Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway when he was 18. She was eight year older than him.

They had three children. The oldest child was Susanna. This large farmhouse in Shottery near Stratford belonged to Anne’s father, who did in 1581. It is one of the most famous buildings in England. 

Shakespeare went to London to work as an actor and playwright around 1592. He started by looking after the horses of rich people who went to the theatre.

Gradually, he became a successful actor and writer. He stayed in London and was “King” of the London theatre for twenty years. In 1597, Shakespeare bought a family house at New Place in Stratford. After working in London, he returned to Stratford and spent his last year in New Place.

Shakespeare house no longer exists but Shakespeare had a beautiful garden at New Place and eighty years ago they planted another garden in same place. There is a monument to Shakespeare at the Holy Trinity Church. Records show that he was baptized in this church and that in 1616 he died and was buried there.

From 1599, Shakespeare used the globe Theatre for his plays. He was one of the owners of the theatre.

At the time the theatre was very popular; it was like football and television today.

The cheapest seats cost one penny. There were often about 3,000 people at a play, but the audience was very different from audiences today. People came and went during a performance. They shouted at the actor.

They brought food and drink into the theatre. They ate during the play and threw food at actors they did not like. The actors wore costumes but there was very little scenery and there were no light. 

All the actors were men. At that time, women did not become actresses so men played women parts.

The Globe Theatre burnt down in 1613. They rebuilt it, but it closed again in 1644. In 1997, The new Globe, a replica of the theatre, opened about 400 metres from the original site. This is south of the river Thames in London. Today, you can go see what the theatre was like in Shakespeare’s day.