Scuffles, Swagger and Shakespeare: The Hidden Story of English
“Shakespeare is often credited with revolutionising English, but is the real story more complex?”
2019•29m•Released
Documentary
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.
Director
Chris Nikkel
Languages
English
Cast
Jonathan Culpeper
Interviewed Guest
Simon Horobin
Interviewed Guest
Farah Karim-Cooper
Interviewed Guest
Cathy Shrank
Interviewed Guest
John Gallagher
Presenter
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