74 APRIL 2016 http://www.stampandcoin.co.ukB
orn in Stratford on
Avon in 1564, on
an unknown date in
April, traditionally
quoted as the 23rd,
William Shakespeare,
the son of an alderman, grew up
in the small Warwickshire town of
Stratford on Avon and went on to
become one of the world’s most
celebrated playwrights.
Despite his worldwide fame, during
his own lifetime Shakespeare was just
one of hundreds of playwrights who
plied their trade in the burgeoning
theatre scene of Elizabethan London.
Indeed, Shakespeare is said to have
been branded an ‘upstart crow’ by
playwright Robert Greene, who had
observed the rise of this rural writer
who was pitting his plays against the
likes of more educated and experienced
writers such as Greene himself, and
Christopher Marlowe.
William Shakespeare entered
theatrical records in 1592, at the age of
28, with the first known performances
of his plays. By 1594, his plays were
in print, putting him on the road to
becoming a wealthy man. At this stage,
he had performed his work for Queen
Elizabeth I and was producing anWe mark the 400th anniversary of the
death of William Shakespeare with a look
at stamps featuring the bard, his plays
and places associated with this lifeaverage of two plays a year for various
theatre companies.
From the splendour of the
Elizabethan court to the more down-
to-earth conviviality of the public
house, Shakespeare’s plays were
performed then – as now – to a variety
of audiences in many different venues.
Perhaps the venue most associated
with Shakespeare’s plays is the Globe
Theatre in London, which has made
its appearance on several stamps. The
white, circular playhouse, which has
been reconstructed as it would have
appeared in its Elizabethan heyday,
lends itself well to stamp design, as
spectacularly demonstrated on a set
of 1995 GB commemorative stamps
designed by C Walter Hodges to mark
the Globe’s reconstruction. The Swan,
The Rose, The Hope and The Globe
were all featured, with each shown
in its Thames-side location, peopled
with both Shakespeare characters and
audience members.Thematics
After a life spent immersed in both
playwriting and acting in London,
Shakespeare died at the age of 52, just
three years after he retired from the
theatre, on 23 April, 1616. He was
buried at the Holy Trinity Church in
Stratford on Avon.Anniversary stamps
The 400th anniversary of the birth
of Shakespeare in 1964 saw demands
from the public for a commemorative
stamp to mark the event. The Post
Office, however, faced a dilemma as
at this stage, it had never featured a
‘commoner’ on a British stamp.
The issue was sidestepped with the
announcement that the anniversary
would be marked by the release of
a stamp commemorating the 1964
Shakespeare Festival in Stratford on
Avon. This issue would comprise four
low denomination stamps featuring
Shakespeare himself, as shown onShakespeare
on stamps
Shakespeare’s global
appeal has meant that
dozens of countries have
featured his portrait and
plays on their stamps
over the yearsp74 Theme.indd 74 01/03/2016 11:40