The Winter's Tale with Simon Russell Beale

In this episode of Shakespeare Uncovered, Sir Simon Russell Beale CBE examines ''The Winter’s Tale,'' a haunting psychological drama about a desperate king, Leontes, whose obsession leads him to destroy his family.

Sir Simon’s acting career began at the Royal Shakespeare Company, and he reveals that playing the character of King Leontes at London’s Old Vic still haunts him. Despite the play’s portrayal of an unhinged monarch, it was performed at the wedding of King James’s daughter Elizabeth, and Paulina Kewes of Jesus College explains the historical context. Joining Beale to discuss the music's key role in the play's tone shift is composer Simon Slater.

Beale highlights how Shakespeare pushes the boundaries of theatrical technique in this remarkable tale, which gets its name from Jacobean slang for campfire story.