The Shakespeare Sessions

BBC Radio 3

4.8 (79)
DRAMA

Your one-stop shop for all things Shakespeare. Catch A-List casts in brand new audio versions of Shakespeare’s greatest plays, plus documentaries from the brightest minds on the bard’s life and work.

04/26/2020

Who is Falstaff?

Toby Jones on playing the boisterous and fun-loving knight Falstaff. Toby Jones stars as Falstaff in our full-length version of Henry IV Part 1, which you can find in your podcast feed.

2 min
04/26/2020

Full Length Play: Henry IV Part 1

Rebellion is brewing in Britain. King Henry must reunite his country but how when even his own family is divided? As Henry's rule is threatened his son Hal appears unconcerned, wasting his time in the company of the comically corrupt Falstaff and common thieves, apparently more interested in play than the politics of state. Yet what kind of leadership is needed to unite the country might well be found in the taverns of Eastcheap as within the Palace of Westminster. King Henry ..... Iain Glen Falstaff ..... Toby Jones Hal ..... Luke Thompson Hotspur ..... Tom Glynn-Carney Worcester .....Mark Bonnar Lady Percy .....Natalie Simpson Glendower ..... Steffan Rhodri Lady Mortimer ..... Bettrys Jones Westmoreland ..... Roger Ringrose Northumberland/Douglas ..... John Dougall Bardolph/ Sir Walter Blunt ..... John Lightbody Peto/Sherriff/Vernon ..... Sargon Yelda John/Mortimer ..... Chris Lew Kum Hoi Poins/Messenger ..... Hasan Dixon Mistress Quickly ..... Elizabeth Counsell Written by William Shakespeare Music composed by John Nicholls. Adapted and directed by Sally Avens.

1h 58m
04/21/2020

Full Length Play: Othello

Khalid Abdalla, Matthew Needham and Cassie Layton star in Shakespeare's tragedy. This version is staged in an imagined near future, in which a power-hungry Turkish president attempts an attack on Cyprus. The western forces rush to Cyprus' defence, under the command of the fearless General Othello. But can an Arab-born, Christian convert ever be truly accepted by the people he serves? Adapted and directed for radio by Emma Harding You can listen to Dr Islam Issa giving us a quick rundown of events in the 1600s that influenced the character of Othello, in your podcast feed. And don't forget to check out Looking for the Moor, also in your podcast feed, which sees Hugh Quarshie explore Othello and ask if the play is racist. Cast Othello.....Khalid Abdalla Iago.....Matthew Needham Desdemona.....Cassie Layton Cassio.....Max Bennett Brabantio.....Neil McCaul Roderigo.....Clive Hayward Duke of Venice.....Jessica Turner Montano.....Peter Polycarpou Emilia.....Bettrys Jones Lodovico.....Ian Conningham Bianca.....Heather Craney All other parts played by Sargon Yelda and Hasan Dixon

2h 2m
04/21/2020

Othello: What it means to be a Moor

Dr Islam Issa, Senior Lecturer at Birmingham City University, gives us a rundown of events in the 1600s that influenced the character of Othello. You can listen to our full-length version of Othello, set in an imagined near future, in your podcast feed.

4 min
05/09/2019

Coriolanus: A tragic hero

A whistle-stop tour through Ancient Rome with writer and broadcaster Natalie Haynes.

4 min
07/23/2018

Exit Burbage

Imagine where we'd be without Shakespeare's plays. It's difficult to contemplate now. But it was thanks to another man that many of them were brought to life. Today, Richard Burbage is a not a household name. But he should be. He's the man for whom many of the great Shakespearean roles were created. One of the founding members of the Lord Chamberlain's Men, playing at the newly built Globe in 1599, he's one of the foundations upon which British theatre was built. Andrew Dickson talks to leading actors, rummages among the archives and dissects some of the greatest parts in acting to discover Burbage's crucial role - and realises that without Richard Burbage, there could be no Shakespeare. Producer: Penny Murphy

45 min
07/11/2018

My Own Shakespeare: Gareth Malone and Margaret Drabble

Gareth Malone and Margaret Drabble on strength and nature

6 min
07/04/2018

My Own Shakespeare: Zoe Wanamaker and Jim Al-Khalili

Zoe Wanamaker on the world of play and Jim Al-Khalili on staying rational.

6 min

See All (15)

4.8

out of 5

79 Ratings

Where’s King Lear?

05/13/2024

chicka-doodle-doo

There was a marvelous performance of King Lear in this series with Ian MacDiarmid! Where’d it go? Marvelous performance! Please bring it back!
This Shakespeare Sessions

09/22/2021

RWseaturtle

Superb BBC series! I hope there will be more!
Helpful but..

10/21/2021

wolf lover female

Is vary helpful when I’m doing stuff so I can but it in and do the thing I need to get done. I do wish they would do it more like a book instead of having the sounds of a play…I can get confusing at times but it’s still vary good. And they need to do more, they don’t have king Henry the 5th or the other part of king Henry the 4th (part 2).
Great to see the Bard’s plays professionally recorded

10/31/2019

Rick Baum

Thanks for a great recording and for the interesting content you provide. Invaluable!

Your one-stop shop for all things Shakespeare. Catch A-List casts in brand new audio versions of Shakespeare’s greatest plays, plus documentaries from the brightest minds on the bard’s life and work.