Blogging Shakespeare

Last month the University of Notre Dame hosted its second annual lecture in honour of Professor Stanley Wells C.B.E. The event was presented in partnership with The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and The Shakespeare Institute, University of Birmingham and was generously supported by the Nanovic Institute for European Studies, Notre Dame. You can watch the whole […]

Are you studying Shakespeare at college, university, or for leisure? Are you going to be using the archives or library of The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust? You might be interested in applying for the Louis Marder Shakespeare Centre Scholarship (or recommending it to a friend). This annual scholarship of £1,000 will be awarded to ‘a worthy […]

One of the hats I like wearing is that of the Director of The Stratford –upon-Avon Poetry Festival. It’s one I’ve worn for several years now and each year, as I come to organise the programme, I try to ring the changes a little. The Stratford-upon-Avon Poetry Festival is our way of celebrating poetry in […]

It was a pleasure to welcome Janette Dillon to The Shakespeare Centre last week. She is Professor of Drama at the University of Nottingham and came along to speak about her new book in the Oxford Shakespeare Topics series. Janette explores ways of thinking about how Shakespeare’s history plays were originally staged. What was their […]

Ian Donaldson’s marvellously fresh and up to date biography of Ben Jonson sets a new standard for all future Jonson studies. He came to speak about the relationship between Jonson and Shakespeare at The Shakespeare Centre on Wednesday at our first Literary Lunchtime Talk of the year. The event was sponsored by Oxford University Press. […]

Dickens loved (and lived and breathed) the theatre. In this gently satirical piece, ‘Some of the Performers’ from Sketches by Boz, he takes us backstage just before the curtain rises on a performance of Macbeth… It’s read by my colleague, Dr Nick Walton. Happy 200th Birthday, Charles Dickens! We at The Shakespeare Centre salute thee! […]

This morning I led the assembly at Shottery Church of England Primary School. Many of the pupils were sittings their SATS tests, so only the very young ones were present (4 to 7 years olds). I was determined to tell them a little about Charles Dickens and read to them a slightly abridged version of […]

Quite often, when I look at Shakespeare’s Birthplace, or to walk past it, I think of Charles Dickens. I think about how I wouldn’t be seeing Shakespeare’s House cared for by The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust without him. In short, I wouldn’t be working in my current job without the encouragement and effort Dickens contributed to […]

I chaired the British Shakespeare Association’s Annual General Meeting last week. Once again, The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust kindly hosted the event, which was followed by an excellent evening of discussion led by Paul Edmondson with Eric Rasmussen, Peter Kirwan, and John Jowett. AGMs are rarely thrilling occasions, but this AGM was notable for two presentations: […]