ShakespeaRe-Told

ShakespeaRe-Told is the umbrella title for a series of four television adaptations of William Shakespeare's plays broadcast on BBC One 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 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
  • Broadcast 7 November 2005
  • Set in a local news studio, with Beatrice (Sarah Parish) and Benedick (Damian Lewis) as feuding anchors. Hero (Billie Piper), the weathergirl and daughter of station manager Leonard (Martin Jarvis), becomes engaged to Claude (Tom Ellis), the sports presenter. Jealous visual effects manager Don[1] (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 (respectively) for the finale: the wedding of Beatrice and Benedick.[2]

Macbeth

The Taming of the Shrew
  • Adapted by Sally Wainwright
  • Directed by David Richards
  • Broadcast 21 November 2005
  • Katherine Minola (Shirley Henderson) is a politician who hopes to become the Leader of the Opposition. 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 (Rufus Sewell) 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) is a supermodel whose manager is Petruchio's friend, Harry (Stephen Tompkinson). Twiggy has the role of Katherine and Bianca's mother. David Mitchell played Kate's hapless secretary Tim.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

DVD

On 26 December 2005, a Region 2 DVD of the episodes was released by Acorn Media UK. A Region 1 release followed on 24 July 2007 from BBC Warner.

Notes
  1. The roles of Don John and Borachio are combined into the character of Don.
  2. The ending is highly modified from the original text
  3. Theseus and Hippolyta are not Hermia's parents in the original.
gollark: I just really don't understand Kaini at all.
gollark: With the occasional person asking a question in the middle of heated debate, naturally.
gollark: Suggestions is either temporarily quiet or a burning salt inferno in the heart of the sun.
gollark: My experience of the moderators has so far been mostly negative apart from one time when they just nicely fixed a double post for me
gollark: They're probably less vocal ones.

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