Fight till the last gasp. After the end, the beginning. There seems to be little dispute over the fact that 1 Henry VI was written last of the Contention. It is in that sense like one of those Hollywood prequels, chronicling the events that led to the War of the Roses – the death of … More Shakespeare Saturday: Henry VI, Part 1
I wrote this post already couple weeks ago, but never got around to publishing it – as much as I love the Wimsey novels, I am actually a bit lost on what to write about them or about Dorothy L. Sayers herself, and this post shows it; my apologies for what looks like a really … More On reading Dorothy L. Sayers, Part 1
The sands are numbered that makes up my life. Here I must stay, and here my life must end. In the beginning of 3 Henry VI, the dust has not settled – in fact, this is where the chaos truly begins to rule. This is a play about revenge and changing fortunes and brothers turning … More Shakespeare Saturday: Henry VI, Part 3
God forbid any malice should prevail/That faultless may condemn a noble man. With Henry VI I’m venturing into unknown territories. The only one of Shakespeare’s histories I’m previously familiar with is Richard III, while the Henries have been just, well, a whole lot of Henries. As luck should have it, all three Henry VI plays … More Shakespeare Saturday: Henry VI, Part 2
If I be waspish, best beware my sting. I confess: The Taming of the Shrew is probably my least favourite of Shakespeare’s comedies. In fact, it probably hovers pretty near the bottom in my overall order of preference. Strangely enough, it is my earliest Shakespeare memory – I must have been in primary school when … More Shakespeare Saturday: The Taming of the Shrew
I very strongly associate some writers, books, pieces of music with specific seasons. It is finally summer(ish) in England, and the first warm, long evenings have made me reach for Virginia Woolf. Fingering my copy of A Room of One’s Own (the edition is from the year I was born), I wanted to write a … More Virginia, Virginia!
The Bodleian Library’s Shakespeare exhibition, Shakespeare’s Dead, is now open till 18th September. To commemorate the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, the focus is on death in his plays, and in the literature of his time. On display is of course the First Folio, the first playbook (Romeo and Juliet), the first edition of Venus … More I’m not even going to pretend to be cool about this
O heaven! were man but constant, he were perfect. I’m going to read (and – in the spirit of full disclosure – watch on DVD) all the plays in chronological order, and post every Saturday in this category. The chronology I’m using is the Wells-Taylor one, which states Two Gentlemen of Verona as Shakespeare’s first … More Shakespeare Saturday: Two Gentlemen of Verona
This being the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, Oxford too is hosting a festival, organised by a consortium of local institutions like the university, Bodleian Libraries, the OUP, Blackwell’s and a number of local arts organisations and festivals. Weston Library, one of my favourite spaces in Oxford, has an exhibition called Shakespeare’s Dead and the … More Shakespeare Oxford 2016
Shakespeare for absolute beginners 