''ShakespeaRe-Told'' is the

umbrella title An umbrella title is a formal or informal name connecting a number of individual items with a common theme. It is most often used in lieu of listing the separate components or providing a convenient "label" for a collection of disciplines. Uses of ...

for a series of four television adaptations of

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 natio ...

's plays broadcast on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's Flagship (broadcasting), flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News ...

during November 2005. In a similar manner to the 2003 production of '' The Canterbury Tales'', each play is adapted by a different writer, and relocated to the present day. The plays were produced in collaboration by

BBC Northern Ireland BBC Northern Ireland ( ga, BBC Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ''BBC Norlin Airlan'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Northern Ireland. It is widely available across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ire ...

and the central BBC drama department. In August 2006 the four films aired on BBC America.

Episodes

''Much Ado About Nothing''

*Adapted by David Nicholls *Directed by

Brian Percival Brian Percival is a British film director, known for his work on the British television series '' Downton Abbey'' and '' North & South'', as well as the feature film '' The Book Thief''. Biography He was born in Liverpool, England, in 1962 an ...

*Broadcast 7 November 2005 *Set in a local news studio, with Beatrice (

Sarah Parish Sarah Parish (born 7 June 1968) is an English actress. She is known for her work on television series including: '' The Pillars of the Earth'', '' Peak Practice'', '' Hearts and Bones'', '' Cutting It'', '' Doctor Who'', '' Mistresses'', ''Merli ...

) and Benedick (

Damian Lewis Damian Watcyn Lewis (born 11 February 1971) is an English actor, presenter and producer. He is best known for portraying U.S. Army Major Richard Winters in the HBO miniseries '' Band of Brothers'', which earned him a Golden Globe nomination ...

) as feuding anchors.

Hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''hero ...

(

Billie Piper Billie Paul Piper (born Leian Paul Piper; 22 September 1982) is an English actress and former singer. She initially gained recognition as a singer after releasing her debut single " Because We Want To" at age 15, which made her the youngest woma ...

), the weathergirl and daughter of station manager Leonard ( Martin Jarvis), becomes engaged to Claude ( Tom Ellis), the sports presenter. Jealous visual effects manager Don ( Derek Riddell), plots to break up Hero and Claude, whilst the others attempt to get Beatrice and Benedick together. Hero and Claude eventually repair their friendship, though Hero refuses to consider marriage again, the ending is left ambiguous about their future as they are the best man and

maid of honour A maid of honour is a junior attendant of a queen in royal households. The position was and is junior to the lady-in-waiting. The equivalent title and office has historically been used in most European royal courts. Role Traditionally, a queen ...

(respectively) for the finale: the wedding of Beatrice and Benedick.

''Macbeth''

*Adapted by

Peter Moffat Alexander Peter Moffat (born 2 June 1962) is a British playwright and screenwriter. Early life Moffat was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to John Laidlaw Moffat, who was in the Royal Military Police, and Norma Guthrie. His grandfather and great- ...

*Directed by Mark Brozel *Broadcast 14 November 2005 *Set in a three Michelin star restaurant owned by celebrity chef Duncan Docherty (

Vincent Regan Vincent Regan (born 16 May 1965) is a British film and television actor, best known for his roles in ''300 (film), 300'', ''Troy (film), Troy'', ''Unleashed (2005 film), Unleashed'', ''Clash of the Titans (2010 film), Clash of the Titans'' and ' ...

), with Joe

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

(

James McAvoy James McAvoy (; born 21 April 1979) is a Scottish actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in '' The Near Room'' (1995) and appeared mostly on television until 2003, when his feature film career began. His notable television work includes ...

) as the

sous chef A sous-chef is a chef who is second in command in a kitchen; the person ranking next after the head chef, usually the more hands on manager with regards to training staff and organising the kitchen. Duties and functions The sous-chef has many re ...

and his wife Ella (

Keeley Hawes Claire Julia Hawes (born 10 February 1976), known professionally as Keeley Hawes, is an English actress. After beginning her career in a number of literary adaptations, including '' Our Mutual Friend'' (1998) and '' Tipping the Velvet'' (2002), H ...

) as the ''

Maître d' ''Maître'' (spelled ''Maitre'' according to post-1990 spelling rules) is a commonly used honorific for lawyers, judicial officers and notaries in France, Belgium, Switzerland and French-speaking parts of Canada. It is often written in its abbr ...

''. Joe and his fellow chef Billy

Banquo Lord Banquo , the Thane of Lochaber, is a semi-historical character in William Shakespeare's 1606 play ''Macbeth''. In the play, he is at first an ally of Macbeth (both are generals in the King's army) and they meet the Three Witches together. ...

( Joseph Millson) are annoyed that Duncan takes the credit for Joe's work, and that Duncan's son Malcolm (

Toby Kebbell Tobias Alistair Patrick Kebbell''Births, Marriages & Deaths: Toby is married to Arielle Wyatt. They got married in 2020 and they have one child together. Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 9 July 1982) is an English ...

) has, in their opinion, no real flair for the business. Then they encounter three supernatural binmen who predict that Macbeth will get ownership of the restaurant, as will Billy's children. Joe and Ella are inspired to kill Duncan, but the binmen subsequently warn that Macbeth should be wary of Peter Macduff ( Richard Armitage), the head waiter.

''The Taming of the Shrew''

*Adapted by Sally Wainwright * Directed by David Richards *Broadcast 21 November 2005 * Katherine Minola (

Shirley Henderson Shirley Henderson (born 24 November 1965) is a Scottish actress. Her accolades include two Scottish BAFTAs, a VFCC Award and an Olivier Award, as well as BAFTA, BIFA, London Critics' Circle, Chlotrudis, Gotham, and Canadian Screen Award n ...

) is a politician who hopes to become the

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

. She is told that her abrasive personality is bad PR and that it might be good for her image to get married. When penniless nobleman

Petruchio Petruchio (an anglicisation of the Italian name Petruccio; ) is the male protagonist in Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew'' (c. 1590–1594). Petruchio is a fortune seeker who enters into a marriage with a strong-willed young woman na ...

(

Rufus Sewell Rufus Frederik Sewell (; born 29 October 1967) is a British film and stage actor. In film, he has appeared in ''Carrington'' (1995), '' ''Hamlet' (1996), '' Dangerous Beauty'' (1998), '' Dark City'' (1998), ''A Knight's Tale ''(2001), '' The ...

) shows up, interested at first in Katherine's money, sparks fly as Katherine seems to have met her match. The relationship and battle of wills bring big surprises for both parties. Katherine's sister Bianca (

Jaime Murray Jaime Erica Murray (born 21 July 1976) is an English actress. She is known for playing Stacie Monroe in the BBC series ''Hustle'' (2004–2012), Lila West in the Showtime series ''Dexter'' (2007), Gaia in the Starz miniseries '' Spartacus: Go ...

) is a supermodel whose manager is Petruchio's friend, Harry (

Stephen Tompkinson Stephen Phillip Tompkinson (born 15 October 1965) is an English actor, known for his television roles as Marcus in ''Chancer '' (1990), Damien Day in '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990–1998), Father Peter Clifford in '' Ballykissangel'' (1996– ...

Twiggy Dame Lesley Lawson (''née'' Hornby; born 19 September 1949) is an English model, actress, and singer, widely known by the nickname Twiggy. She was a British cultural icon and a prominent teenaged model during the swinging '60s in London. ...

has the role of Katherine and Bianca's mother. David Mitchell played Kate's hapless secretary Tim.

''A Midsummer Night's Dream''

*Adapted by

Peter Bowker Peter Bowker (born 5 January 1959) is a British playwright and screenwriter. He is best known for the television serials ''Blackpool'' (2004), a musical drama about a shady casino owner; '' Occupation'' (2009), which follows three military servi ...

*Directed by Ed Fraiman *Broadcast 28 November 2005 *

Theo Theo is a given name and a hypocorism. Greek origin Many names beginning with the root "Theo-" derive from the Ancient Greek word ''theos'' (''θεός''), which means god, for example: *Feminine names: Thea, Theodora, Theodosia, Theophania, ...

( Bill Paterson) and Polly (

Imelda Staunton Imelda Mary Philomena Bernadette Staunton (born 9 January 1956) is an English actress and singer. After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Staunton began her career in repertory theatre in 1976 and appeared in various theatre produ ...

) visit Dream Park inclusive leisure facility to celebrate the engagement of their daughterTheseus and Hippolyta are not Hermia's parents in the original.

Hermia Hermia is a fictional character from Shakespeare's play, ''A Midsummer Night's Dream''. She is a girl of ancient Athens named for Hermes, the Greek god of trade. Overview Hermia is caught in a romantic entanglement where she loves one man, ...

( Zoe Tapper) to

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

( William Ash). The engagement party is, much to the irritable Theo's horror, disrupted by Hermia's true love

Xander Xander is an abbreviated form of the name Alexander and pronounced like "Zander". Alexander is the Latin form of the Greek name "Alexandros". The name's meaning is interpreted from "alexein" which means "to defend" plus "andros" which translates to ...

(

Rupert Evans Rupert Evans (born 9 March 1977) is a British actor. He is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and starred in the Amazon series ''The Man in the High Castle'' and also in the CW's ''Charmed'' series. In 2021 Evans appeared in ''Bridgerton ...

). Despite their own disagreements, the

fairy A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spiri ...

rulers of the woods around Dream Park, Titania ( Sharon Small) and

Oberon Oberon () is a king of the fairies in medieval and Renaissance literature. He is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'', in which he is King of the Fairies and spouse of Titania, Queen of the Fair ...

(

Lennie James Lennie Michael James (born 11 October 1965) is a British actor, screenwriter, and playwright. His work includes playing Morgan Jones in the television series, '' The Walking Dead'' and in its spin-off, '' Fear the Walking Dead'', and starring ...

), have a duty to ensure a happy ending, so Oberon gets Puck (

Dean Lennox Kelly Dean Lennox Kelly (born 30 November 1975) is an English actor. He is known for his television roles as Kev Ball in '' Shameless'' and Meredith Rutter in '' Jamestown''. Early life Kelly is from Lytham St Annes, Lancashire. He trained at the B ...

) — portrayed as a sort of magical wide boy — to try to sort things out with "love juice" eyedrops, while Oberon and Theo discuss their marriages. Puck's efforts inevitably lead to more confusion. Comedian

Johnny Vegas Michael Joseph Pennington (born 5 September 1970), better known as Johnny Vegas, is an English comedian, actor, writer, and director. He is known for his thick Lancashire accent, husky voice, overweight appearance, angry comedic rants, and us ...

appears as

Nick Bottom Nick Bottom is a character in Shakespeare's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' who provides comic relief throughout the play. A weaver by trade, he is famously known for getting his head transformed into that of a donkey by the elusive Puck. Bot ...

who, like the other Mechanicals, is a Dream Park security guard who hopes to make it onto the entertainment staff.

DVD

On 26 December 2005, a Region 2 DVD of the episodes was released by

Acorn Media UK RLJE International Ltd, d/b/a Acorn DVD, a British company that publishes and distributes DVDs, as well as selling home-video products and streaming videos with a particular focus on British television. History Launched in 1997, Acorn Media U ...

. A Region 1 release followed on 24 July 2007 from BBC Warner.

Notes

External links

The BBC's official ''ShakespeaRe-Told'' site
* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shakespeare-Told 2005 British television series debuts 2005 British television series endings Films based on works by William Shakespeare Modern adaptations of works by William Shakespeare Works based on Much Ado About Nothing Works based on The Taming of the Shrew Works based on Macbeth Works based on A Midsummer Night's Dream