Macbeth: Fact or Fiction?

09/08/21 • 31 min

Shakespeareâs Macbeth is a fascinating figure- resourceful, brave, insightful, reflective, but itâs his inordinate ambition that leads to his downfall. Can the same be said of Scotlandâs real Macbeth? Here in Episode 29, we unpack the characters in Shakespeareâs play Macbeth alongside their historical (or mythical) counterparts including Banquo, Malcolm, McDuff, even the witches. We also let you in on a few theatre traditions involving âThe Scottish Playâ as well as why you can never say the word Macbeth in a theatre.
Episode Notes:

The word Bard means poet and because William Shakespeare was from the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, he was known as the Bard of Avon. Even though the title was never officially bestowed, in 1769 the Shakespearean actor David Garrick is credited with organizing the Shakespeare Jubilee for which he wrote a song referring to Shakespeare as the Warwickshire Bard which seems to have eventually morphed into The Bard of Avon. Here is a link to Garrick's original song, https://www.bartleby.com/333/77.html
Sir Laurence Olivier played the title role in Macbeth at the Old Vic Theatre in London in 1937.

Books:

Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Holinshedâs Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland by Raphael Holinshed
Scotland: The Story of a Nation by Magnus Magnusson
The Reign of Elizabeth 1556-1603 by J.B. Black
The History of Scotland by Sir Walter Scott

Film:

Macbeth (1948) Directed by and starring Orson Welles
The Tragedy of Macbeth (1971) Directed by Roman Polanski, starring John Finch
The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021) Directed by Joel Cohen, starring Denzel Washington

The word Bard means poet and because William Shakespeare was from the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, he was known as the Bard of Avon. Even though the title was never officially bestowed, in 1769 the Shakespearean actor David Garrick is credited with organizing the Shakespeare Jubilee for which he wrote a song referring to Shakespeare as the Warwickshire Bard which seems to have eventually morphed into The Bard of Avon. Here is a link to Garrick's original song, https://www.bartleby.com/333/77.html
Sir Laurence Olivier played the title role in Macbeth at the Old Vic Theatre in London in 1937.

Books:

Macbeth by William Shakespeare
Holinshedâs Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland by Raphael Holinshed
Scotland: The Story of a Nation by Magnus Magnusson
The Reign of Elizabeth 1556-1603 by J.B. Black
The History of Scotland by Sir Walter Scott

Film:

Macbeth (1948) Directed by and starring Orson Welles
The Tragedy of Macbeth (1971) Directed by Roman Polanski, starring John Finch
The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021) Directed by Joel Cohen, starring Denzel Washington

Previous Episode

Joan of Arc

Almost six centuries have come and gone and weâre still talking about an illiterate peasant girl who only lived to be nineteen years old. Why? Not only did she inspire her nation by leading thousands of men into battle, but she also ushered in the end of the Hundredâs Year War thus saving her nation of France from English rule. Was she divinely inspired or was she a schizophrenic who heard the voices of martyred saints in her head? We may never know the answer to that question, but here in Episode 28 we unpack a lot about Joan of Arc.
Episode Edit:
In the interest of accuracy and fairness, in 1450, almost twenty years after Joan's death, King Charles VII did himself have a retrial of Joan which vindicated her. This was before Pope Calixtus III (1455-1458) also had a retrial. To Charles' credit, he couldn't have the retrial until he did because it wasn't until late 1449 that he and French forces were able to take Rouen where Joan's trial and burning occurred and where all the papers and documents related to the trial were located.
Books:

The Hundred Years War by Edouard Perroy (translated from the French)
Joan: The Mysterious Life of The Heretic Who Became a Saint by Donald Spoto
The Life of Joan of Arc by Anatole France (translated from the French)
The Fifteenth Century 1399-1485 by E.F. Jacob
Joan of Arc: A Military Leader by Kelly DeVries

Film:

The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) silent film with RenÃ©e Falconetti
Joan of Arc (1948) with Ingrid Bergman

Next Episode

A Handful of Holiday Histories

Everyone has their favorite holiday, but do you know how your favorite holiday came into being? The answers may surprise you. For instance, in 12th century England, New Yearâs Day was celebrated on March 25th, but the ancient Celts celebrated their New Year (Sumhain) on November 1st. So why do we now celebrate the New Year on January 1st? And why do we now use the Gregorian Calendar as opposed to the Julian Calendar? Also, did the Druids really use human sacrifices during their celebrations? And why would shepherds be tending their flocks in the middle of December? Did slavery still exist after June 19, 1865? Here in our 30th episode we answer every single one of those questions and much more!
Episode Notes:

King Numa Pompilius (c. 700 BC) is credited with adding January and February to the old 10-month Roman calendar, but March 1st remained New Yearâs Day for Romans until the Julian calendar was developed around 45 BC.
President Abraham Lincoln did not, in August of 1862, write to Horatio Seymour, former and future Governor of New York, about slavery and the Union, but rather to Horace Greeley, editor of The New York Tribune.
As promised, here is Rebeccaâs Spotify playlist, âOctober Songsâ.

Books: