Starting on Monday 21 March, Shakespeare On Tour will begin broadcasting the first of over 200 stories across all BBC Local Radio stations and regional television in England and at bbc.co.uk/shakespeareontour.
Shakespeare on Tour includes stories that are all linked to specific places across the country as part of a season of BBC programming to mark 400 years since Shakespeare’s death.

This unique and ambitious broadcasting event will uncover surprising stories about where Shakespeare’s plays were performed, along with other iconic moments such as the first black actor to perform Shakespeare on the British stage, the rise of the female star and notable Shakespearean child actors

It also charts locations where Shakespeare’s acting companies performed – a number of which survive to this day.

To help bring these stories to life, the BBC has been working closely with the British Library to unearth stories from their historic collection of theatre playbills relating to Shakespeare performances across the UK, and an academic project spanning 40 years called Records of Early English Drama (REED).

Craig Henderson, Head of Programmes, BBC English Regions, said: “This unique project brings together on-going academic research as well as stories of Shakespeare performances told through original playbills from the late 18th century onwards.

“For audiences, this will create a rich collection of stories relating to locations of performances of Shakespeare’s work, starting with his own troupe of performers, to highlights from more recent times.

“The stories reveal familiar places from all corners of the country in a new and fascinating light, places that we might drive or walk past every day without realising their historical resonance

“Audiences will be able to discover factual details about their local town halls, pubs and private houses around the country where Shakespeare’s plays were performed; how much Shakespeare’s players were paid; and the project will travel forward from the late 16th century to track other iconic moments such as the first – and controversial – appearance of black and female performers on stage.

“The stories will all be available online at bbc.co.uk/shakespeareontour where they can be enjoyed for many years to come.”

Adrian Edwards, Head of Printed Heritage Collections at the British Library, said: “The British Library has an extraordinary collection of more than 200,000 theatre playbills which give a fascinating snapshot into the thriving local theatre scene in England over the past 250 years, from burlesques and musicals to child stars and Victorian melodrama. 

“Thanks to Hannah Manktelow, a PhD student based at the British Library whose research was the inspiration for Shakespeare on Tour, and the team at BBC English Regions, the stories of these historic performances have been brought to life for the 21st century. This is a fantastic project to mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, and we look forward to sharing more stories of how Shakespeare became a cultural icon in our upcoming anniversary exhibition, Shakespeare in Ten Acts, opening on 15 April.”

Professor John McGavin from REED, said: “It has been a great pleasure and privilege for Records of Early English Drama to collaborate with the BBC and the British Library. The highest possible standards of research underpin this set of local stories relating to Shakespeare, his life, works, colleagues, and cultural legacy. This imaginative BBC project is populist in the very best sense, and through local and national coverage and the Shakespeare on Tour website it is sure to benefit people in regions which Shakespeare and his contemporaries could not even have imagined visiting.”

All BBC Local Radio stations across England will broadcast a Shakespeare on Tour story in the Breakfast show and at various times throughout the day from Monday 21 March.

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