''The Pattern of Painful Adventures'' is a 90-minute 2008 radio play by

Stephen Wakelam Stephen Wakelam is an English writer and playwright born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, Derbyshire. After Cambridge University, he was an English Teacher and Head of Department in South Yorkshire until he became a full-time writer in 1 ...

on the circumstances surrounding the writing of the play ''

Pericles, Prince of Tyre ''Pericles, Prince of Tyre'' is a Jacobean play written at least in part by William Shakespeare and included in modern editions of his collected works despite questions over its authorship, as it was not included in the First Folio. It was p ...

'' by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

and the sickness of his brother Edmund's child, introduced by a flashback by his daughter Susannah, playwright John Marston and William's secretary Robinson. It links the play to the marriage of Susannah and the birth of her daughter and to the similar themes of daughters, forests, storms, shipwrecks and lost infants from '' As You Like It'', ''

The Winter's Tale ''The Winter's Tale'' is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, many modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some crit ...

'', and '' The Tempest''. It is named after '' The Pattern of Painful Adventures'', a main source for ''Pericles''. It was first broadcast on BBC Radio 3 at 8pm on 23 November 2008, directed and produced by

Jeremy Mortimer Jeremy Mortimer is a British director and producer of radio dramas for BBC Radio.Jeremy Mor ...

, and was followed in the same slot on 30 November by a repeat of a 2005 radio production of ''Pericles'', with

Tom Mannion Tom Mannion is a Scottish actor. His television credits include ''Brookside'', ''Up the Garden Path'', ''The Bill'', ''Boon'', '' Cadfael'', '' Doctor Finlay'', '' Doctors'', ''Eleventh Hour'', ''Holby City'', ''Roman Mysteries'', '' Hustle'', ...

as Pericles and

Benjamin Zephaniah Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah (born 15 April 1958)Gregory, Andy (2002), ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa, p. 562. . is a British writer and dub poet. He was included in ''The Times'' list of Britain's top 50 post-wa ...

as Gower.

Cast

Antony Sher Sir Antony Sher (14 June 1949 – 2 December 2021) was a British actor, writer and theatre director of South African origin. A two-time Laurence Olivier Award winner and a four-time nominee, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1982 a ...

Jack Robinson Jack Robinson may refer to: Sportspeople *Jack Robinson (catcher) (1880–1921), American baseball player *Jack Robinson (footballer, born 1870) (1870–1931), England, Derby County and Southampton football goalkeeper * Jack Robinson (footballer, ...

Will Keen Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

* John Marston -

Stephen Critchlow Stephen Anthony Critchlow (22 November 1966 – 19 September 2021) was a British actor, known for his work in the theatre and appearances on radio series such as '' Truly, Madly, Bletchley'', '' The Way We Live Right Now'', and '' Spats'', alon ...

George Wilkins George Wilkins (died 1618) was an English dramatist and pamphleteer best known for his probable collaboration with William Shakespeare on the play ''Pericles, Prince of Tyre''. By profession he was an inn-keeper, but he was also apparently invo ...

- Chris Pavlo * Susannah Shakespeare - Helen Longworth *

Richard Burbage Richard Burbage (c. 1567 – 13 March 1619) was an English stage actor, widely considered to have been one of the most famous actors of the Globe Theatre and of his time. In addition to being a stage actor, he was also a theatre owner, entr ...

- John Rowe *

William Ostler William Ostler (died 16 December 1614) was an actor in English Renaissance theatre, a member of the King's Men, the company of William Shakespeare. Ostler started out as a boy player in the Children of the Chapel troupe; he was cast in their 1 ...

Robert Johnson Robert Leroy Johnson (May 8, 1911August 16, 1938) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His landmark recordings in 1936 and 1937 display a combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting talent that has influenced later generati ...

Robert Lonsdale Robert Lonsdale (born 2 November 1983) is an English actor and musician. Early life and education Son of Tom and Dilys Lonsdale, he was born on 2 November 1983 in Marsden, West Yorkshire, and has one sister. He went to the Academy of Live and R ...

* Edmund Shakespeare -

Joseph Kloska Joseph Anthony Kloska (born 1983) is an English actor. He began his career in radio, moving on to work in television, theatre, and film. Life Named after a Polish grandfather, Teofil Joseph Kloska, who had settled in England, Kloska was brought ...

External links

BBC Radio 3
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pattern of Painful Adventures, The 2008 plays Cultural depictions of William Shakespeare 2008 audio plays English plays Plays based on real people