Monthly Archives: August 2011

Henry V, star of England

31 August is the anniversary of the death of that “star of England”, King Henry V. He died in France, where he had been on a military campaign to capture more of the country, in 1422 aged only 35.  If … Continue reading

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Your actions are my dreams: Shakespeare and conspiracy

A week on Sunday it will be exactly ten years since the awful events of 9/11 in which thousands of people died and which sparked the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  On Monday it was revealed that a poll undertaken … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and Anonymous: authorship, truth and drama

I’m part of an online group currently running a lively discussion thread on “Was Shakespeare a fraud?”. This is based on the soon-to-be-released film Anonymous, directed by Roland Emmerlich and written by John Orloff, on the subject of the authorship of Shakespeare’s plays and … Continue reading

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Time and the gilded galleon

A visit to the British Museum is always a great reminder of the ingenuity, skill and imagination of the human race over thousands of years and in all parts of the world. In all areas of endeavour there are people … Continue reading

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Much Ado about David Tennant

I don’t think I’ve ever seen an actor having more fun onstage than I did on Monday night when I went to Much Ado About Nothing at Wyndham’s Theatre London. From his first entrance in a ridiculous golf buggy right … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and the Jacobethans at the Swan

This year the Royal Shakespeare Company is celebrating 50 years of existence by staging a series of events marking some of its key moments of theatremaking.  Exactly half way through this half-century, in 1986, the RSC opened the Swan theatre … Continue reading

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Seeking out Shakespeare’s villains

The series of blogs about Shakespeare’s villains posted by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust at Blogging Shakespeare and Finding Shakespeare, has raised interesting questions about what that word “villain”means. The dictionary definition is a “person guilty or capable of great wickedness, … Continue reading

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A Midsummer Night’s Dream on stage

When diarist Samuel Pepys went to see A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 1662 he was not impressed. “I had never seen before nor shall ever again, for it is the most insipid ridiculous play that ever I saw in my … Continue reading

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Disorder, riot, and unweeded gardens

 Bill Bratton, the supercop who’s credited with successfully cutting gang crime in New York and Los Angeles, is going to be consulted by the UK prime minister about how to solve the issue of the recent riots in English cities. … Continue reading

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After the riots: Shakespeare’s tragic fathers and sons

Over the past few days we’ve witnessed the inspirational dignity and grace of Tariq Jahan, the father of one of the young men killed during the riots in Winson Green, Birmingham.  For any of you who haven’t seen it, you’ll … Continue reading

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