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Celebrity hosts guide viewers through William Shakespeare's plays in performance. Each episode serves as a primer for newcomers to Shakespeare while serving up enough historical and theatrical insights to enchant lifelong fans.
2015
Actor Hugh Bonneville talks with Ralph Fiennes about the appeal of "A Midsummer Night's Dream."
Christopher Plummer explores how "King Lear" may have been staged during Shakespeare's time; actors Ian McKellen and Simon Russell Beale discuss playing the role of King Lear.
Morgan Freeman is determined to understand why Shakespeare wrote "The Taming of the Shrew"; interviews include Tracey Ullman, Sinead Cusack and Julia Stiles.
David Harewood unravels the issues of prejudice and jealousy embedded in "Othello"; Adrian Lester portrays Othello at the National Theatre in London; interviews include Simon Russell Beale, Ian McKellen, Julia Stiles and Patrick Stewart.
Kim Cattrall searches for the truth behind Shakespeare's middle-aged love story and examines inspirations for the play in Rome; with Janet Suzman, Harriet Walter and Vanessa Redgrave.
Joe Fiennes considers why "Romeo and Juliet" remains the most adapted and performed of all of Shakespeare's works; interviews include Orlando Bloom, Condola Rashad and Stephen Sondheim.
2012
Shakespeare Uncovered: In Twelfth Night and As You Like It, Joely Richardson investigates (with a contribution from her mother Vanessa Redgrave) the great comic heroines created by Shakespeare in those hugely popular plays.
Ethan Hawke sets out to prepare himself for the possibility of playing the role of Macbeth by uncovering the true story behind the play, seeing some of the greatest productions and discovering the extraordinary insights into the criminal mind that Shakespeare reveals.
Derek Jacobi looks at Richard II, a role he played 30 years ago. He reveals why the might have cost Shakespeare his life, and shares some of the extraordinary political parallels within the play that still resonate today.
Trevor Nunn looks at the magical and mysterious world created in Shakespeare's last complete play, The Tempest. Trevor finds out where Shakespeare got his material from and the strange personal insights hidden within it. It is a truly experimental work but sadly perhaps also Shakespeare's farewell to the theatre. The Tempest is peculiarly suitable to film - ambitious, experimental and full of magic. Not surprisingly, one of the very first silent film adaptations of a Shakespeare play was The Tempest in 1911.
Jeremy Irons uncovers the extraordinary appeal of Shakespeare's History Plays. He unravels the differences between the real history and the drama that Shakespeare creates.
David Tennant, whose own RSC performance as Hamlet was a huge hit, meets other actors who have played the role and tries to unravel the meaning of the play.
2018
Helen Hunt explores how “Much Ado About Nothing” became one of Shakespeare’s most beloved romantic comedies.
F. Murray Abraham untangles the controversies surrounding “The Merchant of Venice,” addressing the ubiquitous anti-Semitism that characterized Europe in Shakespeare’s time.
Romola Garai explores “Measure for Measure,” one of Shakespeare's most provocative plays. It presents a surprisingly timely drama of sexual morality, hypocrisy and harassment.
Brian Cox looks at Shakespeare's most revered political play, “Julius Caesar,” to analyze what can be learned about freedom and tyranny today.
Simon Russell Beale uncovers the romance and betrayals of "The Winter's Tale" and shows that in this play Shakespeare offers something for which everyone longs: the ability to make amends for an irreversible mistake.
Antony Sher unveils the life of Shakespeare's "Richard III," comparing the historical king's reputation with the play's enduring portrait of ruthless ambition and vengeance.
