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The Bard Speaks
Few people have influenced the English language more than William Shakespeare.
Playwright, poet, actor and creator of some of the most famous characters ever written, Shakespeare’s words have survived for more than four centuries. He gave us Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and hundreds of phrases we still use today.
Yet despite his fame, the man himself remains surprisingly mysterious.
If we could sit down with Shakespeare today, what would the world’s greatest playwright tell us about love, writing, fame and the secret of enduring success?
Master Shakespeare, did you always know you would become a writer?
Not at all.
Had you asked the young William of Stratford, he would have been more concerned with earning a living than earning immortality.
The latter proved a pleasant surprise.
What do people misunderstand most about you?
That I spent my days speaking in poetry.
I assure you, if one attempted to order breakfast entirely in verse, one would starve.
Did you know your plays would still be performed hundreds of years later?
Good heavens, no.
Playwrights are generally worried about next week’s audience, not the next four centuries.
What was the secret of your success?
People.
Kings change.
Empires rise and fall.
Human beings remain remarkably consistent.
Love, jealousy, ambition, greed, friendship, revenge, these things never go out of fashion.
Which of your characters is most like you?
A dangerous question.
Perhaps a little of Hamlet’s curiosity.
A touch of Falstaff’s humour.
And occasionally Bottom’s ability to make a fool of himself.
Who was your favourite character to write?
Falstaff.
Any man capable of making an audience laugh while behaving so badly deserves admiration.
Romeo and Juliet. Romance or recklessness?
Both.
The young are often unable to distinguish between them.
That is why they make such excellent characters.
What would surprise you most about today’s world?
That people carry libraries in their pockets and still complain they have nothing to read.
What do you think of modern entertainment?
I am delighted to discover audiences remain interested in stories.
Though I confess I would have enjoyed writing for cinema.
The special effects budget appears considerably larger.
What was your greatest strength?
Observation.
Writers are professional eavesdroppers.
We listen.
We watch.
And then we pretend we invented everything ourselves.
And your greatest weakness?
Deadlines.
The theatre manager always wanted the next play sooner than I wished to write it.
Some things, I see, have not changed.
What advice would you give aspiring writers?
Write.
Not tomorrow.
Not when inspiration arrives.
Today.
The blank page is defeated one sentence at a time.
What would surprise people most about the real Shakespeare?
How ordinary I was.
People expect legends to be larger than life.
Most are simply people who happened to do something memorable.
Looking back, what achievement are you most proud of?
That people still find meaning in my work.
A writer hopes to be read.
I have been fortunate beyond measure.
How would you like to be remembered?
As a storyteller, there are worse things a man can be.
Quick Fire Round
Comedy or Tragedy?
Comedy. Everyone prefers to go home smiling.
Favourite Character?
Falstaff.
Favourite Word?
Imagine.
Greatest Strength?
Curiosity.
Greatest Weakness?
Procrastination.
Three Words Friends Would Use To Describe You?
Observant, witty, ambitious.
Dream Dinner Guest?
Charles Dickens. I’d like to compare notes.
Perfect Sunday?
A good meal, a good story and no critics.
The Dead Famous Question
What does a good life mean to you?
To leave behind something worthwhile.
We are all temporary.
Our words, our actions and our kindness need not be.
The measure of a life is not how long it lasts.
It is what remains after it has ended.
Fact File
Name: William Shakespeare
Born: April 1564
Died: 23 April 1616
Occupation: Playwright, Poet and Actor
Known For: Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Othello and dozens more.
Most Famous Title: The Bard of Avon.
Legacy: Widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language.
Editor’s Closing Thoughts
Interviewing William Shakespeare is unexpectedly good fun.
The man responsible for some of history’s greatest tragedies turns out to possess a sharp wit and a surprisingly practical outlook on life.
What strikes me most is that Shakespeare never set out to become Shakespeare. He simply wanted to tell stories.
Four hundred years later, those stories continue to move us, entertain us and remind us that despite all our modern inventions, people haven’t changed very much at all.
And if the Bard has taught us anything, it is that a great story never really ends.