds. She remembered her own experience “when I moved up to secondary school I was thrown into the deep end; … Continue reading

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Robert Bell Wheler, “the historian of Stratford”

2014 is being celebrated as the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth, but in Stratford there is also another significant anniversary this year. It is just 200 years since Robert Bell Wheler published his Guide to Stratford-upon-Avon. Aged 21, Wheler had … Continue reading

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Simon Forman, Shakespeare and the stage

12 September is the anniversary of the death of the colourful astrologer-cum-physician Simon Forman – or perhaps it was 11 September, or even 5 September, accounts vary.  Whichever is correct, Forman was a well-known, even notorious figure in Shakespeare’s London, said to be … Continue reading

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David Garrick’s Jubilee

The story of Stratford’s rise from being a typical market town into an international tourist destination is often said to start in 1769 when the greatest actor of the day, David Garrick, put on a three-day celebration of Shakespeare. The fact … Continue reading

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Come, here is the map: Mercator at the British Library

Now available on the British Library’s Online Gallery of Virtual Books is the Mercator Map of Europe. You might assume from the name that it’s an early printed atlas, but this book is far more interesting than that. It was … Continue reading

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Shakespeare’s mothers and sons

For Shakespeare’s towards the end of his life, early September must have been a sad time, not just because it signalled the end of summer. Both parents died at this time of year: his father was buried on 8 September 1601, and … Continue reading

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The Two Gentlemen of Verona meet Shakespeare in Love

On 3 September 2014 the RSC’s production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona is to be broadcast Live from Stratford-upon-Avon to cinemas. I’ve written before about the way this enables people who would never have the chance to see plays … Continue reading

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