Category Archives: Legacy

Hilary Mantel and Shakespeare: two tales of Henry VIII

I’ve only just got round to reading Hilary Mantel’s 2009 novel Wolf Hall, the first of a trilogy (the third part still being written) about the life of Thomas Cromwell. Both Wolf Hall and its sequel Bring Up the Bodies … Continue reading

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Was 2012 Shakespeare’s year?

2012 was the  year of the World Shakespeare Festival, the biggest celebration of Shakespeare ever, when this early-modern writer was to be proclaimed a global superstar, as if he wasn’t already one of the most-recognised faces, and the most-performed playwright, … Continue reading

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Celebrating Shakespeare at the turn of the year

As it’s the end of the year I want to thank readers of The Shakespeare blog for making it such a success. During 2012 the blog has had over 67,000 visits and over 100,000 page views. 239 of you have … Continue reading

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“New-fangled shows”: Christmas and the Rose Theatre

Christmas must have been anything but relaxing for Shakespeare when he was at the height of his career. Instead of putting his feet up in front of a roaring fire with a warming drink in his hand, he was hard … Continue reading

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The legend of Herne’s Oak

The Merry Wives of Windsor is set in the depth of winter, the season Shakespeare associates with eating, drinking, telling stories, singing, and practical jokes. It’s also  one of the few plays for which Shakespeare invented the plot, and he … Continue reading

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E-Learning and the use of digital resources

Enabling the study of  Shakespeare, especially by making available resources to students of all kinds was the focus of my professional life as a librarian working at The Shakespeare Centre Library and Archive. But over the past year I’ve become … Continue reading

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Adapting Shakespeare’s Henry VI: The Wars of the Roses

Until a few years ago the Henry VI plays were rarely performed, especially outside Stratford-upon-Avon, so the news that next year Shakespeare’s Globe is going to be touring the plays to venues in the UK is to be welcomed. I’ve … Continue reading

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The Sam Wanamaker Theatre

Major congratulations are due to Shakespeare’s Globe, where the building of their new indoor theatre has just begun. It has just been announced, here and here, that the theatre will be named after the man who devoted himself to the creation … Continue reading

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C Walter Hodges and Shakespeare’s Theatre

I spent Saturday at the conference Who invented the “Shakespearean theatre”?, held at the University of Reading. I wrote about the conference in advance,  and I’ll be writing more about the conference in a later blog (or two), but just now … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and the power of music

22 November is Saint Cecilia’s day, when we should be celebrating music in all its forms, yet on Tuesday morning BBC Radio 4’s Today programme broadcast a piece criticising the fact that only a small minority of people attend ballet, opera … Continue reading

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