“Truly, the tree yields bad fruit.” Meet William McGonagall, the worst poet in the English language, and his exquisite Address to Shakespeare. You can listen to the…… Read more ““I would the gods had made thee poetical”: An Address to Shakespeare”
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Ben Jonson on Shakespeare (1623)
If you’ve listened to episode 6 of the podcast, you’ll be interested to read this poem from the prefatory notes to the First Folio of Shakespeare’s works,…… Read more “Ben Jonson on Shakespeare (1623)”
Episode 006: Who wrote Shakespeare? The Authorship Question
“The fraud of men was ever so / Since summer first was leafy” — Balthasar’s song, Much Ado About Nothing In episode six, we look at that…… Read more “Episode 006: Who wrote Shakespeare? The Authorship Question”
Episode 005: Shakespeare and Stratford
“Thou hadst small Latin and lesse Greek…” In episode five, we explore William Shakespeare’s family background, his childhood in Stratford-upon-Avon, and follow him from school to wedlock…… Read more “Episode 005: Shakespeare and Stratford”
Episode 004: The Two Gentlemen of Verona – A History
“Love me / Not your idea of me! / Release me / From your fantasy.” – Silvia in the 1971 rock musical Two Gentlemen of Verona …… Read more “Episode 004: The Two Gentlemen of Verona – A History”
Episode 003 – The Two Gentlemen of Verona
“He after honour hunts, I after love” – Proteus Episode 3 is live! We begin our three-episode investigation of The Two Gentlemen of Verona, arguably the…… Read more “Episode 003 – The Two Gentlemen of Verona”
The Spotify playlist is up
“Music to hear, why hear’st thou music sadly?” – Sonnet 8 With episode 3 going up tomorrow, things are feeling mighty real over here at Podcast Shakespeare.…… Read more “The Spotify playlist is up”
Episode 002 – A Brief History of Theatre
“She sat like Patience on a monument, smiling at grief.” — Viola, ‘Twelfth Night’ Episode 2 is live! Before we kick off the festivities, a…… Read more “Episode 002 – A Brief History of Theatre”
Episode 001 – The Prologue to our Comedy
“We see yonder the beginning of the day, but I think we shall never see the end of it.” The first episode has been posted! It’s a…… Read more “Episode 001 – The Prologue to our Comedy”
Delays, delays…
“One inch of delay more is a South Sea of discovery.” – Rosalind, ‘As You Like It’ Dear friends, although we had promised July, we have faced…… Read more “Delays, delays…”