Although it is not actually known which day in 1564 William Shakespeare was born, his birth is celebrated on 23rd April because he was baptised on 26th April and baptism usually took place around three days after birth. It is also St George’s Day, so it seems a fitting day to pay tribute to the Bard.
You can find out all about Shakespeare in my article William Shakespeare, which is full of facts about the man and his life. Shakespeare has a special place in my heart because I grew up just a few miles from Stratford-upon-Avon, went on school trips to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and studied his plays at school and university. I love his work and so want to be a part of the #happybirthdayshakespeare project, “a project by bloggers around the world to celebrate the impact of Stratford’s greatest son” – see www.happybirthdayshakespeare.com/. I’ve chosen to celebrate by asking you to comment below by sharing your favourite Shakespeare quotation, speech, sonnet… Whatever you like. Simply share it, say which piece it’s from and give your reason for sharing it. It would also be good if you share where you’re from. I’ll start it off (see below).
By the way, today also marks the death of Shakespeare! He died on 23rd April 1616.
Related posts:
A Video to Celebrate William Shakespeare’s Birthday!
William Shakespeare
Happy Birthday William Shakespeare and RIP
On This Day in History – Sir Francis Drake Knighted and the Birth of William Strachey
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Campaigns Against Anonymous Film
7 September 1533 – Birth of Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen
Anonymous: Was Shakespeare a Fraud?
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7 September 1533 – Birth of Elizabeth I, Gloriana
The first Shakespeare play I saw was in 1986 at the RST. It was Macbeth and starred Jonathan Pryce as Macbeth and Sinead Cusack as Lady Macbeth. It was amazing and made a real impact on me.
“Lady Macbeth:
Out, damned spot! out, I say!–One: two: why,
then, ’tis time to do’t.–Hell is murky!–Fie, my 40
lord, fie! a soldier, and afeard? What need we
fear who knows it, when none can call our power to
account?–Yet who would have thought the old man
to have had so much blood in him.”
and
“Here’s the smell of the blood still: all the
perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little
hand. Oh, oh, oh!”
Sinead Cusack was brilliant in the role.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE David Tenant as Hamlet. I dont know if you have seen his version of it but its remarkable! David as so much talent and just throws himself in to the role!! I found it online if you would like to watch it, this is part One http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kuF1-tyaAE And this is part Two http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OKGnrE8Sqo Let me know what you think!
Thank you! I loved David as Dr Who too.
David is also my favorite Doctor!!! I just cant get use to Matt, he doesn’t have that same magic as David.
Thank you for another wonderful post on my favorite playwright!
Macbeth is my favourite too, as I live only 12miles away from Cawdor Castle, MacBeth was titled the Thane of Cawdor, and 2miles from Brodie Castle, where there is a small hillock where MacBeth is meant to have encountered the 3 witches (theWeird sisters).
My favourite part of the play is the meeting with these ‘ladies’ and the spell they cast around their cauldron:-
Witch1: Thrice the brinded cat hath mew’d
Witch2: Thrice; and once the hedge-pig whin’d
Witch3: Harpier cries: tis time; tis time
Witch1: Round about the cauldron go;
in the poison’d entrails throw
Toad; that under the cold stone,
Days and nights hast thirty-one
Swelter’d vemon sleeping got’
Boiled thou first i’ the charmed pot!
All: Double, double toil and trouble;
fire burn and cauldron bubble.
Witch2: Fillet of fenny snake,
in the cauldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe of frog’
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog,
Adders’ fork, and blind- worms sting,
Lizards’s leg, and howlets’ wing,
For a charm of powerful trouble,
Like a hell -broth boil and bubble.
All: Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire, burn; and, cauldron bubble.
Witch3: Scale of Dragon, tooth of wolf,
Witches’ mummy, maw and gulf
Of the ravin’d salt-sea shark,
Root of hemlock, digg’d i’ dark,
Liver of blaspheming Jew’
Gall of goat, and slips of yew
Sliver’d in the moon’s eclipse,
Nose of Turk, andTartar’s lips,
Finger of birth- strangl’d babe,
Ditched- deliver’d by a drab,
Make the gruel thick and slab;
Add hereto a Tiger’s chauldron,
For the ingrediants for our cauldron.
All: Double, double toil and trouble,
Fire; burn, and, cauldron bubble.
Witch2: Cool it with a baboon’s blood,
Then the charm is firm and good.
Enter Hecrate,(ancient Goddess of magic, witchcraft etc) to the other 3 Witches.
O, weel done! I commend your pains,
And everyone shall share i’ th’ gains,
And now about the cauldron sing
Like elves and faries in a ring’
Enchanting all that you put in.
Witch2: By the pricking of my thumbs’
Something wicked this way comes…..
There is another reason why I am ‘attached’ to this, and that’s because I have 2 sisters, and our partners always say that when we get together we huggle up and plot and plan, cackle and cast spells on anyone thats annoyed us, lol, just like the 3 witches of MacBeth…. 🙂 We’re not that bad… Halloween’s a bit ‘dodgy’ though……Mwahahahahaha………….