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Episode 3

In the fallout of the Gunpowder Plot, a family scandal threatens Shakespeare’s reputation. Creating his most epic and tragic work yet, his legacy is at risk of being lost forever.

Shakespeare’s life and legacy is threatened when the Gunpowder Plot unearths a secret he has worked all his life to bury: his family are Catholics, traitors to the crown. When his daughter is implicated in the fallout, Shakespeare unleashes his most epic work to date: Macbeth, which appeals to the new monarch, King James I. As Shakespeare teeters towards death, he reflects on his successes and failures, questioning family, forgiveness and mortality as his work is at risk of being lost forever.

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59 minutes

Audio described

Last on

Sat 25 Nov 2023 01:00

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Credits

Role Contributor
Narrator Juliet Stevenson
Director Julian Jones
Editor Tom Herington
Editor Justin James
Composer Nick Foster
Executive Producer David Glover

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