My wife and I have attended mnay performances of Shakespear's work, both in actual theathers and…read moreoutdoors "in the park". So, when we got a chance to visit his birthplace in Stratford-Upon-Avon, we jumped at the chance. Our tour guide was excellent and shared many details of what it was like living in this house in William's time (e.g. the boys shared one room and the girls were in another - and the boy's room was more comfortable because - in those days - the boys were more valuable. It was fascinating walking through the house where Shakespear actually lived and grew up. The day we were there, there were actors in the courtyard performing snippets of Shakespear's plays and writings. The one actor asked members of the audience to call out their favorite and he would then perform something from that particular play. Fascinating visit and tour.

Okay, it's a house, but then again back in Shakespeare's days, they really didn't have hospitals in…read morethe way that we have hospitals. Mind you, wandering through this house makes you realise how wealthy Shakespeare's family actually was. It's a pretty big house, and quite interesting to explore as well. Yeah, it's pretty cool.

Ok, if you are looking for the place where Anne Hathaway grew up, well, you are pretty much in the…read morewrong place, unless the Anne Hathaway you are looking for happens to be the wife of William Shakespeare, then you are in the right place. So, when you get a ticket to the Shakespeare house, you also get admission to this place as well. The thing is that it is a bit of a hike out of town, but it is pretty cool, especially considering that it is a tudor farmhouse.

I truly wish I could relay how beautiful this cottage is, however before I could even get up the…read moreramp, a most unfortunately assertive individual took it upon herself to run out and greet me with a welcome that only the truly emotionally inept could muster. Apparently my name is "you can't take cases in here", repeated twice in quick succession just on the off-chance I did not hear her on the first flat out rude and blustering attempt. As I looked down at my case, a carry-on size pulley, I thought to myself, c'est la vie, the rules are the rules after all. However, in Shakespeare's land, one might have hoped for just a pinch of emotional intelligence in how to verbally greet a guest about to fork out £23 to see an attraction after they'd already paid £10 in a taxi to get there and per chance deliver the blow with a degree more eloquence? Madam, whoever you are, the service industry requires training of which you are clearly woefully lacking. That, or you are yet another of those odious cretins who relishes in unleashing their one minute of power assertion over... a prospective customer? Bravo! Shakespeare wouldn't bother turning in his grave over this, he wrote of plenty an ass and a fool in his time.

Located immediately behind Nash's New Place, the Great Garden of New Place is a large open space…read morecontaining some interesting topiary, beautiful flowers, a large grass lawn and a number of Shakespeare-themed sculptures. It's another of the "don't miss" stops in your tour of Stratford-upon-Avon. There are sculptures for several of Shakespeare's famous plays. The key is to figure out which play is represented without looking at the plaque. Benches for reflection and while you're welcome to eat here, I didn't spot any rubbish bins for trash. Though with the large garden with many flowers, I wouldn't recommend it if you're looking to avoid an encounter with the bees.

Open on the first and third Saturday of every month this is definitely worth a visit…read more There are all sorts of goods on sale, from Buffalo cheese, to cakes, to bread, to sausages, basically everything that you could want. All of the stalls are from the local area, and the people are all so friendly and happy to chat. The goods may be more expensive than you could get in a supermarket, but you know that you are helping the local economy and for the quality it is well worth the extra few pennies you will spend. I do recommend that you get there quite early in the day though, as otherwise you may find that many of the stalls have sold the majority of their products.

This is a lovely, very English place to see. It has unique building decor that stands out. It is a…read moreShakespearian times Village style. It also has beautiful hanging baskets and flowers just ading that extra touch. It has very quaint and unique shops along with souvenir shops. There is also the river that runs through it making it a nice walk with various benches to sit down on and appreciate the view.

This is a great place for families especially. The staff are wonderful they dress in costumes of…read morethe period. It is really good place, you learn about the period in a fun way and you can play old games. They also arrange things like ghost walks which i have been told are also very good.

As the birthplace of the most prolific writer the world has ever known, even with some of his works…read moreno doubt pilfered off the milk maid, Stratford no doubt attracts its fair share of Shakespeare fans from around the world. I'm a fan of theatre full stop, and forgot how truly enjoyable it is to see Shakespeare performed instead of reading it. Though the main theatre was being refurbished the last time we went, about 9 months ago, we went into the smaller theatre and saw an absolutely superb performance of, believe it or not, Romeo and Juliet. Booking online with the RSC was very easy, straightforward with the seating plans and payment. We were able to view the intermission menus and book food ahead of time, which would be waiting for us upon the break. What a fantastic service! I heartily recommend you take advantage of this. The smaller theatre is small enough that any seat in the house would provide a fine vantage point. The seats are comfortable enough, and actually offered my husband enough leg room! The production of Romeo and Juliet was reinterpreted in 1940s gangster era, with a very Godfather feel. The acting was fine, and I was relieved to see some blind casting. The food, at the break, was a real treat -- Mediterranean platter offering us truly delectable hoummus, olives and other delightful nibbles. See? Shakespeare doesn't have to be a painful experience. Unless you're the milkmaid.

Shakespearience is a hard one to review. Depending on who you are, it's either the worst kind of…read moretourist trap or it's an introduction to the man whose work eveyone has heard of and very few people have actually read. I am one of the former but I went to see this with my parents, who despite being quite well read aren't all that familiar with Shakepeare and his work. They've heard of him, know some of the famous lines from his plays, and may even have read a play or two at school but that's about it. They have certainly never seen a production of any of his plays. And really if you think about it, that's the case with most people. Which is probably why this audio-visual experience with the cringe-worthy pun of a name is actually quite popular. The experience begins with everyone sitting in a room with famous lines from Shakespeare's work projected onto the walls. This was quite interesting even for me because no matter how much Shakespeare you've read, it never fails to surprise you just how many famous quotes are his! This was followed by an brief history of his life and times shot in various Shakepeare-related sites around Stratford upon Avon. Then you move into the the stage room where Shakespeare (in the form of flashing lights) converses with the actor projected on stage. The 3D projections were actually quite good and as various scenes from his plays were acted on stage by the 3D actors, the host and Will discussed the plays and how the events of his life affected his writing. It ended with a performance by Shakespeare himself. My mum was quite happy with it saying it was the next best thing to actually watching a Shakespeare play. Which I suppose it is. So I would say if you're a tourist, or in a touristy-leave-my-patronising-ways-at-home kind of mood, this isn't a bad thing to go to. It is worth the entry fee though don't go near the shop. It's overpriced tourist tat (I suppose my real self must have reemerged by the time I got there!)

Touchstone, the Jester from Shakespeare's play "As You Like It" stands on Henley Street in…read moreStratford-Upon-Avon. It's the perfect statue for a town pretty much dedicated to The Bard. Best described, the jester in active holds a poll (a small head on a stick) with the mask of comedy balanced on his left, upraised hand. His right hand is hidden behind his back (as it holds the tragedy mask). The plaque has a Shakespeare line on each side: "OH NOBLE FOOL! A WORTHY FOOL!" (As You Like It) "THE FOOL DOTH THINK HE IS WISE, BUT THE WISE MAN KNOWS HIMSELF TO BE A FOOL. (As You Like It) "FOOLERY, SIR, DOES WALK ABOUT THE ORB LIKE THE SUN; IT SHINES EVERYWHERE" (Twelfth Night) "ALAS! POOR YORICK I KNEW HIM, HORATIO; A FELLOW OF INFINITE JEST." (Hamlet) The inscription reads: by james butler r.a. unveiled by the lord lieutenant of warwickshire the rt. hon. the viscount daventry on 22nd july 1994 a gift from anthony p. bird o.b.e. to stratford upon avon as a token of his esteem for the town in which he was born, lives and works and which has given him so much friendship, good fortune and pleasure. James Butter has explained his choice of the Jester as a subject: "The character of the Fool or Jester appears in many Shakespeare plays and I decided to portray him dancing- almost leaping off his plinth. He is holding two polls. One is smiling , one is grim. They represent the symbols of drama." Butler sees the Jester as symbolizing the precarious balance of life: "My point being that we dance through life finely balancing optimism above us, but tragedy lurks behind." The model for the Jester was the international mime artist John Mowat who danced and struck various poses to inspire Butler's final form.

Wonderful place to stop and spend some time. Got to see a…read moredemonstration with wool, discussion on different types of wool. Donkeys, horses, goats, falconry and gardens. The demonstration with Talia the eagle owl was delightful and fun. Friendly staff, very educational.

We walked to Mary Arden's Farm from Stratford-upon-Avon. Fair warning: it's a LONG walk. Don't do…read moreit if you're not prepared to walk 5 miles (or about 8 km) there and back. I suppose a bike ride would nice, though. It's along a river through really Englishy countryside with rolling hills and and pebbly roads. Once we got there, it was pretty meh. Admissions is covered in the Shakespeare Five House ticket, but not any of the other types of ticket packages. You just walk around and look at pigs and rooms. We saw some owls and falcons, a dovecove, some pigs, an old oven, old bedrooms with small beds.... It's not really educational - there wasn't much to learn about Shakespeare or Mary Arden. I didn't think they made much of an effort to make it tourist friendly either. It wasn't really worth it but still mildly interesting. I recommend saving some money and just purchasing the Four House ticket and forgo this house.

I have to admit, I haven't read all of Shakespeare's works, but I've read enough in high school to…read moreknow who he is and appreciate his relevancy. Not to mention all the movie adaptations over the years. When coming to England, this is one of the places that you should stop by. Stratford Upon Avon is a charming city. Heck, it's where William Shakespeare was born. Just walking around the streets is enough to know why people would come here. But let me get to why you should go to Shakespeare's Birthplace Trust. It's the house where he was born. After you pay your fare and make your way into the museum, you have to go through a small series of movie theaters. As you progress through each one you're given bits and pieces of facts and history about Shakespeare from early life and his impact on the world. This is particularly useful if there are big crowds waiting to get in. Once you're done with the movie presentations you go into the house. You see how things used to be during his time. With the "actors" in period dress, they explain to you the rooms you're in, stories about the house, his family, and idioms that originate from his time. Here's an interesting bit: I used to wonder why little boys looked like little girls in all these old paintings from the 1500's-1600s. When you come here you'll find out. Or where the expression "Good night, sleep tight" comes from. Once you're done, there are bookstores dedicated to him and lots of little cafes and shops to spend the rest of the day at. Oh yeah, you can even make your way to the church where he is entombed. OUT DAMNED SPOT!

Being a lover of Shakespeare since high school, this place represents a pilgrimage for me. I've…read morevisited twice. Maybe I'm just more cynical, but the restoration of the property and the "period-style" furniture and other household items put me off the second time. Maybe the house wouldn't be exhibitable otherwise, but I like to see real history rather than a historian's recreated best guess. At least they don't lie to you like other places. I can't discourage anyone from visiting though. I mean--this was actually Shakespeare's house! Quaint garden in the back.