The Shakespeare Conspiracy [Paperback]

SAFE READING - NO SPOILERS

Most people in school are educated (if they are fortunate) in plays by a playwright called Shakespeare and, with the interest focused on the plays, little is made of Shakespeare apart from a few basic details and the general comment that little is actually known of this genius of the theatre.

Later, a few may discover the "real truth"; no-one actually knows who he was, although there are fiercely defended schools of thought of all descriptions, each energetically supporting its views with a range of "evidence".

Like the sheep in George Orwell's "Animal Farm" who agree with whoever is speaking at the time, I find myself gravitating to the author I am reading (and I have read a great many) because each one seems strangely plausible and the evidence compelling. I have a wide and varied collection of this genre for reasons I find hard to fathom and explain in the daylight. Beginning with questioning everything, even the date of his birth, the authors point out how little information there is then usually proceed to "prove" their candidate's legitimate claim.

With the hardcover currently at £105.00 and the paperback at £5.00, unless readers really enjoy the quality of a hardcover or are looking for a first edition, the choice seems obvious. I must admit I do prefer hardcovers and on Amazon, they are often much cheaper, e.g. I bought all of Simon Scarrow's "Rome" series in hardcovers for 1p each.) Apologies, I digress.

Martin Keatman and Graham Phillips begin by looking at the various suggestions (up to the point of writing - 1995 - but there have been a few since, e.g. 2005, "The Truth Will Out" by James and Rubenstein published by Pearson Longman.) Successfully in my (sheepish) view, they demolish the previous contenders, e.g. Bacon, Derby, Oxford and Marlowe, for a variety of quite logical and convincing reasons, and then begin to piece together another story around a character called William Hall. To retain the surprise and pleasure for readers, I will reveal nothing, even under threat of torture!

One element of their style I particularly enjoyed was their summaries at the end of each chapter, listing the main points clearly and succinctly. Later, if cross-referencing was necessary (and it was frequently), the summaries made it straightforward. They also added a helpful timeline at the end of the book, just before the detailed and scholarly bibliography.

What is truly astonishing is how, with this dearth of real information and hard facts, so many authors have written so many books over so long a period and now there is a film too. This book re-examines all the known facts in an enjoyable read with some fascinating new slants and interpretations revealed in the latter section.

The authors conclude: "The mythical figure of Shakespeare will continue to flourish." Long may it do so and, in the meantime, until someone discovers a numbered passport (we can check against Tudor records) with a photograph - "Name: William Shakespeare, Occupation: playwright", we still have the plays.

PS
"The Shakespeare Conspiracy" [1999] [DVD] [2005]
"The Shakespeare Conspiracy - A Novel: The Story of the Greatest Literary Deception of All Time - Based Entirely on Historical Facts" [Paperback] A really catchy title! Ted Bacino (Author)
"Anonymous" 2011 film - a political thriller and costume drama directed by Roland Emmerich. It stars Rhys Ifans and Vanessa Redgrave.