BBC iPlayer

As part of the BBC’s plans to provide a richer service to audiences and help foster growth in the creative industries, on 23 April a mix of programmes from not-for-profit arts organisations involved in the six-month Shakespeare Lives festival, co-curated by the BBC and British Council and including the British Film Institute, the Royal Shakespeare Company, Hay Festival, the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Shakespeare’s Globe and the Royal Opera House - will be made available to audiences for the first time on BBC iPlayer.

Published: 18 April 2016

Programmes will include:

  • Shakespeare on Stage, Screen And Elsewhere, with Ian McKellen: a British Film Institute production, in which Ian McKellen shares his unique insights into the problems and joys of interpreting Shakespeare for the theatre, television, radio and cinema.
  • David Tennant’s performance as Richard II in the latest production of the play from the Royal Shakespeare Company.
  • A performance at Holy Trinity Church, where Shakespeare is buried, by Ex Cathedra of A Shakespeare Masque – A Contemporary Ode To Shakespeare, written by the Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, with music composed by Sally Beamish.
  • A celebration of the cast and crew of Hamlet, produced by Shakespeare’s Globe, as they return to Bankside after a two-year, round-the-world tour.
  • Breakfast With The Bard: in collaboration with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Suzy Klein and guests give an exclusive preview of the newly commissioned artworks and archaeology shaping the story of Shakespeare’s New Place for the 21st century.
  • Ballet, Opera And The Bard: an exploration of Shakespeare in ballet and opera, provided by the Royal Opera House.
  • BBC iPlayer will also showcase selected complete Shakespeare sessions from this year’s Hay Festival.