To Be Or Not To Be: Shakespeare Unlocked

In this episode we consult an online database, HyperHamlet, run by Professor Regula Hohl Trillini, which lists not just the way Hamlet has been endlessly quoted in the last four centuries, but also unpicks the way Shakespeare was in turn using quotes he'd scooped up from the books he'd read - quite possibly at school. We look at the theory of Professor Joel Altman, who suggested that the practice of rhetoric and the recycling of classical quotations, taught to all Elizabethan grammar school students like Shakespeare, led to Hamlet's philosophical despair. We also look at the value of Hamlet's argumentative, questing mind, and how useful it would be in today's struggle against extremism, radicalisation and fake news.

Producer Andrew Smith wonders why the banned erotic novelist Henry Miller hated Hamlet's speech so much that he wrote an entire book about it - one of the oddest books ever written about Shakespeare. This is a strange and murky tale, involving TS Eliot, James Joyce, DH Lawrence, George Orwell, a confused pub crawl, and a constipated drinking partner called Bill Dyker. The readings of Hamlet's speech are by Emma Fielding If you like the podcast, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts or spread the word on social media. Thank you!!l

Welcome to the first episode of the second series of the podcast, in which producer Andrew Smith relates what he learned while making the podcast, as well as recounting the little known stories and unexpected facts which swirl around Hamlet's famous speech. Why is this speech so famous? Why does it generate such contradictory interpretations and such conflicting responses, ranging from those who love it to those who hate it? In this episode we hear two contrasting stories; that of Jean Moulin, a French Resistance leader during the Second World War, and Kurt Cobain, lead singer of Nirvana - two men leading wildly different lives, who had one thing in common, a close and agonised attention to Hamlet's soliloquy The episode contains discussions about suicide. If you like the podcast, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts or spread the word on social media. Thank you!!l The readings of Hamlet's speech are by Emma Fielding

In this episode, American military veteran Stephan Wolfert relates the story of how Hamlet’s soliloquy saved his life when he was at his lowest point. Stephan now runs an organisation which uses Shakespearean monologues to help other veterans cope with their trauma. The episode also features Professor Alisha Ali. The reading is by Emma Fielding You can find out more about DE-CRUIT here: https://www.decruit.org/ This episode features discussion of suicide.

In this episode, we zero in on just one line in Hamlet's famous soliloquy to investigate how Shakespeare packs complex and multiple meanings into just a few words. We hear how neuroscientists have used the same line to investigate the startling effect which Shakespeare has on our brains. If you would like to support the podcast, please do "like" it - or leave a review! Thank you! This episode features Professor Simon Palfrey of Oxford University and Professor Philip Davis of the Centre for Research Into Reading, Literature and Society, Liverpool University. The reading is by Emma Fielding.

The Shakespeare scholars of Ukraine have found themselves on the frontline of a brutal war, and have launched an urgent appeal in conjunction with colleagues around the world. We hear from the scholars whose lives have been swept away by war, and who have bravely volunteered to do everything they can to help. They tell us how the play of Hamlet has been intertwined for centuries with the cause of Ukrainian freedom and independence; and how his famous question has a starkly existential meaning for the future of their country and for every Ukrainian. To donate to the Shakespeare scholars' appeal, all details are here: https://flutetheatre.co.uk/ Huge thanks to Ukrainian band Balaklava Blues for permission to use their song, Shelter Our Sky, which has been released this week to urge the international community to help Ukraine: https://www.balaklavablues.ca/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=kFAHCnNV-vE&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0tMia0WGP0uzRM-SGjfy6p5sufSiGnebdt8etAVRchARAp_NadF2cSndk

In this special episode of the podcast, we celebrate the return of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre after 14 months of lockdown and cancelled performances. What's it like to act on that famous stage, and what have actors learned after nearly 25 years of innovative theatrical experimentation? With Mark Rylance, Paul Chahidi, Naomi Frederick, Laura Rogers, Dominic Rowan, Emma Pallant, Michael Benz, Jonathan Broadbent and Philip Bird. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html# or email Andrew@fleetingyearfilms.com

In this episode of the podcast, we talk to people who have found meaning and a sense of shared experience in Hamlet’s famous soliloquy at the most difficult times of their lives; including dealing with bereavement, traumatic loss and mental health problems. We also talk to Maggie O Farrell, whose recent award-winning novel speculates that the uncanny power of the play may be rooted in the grief of Shakespeare himself, who wrote the play a few years after the death of his own son. With Lucy Clarke, Laura Clarke, Erica Cantley, Maggie O’Farrell, Christie Carson, Dominic Dromgoole and Emma Smith Laura Clarke's website: https://thebookhabit.co.uk/ Teaching Hamlet As My Father Died, by Erica Cantley: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Teaching-HAMLET-My-Father-Died/dp/1945962313/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= Hamnet, by Maggie O'Farrell: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hamnet-WINNER-WOMENS-PRIZE-FICTION/dp/1472223829/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1618391427&sr=1-1 The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html# or email Andrew@fleetingyearfilms.com

In this episode, we talk to some of Britain's leading stage actresses - Dame Harriet Walter, Mariah Gale, Sian Brooke, Katie West, Kellie Shirley and Stephanie McGregor - about Ophelia, one of the most iconic roles of the classical stage. We see Ophelia defy corrupt authority and express her own truths, assert her existential freedoms, in the famous so-called madness scene. The beautiful readings of Ophelia are by Emma Pallant, and the TBNTB speech is by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. The extract of Mariah Gale is from the Royal Shakespeare Company's filmed version of Hamlet, 2009, directed by Greg Doran and broadcast on the BBC For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#, or email Andrew@fleetingyearfilms.com

What can psychoanalysis tell us about Hamlet’s great speech? And what does it mean for our own divided, self-sabotaging personalities? Why do we often ask ourselves unanswerable questions? And are there any consolations which the search can bring us? With Dr Jamieson Webster, Professor Peter Brooks and Professor Richard Jacobs. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#, or email Andrew@fleetingyearfilms.com

In this episode, we look at the distinguished history of women playing Hamlet on the professional stage, a tradition which goes back almost 300 years. We hear how, as readers and theatre-goers, women helped make Shakespeare a lasting success - and find Hamlet's famous soliloquy becoming an inspiration and slogan in the fight for the vote for women. With Sophie Duncan, Nicole Cooper, Tony Howard, Michael Dobson and Alison Neil. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

In this episode, we visit the EGO Performance Company, actors with physical disabilities or learning difficulties, who perform and rehearse on Zoom during lockdown. The company has turned to Hamlet's famous soliloquy to explore issues in their own lives and in society; with insights ranging from the powerful and moving to the high-spirited and comical. You can find out more about EGO here: http://www.egoperformance.co.uk/ And they have a donation page here: https://localgiving.org/charity/egoperformance/ For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#, or email Andrew@fleetingyearfilms.com

Such is the uncanny power of "To Be Or Not To Be", it's been used by politicians and leaders for their own political purposes, from the current Chinese leader to Adolf Hitler; and as this episode reveals, it's also been a rallying cry for activists and protesters down the decades. We take a whistle-stop tour of the world, finding out how Hamlet's soliloquy is regularly used to evade censorship and speak truth to power. With Basharat Peer, investigative journalist, author and writer of Haider; Professor Margaret Litvin, and Professor Mark Burnett. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. Haider (2014) was produced by VB Pictures, directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, and is showing on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/70303432 For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#, or email Andrew@fleetingyearfilms.com

In this episode, psychoanalyst Jamieson Webster and philosopher Simon Critchley try to unlock the mysteries of Hamlet's tortured consciousness, highlighting the psychological strangeness and neurotic violence of the leading character, and locating Ophelia as the true hero of the play. Speaking candidly and personally, the couple reveal the heavy toll which investigating Hamlet and Ophelia had on their own marriage. The beautiful readings of Ophelia are by Emma Pallant, and the TBNTB speech is by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

In this episode, we uncover the radical roots of Hamlet’s soliloquy by tracing how it sounded in the mouths of the famous actors who played the role. For four centuries, Shakespeare has been fought over - is he for the elite or for everyone? It's a battle which has seen ordinary people sent to jail just for performing Shakespeare - and it's a cultural conflict which continues today. This is the first part of a series looking at the revolutionary history of "To be or not to be". With Ben and David Crystal, Sarah Dustagheer, Sonia Massai, David Roberts, Peter Holland, Leslie Ritchie, Jed Wentz and Paul Willenbrock. Readings by Kris Dyer, Emma Fielding, Simon Paisley Day The Pepys musical version: Paul Willenbrock, bass; Marco Horvat, baroque guitar; sound, Hamish Hossain; montage, Rebecca Young. Paul Willenbrock's website : sing-op-english.com For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

In this episode, we speak to the “verse doctors”, experts on the hidden rhythms of Hamlet's famous soliloquy, who uncover how Shakespeare laid a trail of subtle clues to direct today’s actors, four centuries after his death. With Giles Taylor, Philip Bird, Sarah Case, Giles Block, Joseph Millson and Tess Dignan. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. This is an amended version of an episode previously uploaded. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

In this episode, we ask the BIG questions - what does "To Be Or Not To Be" mean? Is there an answer? And can we relate Hamlet's famous soliloquy to the way we live our own lives? With Ewan Fernie, Emma Smith, Paul Kottman, Joshua Landy and Christie Carson. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID lockdown crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

In this episode, we follow a remarkable Black Lives Matter themed production which took Hamlet into New York's maximum security prisons, women's refuges and homeless shelters, and found new resonance and relevance in drama's most famous speech. With Chukwudi Iwuji, Patricia McGregor, Kristolyn Lloyd and Professor James Shapiro. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

What would it have been like to be an audience member at the very first performance of Hamlet, four centuries ago? And what might the extraordinary playing conditions of Shakespeare’s day have meant for Hamlet’s famous soliloquy? With Tiffany Stern, Sir Mark Rylance, Joseph Millson, Simon Palfrey, Ralph Alan Cohen, Dominic Dromgoole and John Harrell. The speech readings are by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. For more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#

In the first episode of To Be Or Not To Be, we ask some of our leading actors who've played Hamlet - how did they approach the most famous lines in all of English drama? And how did they handle the notorious psychological and emotional pressures of the role? With Adrian Lester, Samuel West, Jonathan Slinger, Nicole Cooper, Dominic Dromgoole, Joseph Millson, Michael Benz, Isabella Marshall and Jonathan Broadbent. The speech readings were by Emma Fielding and Simon Paisley Day. Please visit the podcast website for more information on the podcast and how you can help theatres and actors during the COVID crisis: http://www.fleetingyearfilms.com/podcast.html#