William Shakespeare Archives - Richard M. Langworth

Sir Winstonus: “And thou, fair dame, art not of angels born, Thy tongue’s keen edge doth all who cross thee warn. Yet in thy zeal to strike with jest and jeer, Thou dost forget the mirror drawing near.” Shakespeare’s “Henry VIII and Catherine” by the artist B. Trell, 1887. (Wikimedia Commons)

Churchllian Shakespeare: AI Presents “You’re drunk…You’re ugly”

20 January 2025 Comments 0 Comments

Setting: A grand hall in Westminster. Tapestries hang from the walls, and the faint clink of goblets echoes through the air. Enter: Sir Winstonus Churchillius, goblet in hand. Lady Bessica Braddockia approaches, fanning herself dramatically. Lady Bessica: “Hail, Sir Winstonus, thou art returned, From feasting, drinking, or some sport absurd? Thy face is flushed, and eyes like moons do glow; Dost thou drown England’s cares in wine's deep flow?”

“The Pool of England”: How Henry V Inspired Churchill’s Words

8 April 2019 Comments 3 Comments

Excerpted from “Churchill, Shakespeare and Henry V.” Lecture at “Churchill and the Movies,” a seminar sponsored by the Center for Constructive Alternatives, Hillsdale College, 25 March 2019. For the complete video, click here.

Shakespeare’s Henry: Parallels and Inspirations

Above all and first, the importance of Henry V is what it teaches about leadership. “True leadership,” writes Andrew Roberts, “stirs us in a way that is deeply embedded in our genes and psyche.…If the underlying factors of leadership have remained the same for centuries, cannot these lessons be learned and applied in situations far removed from ancient times?”…

“Churchill and the Movies”: Hillsdale Lecture Series, March 24-28th

9 March 2019 Comments 0 Comments

The Movies

In 1927, Winston Churchill wrote to his wife Clementine, “I am becoming a film fan.” He had projection equipment installed at Chequers, the country home of British prime ministers, in 1943, and at his family home Chartwell in 1946. “Churchill and the Movies” is the fourth and final event of the Center for Constructive Alternatives in the 2018-19 academic year. We will view and discuss two films widely regarded as Churchill’s favorites, and two Churchill biographic movies in their historical context.

Hillsdale’s Center for Constructive Alternatives (CCA) is the sponsor of one of the largest college lecture series in America.…