Will Shakespeare, also known as Life of Shakespeare and William Shakespeare: His Life & Times, is a 1978 historical drama series created and written by John Mortimer. Broadcast in six parts, the series is a dramatisation of the life and times of the great poet William Shakespeare, played by Tim Curry, and was co-produced by Lew Grade's ATV and RAI and distributed internationally by ITC. The two production companies had collaborated the previous year on Jesus of Nazareth.
| Will Shakespeare | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Also known as | Life of Shakespeare William Shakespeare: His Life & Times |
| Created by | John Mortimer |
| Written by | John Mortimer |
| Directed by | Mark Cullingham Robert Knights |
| Starring | Tim Curry Ian McShane Nicholas Clay Lynette Davies Paul Freeman |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Cecil Clarke |
| Production companies | ATV, RAI |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 13 June – 18 July 1978 |
Cast
edit- Tim Curry as William Shakespeare
- Ian McShane as Christopher Marlowe
- Nicholas Clay as the Earl of Southampton
- Lynette Davies as the Countess of Southampton
- Paul Freeman as Richard Burbage
- John Normington as Alex Cooke
- Ron Cook as Jack Rice
- Richard Cordery as Henry Condell
- Ronald Herdman as Sam Crosse
- Roger Lloyd-Pack as Jack Heminge
- Patience Collier as Elizabeth I
- Meg Wynn Owen as Anne Shakespeare
Writing
editEach episode is based around the creation of a play and the idea of Shakespeare's life influencing his writing is used as the central plot device.[1] As there are few known facts about the life of Shakespeare, Mortimer embellished upon stories or legends about the playwright's life. These include a supposed apprenticeship with Christopher Marlowe and a homoerotic relationship with the Earl of Southampton.
Mortimer also invented a character whom the Dark Lady of Shakespeare's sonnets was supposedly based upon. The wife of a judge, she falls in love with Shakespeare after seeing his performance as Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, adding a secondary storyline elaborating on class divisions.[1]
Original literary material
editIn 1977 Hodder and Stoughton published Will Shakespeare as written by John Mortimer, author of the Rumpole series. Coronet published the paperback edition in 1977, ISBN 0-340-21979-3.
Video release
editThe series was initially released on VHS under the title William Shakespeare: His Life & Times.[2] A Region 1 DVD release of the series, by A & E television, was released in 2008, simply titled Will Shakespeare. Network Studio released a Region 2 DVD of the series in 2009 under the same title.
See also
edit- Will (TV series), a 2017 drama about Shakespeare
References
edit- ^ a b Michael Brooke. "Will Shakespeare (1978)". BFI. Retrieved 20 April 2008.
- ^ "Life of Shakespeare (1978)". IMDb. Retrieved 20 April 2008.
External links
edit- BFI screenonline page on Will Shakespeare (1978)
- Life of Shakespeare (TV Mini-Series 1978) at IMDb