The National’s modern Coriolanus
David Oyelowo is best as Rome’s greatest soldier when he loses his temper.
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My personal Blue Monday involved mountains of couscous and Shakespeare
Financial lockdown means cooking meals that Lee Anderson would approve of, plus red-hot Bardic action.
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The secrets of Shakespeare’s “stupid”, “grotesque” portrait
The infamous “pudding-faced” Droeshout portrait is widely agreed to be hideous and embarrassing. Is there more to it than meets…
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From Elizabeth Winkler to Claire Kilroy: new books reviewed in short
Also featuring Cinderella Boys by Leo McKinstry and In Light-Years There’s No Hurry by Marjolijn van Heemstra.
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Shakespeare’s race problem
The playwright reflected the prejudices of his age, but he also questioned and undermined them.
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No, Philip Larkin is not being “cancelled” by schools
The culture war against teachers and academics is manufactured by right-wing newspapers and rent-a-quote reactionaries.
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Jonathan Bate: “To me, Shakespeare is the great enabler”
How the acclaimed critic made his journey to popular writing, finds solace in Shakespeare, and took revenge on Cambridge.
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From the NS archive: Shakespeare’s garden
26 May 1923: With what relish Shakespeare recites his catalogue of flowers!
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The Tragedy of Macbeth at the Almeida Theatre: here, nothing is polite
Yaël Farber’s production, starring James McArdle and Saoirse Ronan, summons up an energy that is raw and bloody.
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