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Shakespeare's Restless World

Shakespeare's Restless World

BBC Radio 4 Extra

Making a selection of objects from the British Museum and collections across the UK, Neil MacGregor uncovers the stories they tell about Shakespeare's world.

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Top 10 Shakespeare's Restless World Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Shakespeare's Restless World episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Shakespeare's Restless World for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Shakespeare's Restless World episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Shakespeare's Restless World - 20. Shakespeare Goes Global

20. Shakespeare Goes Global

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/11/12 • 13 min

The publication of the First Folio of Shakespeare's collected plays in 1623 began the process of turning an early modern playwright into a global phenomenon.

An annotated copy of the Collected Works of Shakespeare reveals the extent to which Shakespeare has inspired and influenced audiences across the globe and through the ages.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 1. England Goes Global

1. England Goes Global

Shakespeare's Restless World

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04/16/12 • 13 min

How Sir Francis Drake's circumnavigation of the globe changed the way Shakespeare's audiences viewed the world and their country's place on it.

For the first time, England was engaging with the whole world.

First in an object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 19. The Theatres of Cruelty

19. The Theatres of Cruelty

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/10/12 • 13 min

A human eyeball in a silver setting provides a striking insight to the theatre of cruelty in Elizabethan and Jacobean Britain.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 17. Plague and the Playhouse

17. Plague and the Playhouse

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/08/12 • 13 min

May 1603 saw not only a new king but the worst plague outbreak since the Black Death. Its impact and reach is told through a series of early seventeenth century proclamations.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 16. A Time of Change, a Change of Time

16. A Time of Change, a Change of Time

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/07/12 • 13 min

A rare domestic clock with an equally rare minute hand and quarter-hour chimes reveals the changing relationship Shakespeare's audiences had to time.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 15. The Flag That Failed

15. The Flag That Failed

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/04/12 • 13 min

The problems in uniting Scotland and England and in creating a Great Britain are encapsulated in a set of designs for a common flag.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 14. Disguise and Deception

14. Disguise and Deception

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/03/12 • 13 min

Deception and religion, cross-dressing and travelling salesmen are all unpacked via a pedlar's trunk.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 13. From London to Marrakech

13. From London to Marrakech

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/02/12 • 13 min

Sunken gold from West Africa sheds light on the complex relationship Elizabethan England had with the Moors of the Mediterranean.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 12. Sex and the City

12. Sex and the City

Shakespeare's Restless World

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05/01/12 • 13 min

A delicate glass goblet reveals the twin seductions of Venice: its sought after luxuries and its equally sought after lecherous women.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2012.

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Shakespeare's Restless World - 11. Treason and Plots

11. Treason and Plots

Shakespeare's Restless World

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04/30/12 • 13 min

A tabloid history of Shakespeare's England, told through a collection of contemporary accounts of plots to murder Elizabeth I and James I.

Object-based history series presented by Neil MacGregor, former Director of the British Museum.

Taking artefacts from William Shakespeare's time, he explores how Elizabethan and Jacobean playgoers made sense of the unstable and rapidly changing world in which they lived.

With old certainties shifting around them, in a time of political and religious unrest and economic expansion, Neil asks what the plays would have meant to the public when they were first performed.

He uses carefully selected objects to explore the great issues of the day that preoccupied the public and helped shape the works, and he considers what they can reveal about the concerns and beliefs of Shakespearean England.

Producer: Paul Kobrak

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2012.

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FAQ

How many episodes does Shakespeare's Restless World have?

Shakespeare's Restless World currently has 20 episodes available.

What topics does Shakespeare's Restless World cover?

The podcast is about History and Podcasts.

What is the most popular episode on Shakespeare's Restless World?

The episode title '20. Shakespeare Goes Global' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Shakespeare's Restless World?

The average episode length on Shakespeare's Restless World is 14 minutes.

How often are episodes of Shakespeare's Restless World released?

Episodes of Shakespeare's Restless World are typically released every day.

When was the first episode of Shakespeare's Restless World?

The first episode of Shakespeare's Restless World was released on Apr 16, 2012.

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