Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Shakespeare and Medicine: Friar Lawrence (11 January) In the first of a series about Shakespeare and medicine, Rebekah Owens focuses on the character of Friar Lawrence from ‘Romeo and Juliet’. In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, when we first meet Friar Lawrence, he is outdoors, carrying an ‘osier’ – a basket – and picking flowers and herbs for his medical practice. He describes his early-morning task of picking ‘baleful weeds and precious-juicèd flowers.’ Find out more about Shakespear ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Shakespeare in Romanian (1 December) Malina Palamariu compares two Romanian translations of Hamlet’s ‘to be or not to be’ speech held at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Library. To mark Roumania’s independence day, today’s blog comes from high school student Malina Palamariu. Her parents moved from Roumania to Italy when she was very young and Malina was lucky to grow up bilingually. Find out more about Shakespeare in Romanian ——————————————————————————————————————- Shakespeare in Russian ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Shakespeare in Thai (1 November) In this video, Kanlaya Coulsting chose to read Portia’s “The quality of mercy” speech in Thai, translated by King Rama VI. In her blog she explains what drew her to that particular passage from The Merchant of Venice. I chose to read this extract because I think it reflects the kindness of King Rama VI as an incident in Thai history demonstrates. Find out more about Shakespeare in Thai The Stratford Gunpowder Plot (5 November) The tale o ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Black History Month – Ira Aldridge (1807-1867) (1 October) As many honour Ira Aldridge this year (the 150th Anniversary of his death) for the 30th Black History Month he is our focus for a series of blog posts. We have explored our collections to find the materials we hold relating to this great man who achieved so much at such a challenging time in the nineteenth century. Ira Aldridge is a fascinating character and it is particularly exciting that he performed in Stratford, spend ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Sharing Shakespeare Souvenirs: The Postcards (1 September) Postcards have long provided affordable souvenirs and offer a fascinating record of change and continuity in the Shakespeare houses.  At Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, the ‘Hathaway’ bedstead and courting settle – part of the furniture passed down the generations with the Cottage – have been central to how visitors have imagined the domestic world of Anne Hathaway and William Shakespeare. Find out more about Sharing Shakespeare ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Shakespeare in Swiss German (1 August) On the occasion of the Swiss National Holiday, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust period interpreter Paul Avery explores the Trust’s Swiss connections. My connections to Switzerland come from my mother and her family.  Mum grew up in the high alpine region of the Grisons canton, close to the source of the River Rhine.  Through visits to Switzerland over the years, as well as quite a bit of background reading, I have gained an extensive appreciation ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. First American edition of Shakespeare’s works (1st July) SR 38/1795-6. 81034512. The plays and poems of William Shakespeare.  On the occasion of American Independence Day, library volunteer Anna Kerr explores the history of the first American edition of Shakespeare’s works held at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust library. Find out more about the Trust’s first American edition   William Russell Sedgfield 1826-1902 (7 July) William Russell Sedgfield was accompanied by his younger brot ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Bram and the Guv’nor: ‘Who Knew Archives Could be so Much Fun?’ (2 June) In the week of 15-21 May, the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust was pleased to host a series of performances of Bram and the Guv’nor, a play by Jefny Ashcroft and directed by Jonathan Collings, based on the RSC’s Bram Stoker Collection. This production took place as part of the Arts Council funded project, Arts Friendly Archives, which is a ‘unique cultural intervention’ marrying performance, audience development and archives. F ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Szekspir po polsku (3 May) Shakespeare was first performed in Poland in the early 1600s, in English, in northern towns such as Gdańsk where an English-speaking émigré community had settled during the Middle Ages for economic and religious reasons.  Nationwide interest in Shakespeare grew in the 1700s. King Stanisław August Poniatowski was himself a great admirer of Shakespeare, and translated fragments of Julius Caesar from English to French. Find out more about Shakespeare in Polish Other ..read more

Take a look at the latest blog posts from the collections team at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. National Gardening Week – Tudor Plants (13 Apr) Taking a walk in a Tudor garden might throw up some surprises for the modern visitor. Can you tell spikenard from skirret? And do you know what to use them for? Spikenard, nardostachys jatamansi, is a member of the Valerian family and grows up to 1m in height with pink, bell-shaped flowers. It’s usually found in the Himalayas, around altitudes of 3000m-5000m. In Tudor times, it was used as a perfume, incense, or sedative, as well as to fight i ..read more