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Category Archives: Shakespeare’s World
The mystery of Mr W H
The headline read: “Has the mystery of Shakespeare’s sonnets finally been solved?” My thought was – which one? The sonnets are puzzling in many ways. Do they tell a real story, or are they purely fictional? What order were they … Continue reading
Posted in Plays and Poems, Shakespeare's World
Tagged Francis Meres, Geoffrey Caveney, Mr W H, publishing, Sonnets, The Sonnets, William Holme
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Michael Wood and “Mary Arden: a Tudor Life”
The BBC’s serialisation of Hilary Mantel’s novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies is proving grippingly good. To complement these programmes about “the glittering –though at times terrifying- world of the Tudor court” a new documentary on more ordinary … Continue reading
Posted in Shakespeare's World, Stratford-upon-Avon
Tagged Mary Arden, Michael Wood, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Tudor, Wolf Hall
3 Comments
Richard III’s final journey
It’s almost two years since it was announced live on national TV that the skeleton discovered under a car park in Leicester was indeed that of King Richard III, killed at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. I watched the … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare's World, Sources
Tagged burial, FutureLearn, MOOC, Philip Schwyzer, Richard III, The King in the Car Park, University of Leicester
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Italy and the Italians in Shakespeare
The English have been fascinated by Italy for centuries, never more so than during the period in which Shakespeare lived. Sir Henry Wotton, who represented King James as the English Ambassador to Venice from 1604, was more knowledgeable than most. … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare's World
Tagged Bill Alexander, Carol Rutter, Giovanni Battista Moroni, Josie Lawrence, Michael Pennington, Paul Scofield, Royal Academy, Shakespeare in Italy
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Speaking Shakespeare’s tragic verse
Last week Professor Tiffany Stern spoke at Stratford-upon-Avon’s Shakespeare Club on the subject of tragic performances on Shakespeare’s stage. She was struck by the way that writers tended to describe tragedies differently from other dramatic genres. Her thoughts on tragic … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare on Stage, Shakespeare's World
Tagged Baltimore Shakespeare Factory, Ben Crystal, David Crystal, original pronunciation, poetry, Richard Burbage, Shakespeare Club, The Tempest, Tiffany Stern
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Setting Tudor-fans hearts a-fluttering: Wolf Hall and Shakespeare again
On 21 January 2015 the BBC’s 6-part adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Man Booker Prize-winning novels about Thomas Cromwell, Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies, begins. Jane Garvey, in Woman’s Hour, said it had “set Tudor-fans hearts a-fluttering”, and publishers … Continue reading
Christmas traditions: the evergreen holly
Over Christmas we fill our houses with fresh flowers and plants: I’ve been able to enjoy lilies and hyacinths in full bloom, specially appreciating them at this cold, dark time of year. Spare a thought then for Shakespeare and his … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare's World
Tagged Arts and Crafts movement, As You Like it, evergreen, flowers, Flowers of Shakespeare, holly, Richard Mabey, Walter Crane
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Christmas traditions: The Mummers’ Play
Christmas Day itself may have passed, but today as in past centuries the Christmas season continues. In Shakespeare’s time the Christmas period was marked by more home-grown traditions including the burning of the yule log, rural sports, feasting and misrule. … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare's World, Stratford-upon-Avon
Tagged Boxing Day, Christmas, English Folk Dance and Song Society, folklore, Ilmington, Ilmington Morris Men, Master Mummers, Mumming, Overton, Peter Millington, R J E Tiddy, The Howard Arms, The Mummers' Play, Warwickshire
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Catching the plague
The outbreak of Ebola in West Africa has been one of the most alarming continuing stories of 2014. Seven thousand people have died and the West has been accused of being slow to respond. It is heartening to hear … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare's World
Tagged Black Death, bubonic plague, Ebola, Folger Shakespeare Library, Great Plague of London, medicine, Neil MacGregor, plague, Thomas Dekker
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Old December’s bareness everywhere
It’s December and winter is definitely on the way. Heavy snow has already been causing chaos in the USA, and in the UK we are bracing ourselves for violent storms. In Stratford the ways are certainly foul with mud and … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare's World
Tagged As You Like it, December, King John, snow, weather, winter
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