Richard III

King Lear, Globe Theatre ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️I’ve been reluctant to revisit King Lear since seeing the Chichester production (starring Ian McKellen), as it was pretty much the perfect production in the perfect venue, but when Kathryn Hunter was announced as the titular monarch in this Globe season I thought it was about time I gave the play another […]

Globe 2021: “Pomp, pageantry, politics & power”

The day is finally here – it seems like we’ve been made to wait an inordinately long time for this announcement, but it was definitely worth it as far as I’m concerned. In the words of Artistic Director, Michelle Terry: “The world beyond may be uncertain, but these plays are sure to guide us through […]

The Show Must Go Online: Hamlet

If you thought last week’s alumni As You Like It was spectacular, The Show Must Go Online has gone one step further this week for Hamlet – introducing an alumni allstar special featuring a global cast of actors from the entire project so far. I’ve seen quite the range of Hamlets, from the sublime (Andrew Scott-led Almeida production at […]

Shakespeare’s Globe: “Parting is such sweet sorrow”

Reading that the Globe may struggle to come back from this current crisis without the help of donations and emergency funding didn’t seem quite real. When they announced their forthcoming summer shows back in January, I must admit that I did wonder whether the rather bland programming had come about because there were some financial […]

Never Mind The Blog… Here’s Shakespeare Day 2020

We can’t be 100% certain, but it is widely accepted that William Shakespeare was born on 23 April 1564 – and died on the same date in 1616. Though the theatres are closed, that doesn’t mean we can’t mark Shakespeare Day in alternative ways… News The RSC has closed the Swan Theatre until the autumn, […]

Globe 2020: “This wooden O”

I really enjoyed the last summer season overall (despite now being almost completely sworn off returning to the groundling life – people are just too rude & inconsiderate for me to countenance it as a viable option), and the 2019/20 winter season has just gone above and beyond so far. The Wars of the Roses […]

Most popular posts of 2019

In terms of total views, 2018 was a bit of a freak year – so 2019 hasn’t managed to live up to it. However, it has continued on the trajectory that we would have been on had Mind the Blog 2018 not been so ridiculously popular… And, as ever, I’ve been watching the stats page […]

Play by Candlelight 2019/20: preview

With the summer season over, we now retreat into the cosier confines of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse for the next winter season at Shakespeare’s Globe: She Wolves and Shrews. As well as several offerings from the Bard, there will also be a contribution from one of his close collaborators, plus a couple of pieces of […]

Day 1: “Frailty, thy name is woman”

Ever since I started frequenting the Globe in 2016 and ramped up my Shakespeare intake, I’ve found myself embroiled in arguments over casting – more specifically, gender switches. I know I should leave well alone in the majority of cases, but it can be really hard not to challenge some of the ignorance people spout; […]

Globe 2019: Henry IV part 1, or Hotspur

Kicking off the new summer season at Shakespeare’s Globe is a continuance of the history plays sequence which began in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse over the winter. Following on from Marlowe’s Edward II and Shakespeare’s Richard II, we head into Henry territory, with Henry IV parts 1 & 2 and Henry V on offer; the […]