3 Cassettes
'Richard III', is the most lyrical of all Shakespeare's plays. Richard, son of the Black Prince, is brought up to believe in his right to rule by divine right. When he comes to the throne, he proves capricious and narcissistic - unfit to rule. However, when he is overthrown by his cousin Henry Bolingbroke, our sympathy is won back by the calm dignity Richard displays in the face of his own execution. Written entirely in verse, the rhythms of the play's language encompasses themes of dignity and kingship with fitting grandeur. Samuel West stars as Richard with Joss Ackland as his uncle John of Gaunt.
