Scuffles, Swagger and Shakespeare: The Hidden Story of English

Top 5 Billed Cast

Jonathan Culpeper
Jonathan Culpeper

Interviewed Guest

Simon Horobin
Simon Horobin

Interviewed Guest

Farah Karim-Cooper
Farah Karim-Cooper

Interviewed Guest

Cathy Shrank
Cathy Shrank

Interviewed Guest

John Gallagher
John Gallagher

Presenter

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    Scuffles, Swagger and Shakespeare: The Hidden Story of English

  • Overview

    The English language is spoken by 450 million people around the globe, with a further one billion using it as a second language. It is arguably Britain’s most famous export. The man often given credit for the global triumph of English, and the invention of many of our modern words, is William Shakespeare. Shakespeare’s plays first hit the stage four centuries ago, as the explorers of Elizabethan England were laying the foundations for the British empire. It was this empire that would carry English around the world. Language historian and BBC New Generation Thinker Dr John Gallagher asks whether the real story of how English became a global linguistic superpower is more complex.

  • Release Date

    2019-11-12

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  • Tagline

    Shakespeare is often credited with revolutionising English, but is the real story more complex?

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  • Languages:

    English

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