The English language is spoken by 450 million people around the globe, with a further one billion using it as a second language. It is arguably Britain’s most famous export. The man often given credit for the global triumph of English, and the invention of many of our modern words, is William Shakespeare. Shakespeare’s plays first hit the stage four centuries ago, as the explorers of Elizabethan England were laying the foundations for the British empire. It was this empire that would carry English around the world. Language historian and BBC New Generation Thinker Dr John Gallagher asks whether the real story of how English became a global linguistic superpower is more complex.

A radical cinematic investigation into the myth of Hamlet, the avenging prince of Denmark, William S...

Documentary examination of the role of Hamlet, in which ten prominent actors who have played the par...

"Shakespeare Country" will take you on a journey, not only through the life of the great Bard of Avo...

Mel Gibson teaches Hamlet to a group of high school drama students.

Journey into "Hamlet"-the play and the man-through the experiences of some of the major actors and d...

The story behind the translation and performance of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" in Klingon.

One of the greatest Hamlets of the 20th century Sir John Gielgud reflects on the play and its title ...

The making of the next Aaron Aaron Byrne Movie takes a turn for the worst.

A tour of Stratford-upon-Avon's houses and hamlets, stomping ground of a young William Shakespeare.

War widow and pre-teen daughter leave home of tyrannical father-in-law in Florida, get lost on a det...

Scotland, 11th century. Driven by the twisted prophecy of three witches and the ruthless ambition of...

A tragedy by William Shakespeare about King Lear who intends to abdicate, and therefore wants to car...

Twins Viola and Sebastian are separated by a shipwreck. Viola lands in Illyria, where she disguises ...

Four young people escape Athens to a forest where the king and queen of the fairies are quarreling, ...

If you had a love-potion, who would you make fall madly in love with you? Timothy, prone to escaping...

Blood will have blood. Unbridled ambition, supernatural forces, and murderous desires reign supreme ...

At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his...

Three witches predict that Macbeth will ascend to the throne of Scotland. To fulfill this prophecy, ...

A theatre director intends to make a revolutionary version of Hamlet. It all starts with finding the...

The ultimate royal family crisis. Prince Hamlet's father is dead, poisoned by his uncle, who has usu...