Synopses & Reviews
Many people know about William Shakespeare's famous encounter with the
Doctor at the Globe Theatre in 1599. But what few people know (
though many have suspected) is that it was not the first time they met.
Drawn from recently discovered archives, The Shakespeare Notebooks is the holy grail for Bard scholars: conclusive proof that the Doctor not only appeared throughout Shakespeare's life but also had a significant impact on his writing. In these pages you'll find early drafts of scenes and notes for characters that never appeared in the plays; discarded lines of dialogue and sonnets; never-before-seen journal entries; and much more.
From the original notes for Hamlet (with a very different appearance by the ghost) and revealing early versions of the faeries of A Midsummer Night's Dream to strange stage directions revised to remove references to a mysterious blue box, The Shakespeare Notebooks is an astonishing document that offers a unique insight into the mind of one of history's most respected and admired figures. And also, of course, William Shakespeare.
Synopsis
Newly discovered entries and drawings in William Shakespeares journals reveal for the first time the astounding relationship between the great Bard and the Doctor.
Since his first adventure in 1963, the Doctor has enjoyed many encounters with William Shakespeare. Now, BBC Books has rediscovered notebooks, long thought lost, compiled by the Bard in which he divulges the influential role the Doctor played in his creative life. Here are the original notes for Hamlet, including a very different appearance by the ghost; early versions of great lines (“To reverse or not to reverse the polarity of the neutron flow”); the true story of how the faeries of A Midsummer Nights Dream were first imagined; stage directions for plays adjusted to remove references to a mysterious blue box; and much, much more.
About the Author
Justin Richards has written for stage and screen as well as novels and graphic novels. He writes extensively for children and has also co-authored several action thrillers for young adults with the acknowledged master of the genre, Jack Higgins. The first two novels in his adult science fiction Never War series, The Suicide Exhibition and The Blood Red City, were published in 2013 and 2014, respectively. Justin acts as creative consultant to BBC Books' Doctor Who titles, and he has penned quite a few himself. Married with two children (both boys), Justin lives and works in Warwick, England, within sight of one of Britain's bestpreserved castles.