Hester L-J
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starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Hester L-J
@starcrossed2018.bsky.social
2.8K followers 1.1K following 2.2K posts
Shakespeare, slowly #SlowShakespeare; editing (2GV for Arden), introducing (R&J for Cambridge), writing (Textile Shakespeare, Oxford UP Nov 2025!) & Very Short Intro to the Histories (currently). Teaching in Cambridge (Catz) 🇳🇿
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Hester L-J @starcrossed2018.bsky.social · 10d
Somewhat astonishingly, here it is, a book, a thing in the world... More, including acknowledgements, soon❤️
The cover of a book. Text reads TEXTILE SHAKESPEARE. The illustration is of black and white embroidery of flowers, fruit, and animals; it's sitting on a blue and white William Morris print cushion. The table of contents of a book. The chapter titles read Stuff, Linen, Leather/Wool, Silk, Inky Cloak, Sew, Cut, Fold, Ruff.
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Fortinbras: no words... EXEUNT. FINIS. THE END.
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
And so it ends... Branagh carried off, and in his coffin in the 1996 film; Andrew Scott in a publicity image for the Almeida production in 2017.
A colour still from a film: a young man wearing a white singlet with black straps, his arms bare, is being carried on the shoulders of soldiers with bare heads, wearing grey greatcoats. HIs arms are outstretched and his head is hanging down. There are similarly dressed soldiers forming a guard of honour, with rifles in their hands. A still from a film. A young man with blond hair and a moustache is lying with his eyes closed in a pale satin-lined coffin, set on snowy ground. He is wearing elaborate black military-style uniform and has a sword held in his hands. A colour publicity image for a play. A young man with dark hair, wearing a black top with a colourful image of flowers on the front, is lying in what looks like a white-satin-lined coffin. His eyes are open and he is staring up. There are white gladioli lying on his torso and white gypsophila on the coffin. It's lit in blue and looks slightly surreal.
November 9, 2025 at 11:44 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Lovely to be at the last performance of Romeo a Juliet by Theatr Cymru in the Wanamaker last night. Sweet, clever (of course the boys bring the Mari Lwyd to the Capulet party) & a treat to see Steffan Donnelly's production in a space he knows so well. I have not a word of Welsh but it didn't matter.
A photograph of characters in a play. A young woman with long dark hair wearing a long white dress is smiling happily at a young man who is wearing a leather jacket. He has his hands around her waist and she has her hands on his shoulders; they are resting their foreheads on each other. A photograph of a play in performance. With a metal gallery behind, curving metal staircases leading up to it on either side, there's a party in progress, dancers with torches and wearing masks. In the front there's a young man wearing black kneeling on the ground; he has a mask like a goat's skull and is holding a horse's skull in his right hand, with long red and green ribbons hanging from it.
November 9, 2025 at 10:40 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
This is the PENULTIMATE POST in #InkyCloak a #SlowShakespeare Hamlet blog which began on 1 October 2024 and has continued daily (with a week off at Christmas and one day in February when the server was playing up). The last lines of the play tomorrow; how will it all end?
starcrossed2018.bsky.social Hester L-J @starcrossed2018.bsky.social · 3d
Horatio: we'll do as you say, Fortinbras
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Fortinbras (Mbulelo Grootboom) looks at Hamlet (Vaneshran Arumugam); Claudius (John Kani) seated, Horatio (Adam Neill) on the right, in the 2006 Baxter Theatre Company production dir. Janet Suzman @the-rsc.bsky.social
A photograph of a play in performance. A young man wearing pale combat trousers and brown combat boots, with a white t-shirt, is looking down at a young man wearing dark jeans and black top, apparently dead on the floor. There is another young man apparently dead face down to the side, wearing blue, and an older man slumped in one of 2 seats on a small round dais, and a further body partly covered to one side. A young man is standing off to the side on the right, covering his mouth with his hand.
November 8, 2025 at 4:11 PM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Horatio: we'll do as you say, Fortinbras
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Fortinbras (Mbulelo Grootboom) looks at Hamlet (Vaneshran Arumugam); Claudius (John Kani) seated, Horatio (Adam Neill) on the right, in the 2006 Baxter Theatre Company production dir. Janet Suzman @the-rsc.bsky.social
A photograph of a play in performance. A young man wearing pale combat trousers and brown combat boots, with a white t-shirt, is looking down at a young man wearing dark jeans and black top, apparently dead on the floor. There is another young man apparently dead face down to the side, wearing blue, and an older man slumped in one of 2 seats on a small round dais, and a further body partly covered to one side. A young man is standing off to the side on the right, covering his mouth with his hand.
November 8, 2025 at 10:56 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Fortinbras: I'm taking charge
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Branagh included Fortinbras (Rufus Sewell) being crowned in his 1996 film. It's all drawing to a close; what disappears from the page at this point, to some degree, are the dead, but on the stage, that's where the eye rests...
A colour still from a film. A young man wearing a grey army great coat over a shiny steel breastplate is sitting down as on a throne; there are three men in similar grey uniform standing behind him, their heads out of shot; the man in the centre is placing a gold crown on the seated man's head.
November 7, 2025 at 10:22 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Horatio: I can explain!
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Horatio (Nicholas Farrell in Branagh's 1996 film) is charged with telling the story of Hamlet, by Hamlet, in what sounds like Hamlet's own words: carnal, bloody, unnatural. #InkyCloak #SlowShakespeare ends on Sunday just shy of 400 posts!
A closeup of a character in a film. Head and shoulders, a young man with neat collar-length hair and a moustache, looking solemn, with red-rimmed eyes. He's wearing a fancy pink and green tweed coat, with a high white shirt collar and a red and gold cravat.
November 6, 2025 at 10:04 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
English Ambassador(s): excuse me?
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Do the English ambassadors have the hardest job? post-Stoppard, 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead' lands differently & anyway who cares?? Here's Rupert Goold's mad tilting Titanic @the-rsc.bsky.social 2025 because why not??
A photograph of a play in performance. The stage is tilting down and forward like the deck of a sinking ship; there is a matching tilting boarded ceiling above, and tossing grey green waves behind. Dimly lit, people are lying on the ground, sliding down; one young man wearing a pale shirt is standing with a rapier in his hand.
November 5, 2025 at 10:01 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Enter Fortinbras, with QUESTIONS
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Fortinbras has often been cut (although not in the *many* versions I've seen recently); Branagh staged it as a kind of invasion in his 1996 film (if you've got all those extras, why not??)
A still from a film. A grand interior with a black and white marble floor and a central strip of red carpet, with a gallery above. There are people lying on the floor as if dead, and others standing around in shock; there are also many soldiers in long grey coats pointing rifles.
November 4, 2025 at 9:09 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Horatio: goodnight, sweet prince...🥲
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
I do love Horatio, the best of Shakespeare's many friends... Stephen Dillane as Horatio in Hamlet, dir. Zeffirelli, 1990. Also, Milton liked this bit (of course he did, the angels❤️) in the @freelibrary.bsky.social folio.
A colour still from a film. Dimly lit, head and shoulders, a young man with quite messy collar length hair and a dark top is looking down at something out of shot. He looks very sad. A passage from an early modern printed play text. Text reads. Hora. Now cracke a Noble heart: Goodnight sweet Prince, And flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest, Why do's the Drumme come hither? There's a wiggly black ink line in the right margin.
November 3, 2025 at 10:31 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Hamlet: the rest is silence...
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
And finally, as if he were sleeping. Hamlet (David Tennant), dead in Horatio's arms (Peter de Jersey) @the-rsc.bsky.social 2008-9. The synthesis of an actor's utter exhaustion with their character's never fails to move me.
A colour still from a television film. A young man lies with his eyes closed in the arm of another man, holding his hand.
November 2, 2025 at 10:37 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
[noises off] Hamlet: what NOW? Norwegians incoming.
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Because he CAN, Branagh shows the Norwegian army arriving at Elsinore in his 1996 film. With Rufus Sewell as Fortinbras in a nice shiny breastplate. #InkyCloak #SlowShakespeare is in its 14th month. Days to go.
Two colour stills from a film. The top image shows soldiers running across a snowy landscape - the park and formal garden in front of a palace, perhaps. The bottom image shows the same troops, wearing grey uniforms, with rucksacks, with a group of cavalry on horseback wearing long grey coats, in the snowy courtyard of an enormous country house. A colour still from a film, the same scene as the previous images. Closer view of officers on horseback, with troops formed up in lines as they ride through. There is a standard bearer with a red and white flag and leader has a gold breastplate under his coat as well as a golden helmet with a cockade.
November 1, 2025 at 11:25 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Somewhat astonishingly, here it is, a book, a thing in the world... More, including acknowledgements, soon❤️
The cover of a book. Text reads TEXTILE SHAKESPEARE. The illustration is of black and white embroidery of flowers, fruit, and animals; it's sitting on a blue and white William Morris print cushion. The table of contents of a book. The chapter titles read Stuff, Linen, Leather/Wool, Silk, Inky Cloak, Sew, Cut, Fold, Ruff.
October 31, 2025 at 2:27 PM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Hamlet [to Horatio]: live on! tell my story!
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
The dying Hamlet (David Tennant) cradled by his friend Horatio (Peter de Jersey) in the 2008-9 @the-rsc.bsky.social Hamlet, dir. Gregory Doran.
A close-up of characters in a play. A young man with a pale face and wearing a white jacket and one white glove is lying back on the ground; another young man has his arm around his shoulders. They are clasping each other's hand and the young man in white has his left hand touching the other man's face. They both look intensely sad.
October 31, 2025 at 9:19 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Hamlet: I AM DEAD HORATIO💀
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Osric (Peter Cushing) cradles the dying Laertes (Terence Morgan) in Olivier's 1948 film; Hamlet (Ian McKellen) realises the game's up in 1971; Milton liked this bit (the 'fell Sergeant death') in his 1623 copy @freelibrary.bsky.social
A black and white still from a film. A young man wearing tights and a floppy white shirt is lying back in the lap of an elaborately dressed man, crouching on the ground, who is looking worried and taking the young man's pulse with his left hand. A black and white photograph of a play in performance. A young man with dark messy hair, wearing a quilted arm protector on his left arm, as if for fencing, is crouching on the ground, looking up, a sword in his right hand pointing up. A photograph of an early modern printed play text. Text is as in the linked blog post; there is a curvy line inked in the right margin beside some of the text.
October 30, 2025 at 9:26 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Hamlet kills Claudius! (finally) ☠️🍷
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Two RSC Hamlets giving Claudius what's coming to him: Toby Stephens & Clive Wood, dir. Michael Boyd des. Tom Piper 2004; David Tennant & Patrick Stewart in 2008-9, dir. Greg Doran, the second image from the filmed version.
A photograph of a play in performance. A young man wearing a grey linen coat with a high collar is snarling as he forces an older man, wearing a black doublet over a white shirt and black breeches, to drink from a big silver goblet, which is obscuring the older man's face. He is also bleeding from a wound in his torso, which he's clutching with his right hand. A photograph of a play in performance. A young man wearing dark jeans and a white fencing jacket is holding his left hand outstretched with a silver goblet in it, and a fencing foil in his right hand, pointing straight at a dapper older man wearing a neat suit and tie, who's holding his hands out. Other people are watching in the background. A close up of the same young man as in the previous image, from the POV of the man he's facing, so that the cup is right in the foreground and the rapier is pointing into the camera. The young man is looking very cross.
October 29, 2025 at 10:02 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
TEXTILE SHAKESPEARE is official-publication-date-minus-2-weeks (11 November) which is a LOT👀 (I can't remember feeling this wound up about other books, I have the concentration of a gnat at the moment🙄) but seems to be live as an e-book already so, available to your Kindle right now, apparently...
The cover of a book. Text reads Textile Shakespeare. The lower part of the image is ink printed on linen and embroidery, black on white, with some silver thread, with flowers, fruit, insects, and animals. it is discoloured with age.
October 28, 2025 at 4:10 PM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
I am very much looking forward to seeing Othello at the Theatre Royal Haymarket soon, but am also delighted/intrigued by the fact that over the Christmas season it's sharing the stage with Peppa Pig's Big Family Show👀 Check your tickets & showtimes carefully, people, especially on matinee days.
A theatre poster for Othello, with 3 actors against a red background. A theatre poster for Peppa Pig, with a cartoon drawing of a family of happy pigs in a mud puddle.
October 28, 2025 at 11:42 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Laertes to Hamlet: we're both dead, mate, and HE'S to blame!
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
A moment earlier: Hamlet (David Warner) & Laertes (Charles Thomas) @the-rsc.bsky.social 1965, dir. Peter Hall: the untucked shirts, not especially 'period', make them look like schoolboys...
A photograph of a play in performance. In the foreground, two young men wearing white shirts and dark trousers and boors, each with a long black glove on one hand, are fighting with rapiers. They're grappling closely and eyeballing each other. In the background there's a table with cups on it, and some big empty chairs.
October 28, 2025 at 9:04 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Hamlet: poison! betrayal! endgame!🤺⚔️🤺☠️🍷
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
A (coloured) still from the short, silent film, Le duel d'Hamlet, made in 1900: Laertes (L, Pierre Magnier) and Hamlet (R, ACTUAL SARAH BERNHARDT) - static cameras make filming duels particularly challenging.
A coloured still from a very old film. Two people in vaguely medieval costume (doublets, tights) are having a sword fight. There are three people watching, 2 of them in armour. There's a painted backdrop with neoclassical arches and pillars.
October 27, 2025 at 9:59 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
I am finalising my annual London round-up for Shakespeare Survey & can report that it includes 29 shows (some of them adaptations) in 15 different venues, including 2 Dreams, 2 12th Nights, 2 Richard IIs, 3 Macbeths, 3 R&Js, & 7 HAMLETs.
(pic: Camille O'Sullivan as Lucrece, which I saw at Wilton's)
A photograph of a show in performance. A woman is lying on a dimly lit stage, on her back, slightly twisted; she is wearing a short sleeveless cream dress which is twisted around her.
October 26, 2025 at 1:17 PM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Fencing getting deadly serious🤺💀🤺
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
2 2025 Hamlets:
@the-rsc.bsky.social with Laertes (Lewis Shepherd, L) & Hamlet (Luke Thallon, R) (by this point fencing on the Titanic made perfect sense) & Hamlet (Hiran Abeysekera, L) & Laertes (Tom Glenister, R)
A photograph of a play in performance. Two men stripped to their shirtsleeves are fighting with foils on the dimly lit tilting deck of a ship. People are watching and there are waves visible in the background. A photograph of a play in performance. Two young men are fencing. They are both wearing white jackets and trousers, with badges of the red Danish flag, but have removed their masks. Another person dressed similarly is watching, as the umpire. They are in a palace reception room with white panelling and, above, elaborate murals of heroic scenes and landscape.
October 26, 2025 at 10:19 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Gertrude *drinks* Claudius: ooooops
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
4 Gertrudes drink from the poisoned cup: Eileen Herlie (Olivier, 1948) and Penny Downie (RSC 2008-9) know exactly what they're doing; Glenn Close (Zeffirelli 1990) and Julie Christie (Branagh 1996) are blithely unconcerned...
A black and white still from a film: head and shoulders, a woman wearing an elaborate gown with a low neckline and lots of diamanté, and a small tiara, is holding a silver goblet in her right hand and is about to drink from it. She looks sad and serious. A still from a television film. In the foreground, head and shoulders, a woman with blonde hair, tied back, wearing a black v-neck top, is holding a plain pewter goblet in her left hand, as if about to drink from it. She looks preoccupied. Behind her left shoulder, out of focus, is an older man wearing a dark 3-piece suit and tie. A colour still from a film. A woman wearing medieval costume (blue dress, long blonde plaits, a heavy crown with a veil) is smiling as she is about to drink from a heavy ornate goblet. A colour still from a film. Head and shoulders, in profile on the left, a woman with curly blonde hair is smiling as she holds a golden cup up on her right hand towards a young man on the right. She is wearing a dark dress with a high collar and a jet tiara; he is wearing padded white fencing gear with a high collar. There's a gold throne visible in the background.
October 25, 2025 at 11:09 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!🤺⚔️🤺
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
I like the reverse angle here: Hamlet (Michelle Terry, L) and Laertes (Bettrys Jones, R) fight (rapier and dagger) in the 2018 Globe production; & a close-up of Laurence Olivier & Terence Morgan (rapier and dagger again) in the 1948 film.
A colour photograph of a play in performance. Two women wearing white fencing gear are fighting on a stage with rapiers and daggers; behind them, the audience are visible, on two levels, and in the foreground, two men wearing black are watching from the back of the stage. A black and white still from a film. Two men wearing floppy white shirts and dark tights are fighting with rapier and dagger; they are in close combat. Spectators are visible out of focus in the background of the image.
October 24, 2025 at 10:56 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
Claudius: DRUMROLL PLEASE
www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/slo...
Eyes on the foils: Robin Williams as Osric in the 1996 Branagh Hamlet. (I found it interesting to think about noise & silence in this moment in the scene; it's potentially REALLY noisy, then very quiet. Amazing control of the tension.)
A still from a film. In the foreground are two crossed sword blades, slightly out of focus. In focus behind, looking through them, is a man with neat dark handlebar moustache and sideburns with a curl on his forehead, wearing an elaborate green dress uniform with gold epaulettes.
October 23, 2025 at 9:27 AM
starcrossed2018.bsky.social
I saw one of the final previews @the-rsc.bsky.social at the weekend & concur; it made terrifying sense as a world, I LOVED what it did with the priest, the SPACE, & Lia Williams is astonishing. Whole run sold out, can we have a transfer as a little treat?
www.theguardian.com/stage/2025/o...
Macbeth review – a terrifying lock-in with bloodied, boozed-up gangsters
Daniel Raggett’s audacious RSC production sets the play in a Glaswegian pub full of thugs and has a Landlady Macbeth running the show
www.theguardian.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:05 PM