About Shakespeare Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Midlands

Shakespeare was born and grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon which is in Warwickshire, which is a county in the English Midlands. The nearest large modern cities are Birmingham and Coventry.

Answer: Snitterfield

Snitterfield is not far from Stratford-on-Avon. The name is thought to be a derivation from snipe, a wading bird which frequented the area. The area around Stratford-upon-Avon is full of villages with quaint names. Richard Shakespeare was a tenant farmer of Mary Arden's father. Mary Arden was William Shakespeare's mother.

It's easy to see how William Shakespeare's father, John, and Mary Arden would have met. Incorrect answers: these are names of other villages in Warwickshire.

Answer: Oxfordians

They are known as "Oxfordians" as Edward de Vere was the 17th Earl of Oxford. "Stratfordians" is the term used for those who believe Shakespeare, of Statford-upon-Avon wrote the plays and sonnets traditionally ascribed to him.

Answer: Silver Street

We know Shakespeare was a tenant of a house in Silver Street because of the record of a court case where Shakespeare was called as a witness. The landlord and his son-in-law were arguing over what dowry terms were agreed before the marriage of the landlord's daughter. Shakespeare, perhaps a reluctant witness, could not remember anything much with certainty.

The court records show he had left Silver Street for Stratford-upon-Avon by the time the case was heard. Both addresses are referred to in the court records in connection with him.

The house no longer exists after WWII bombs blasted the area.

Answer: True

Authors of books or plays could not sue for plagiarism (having their work copied by others). The modern concept of copyright is considered to have begun with a statute in 1710 in the reign of Queen Anne. Play materials were usually kept by the acting company that staged the plays but there was nothing to prevent ideas being copied. What would now be called "pirate editions" were common.

Answer: None of these

Brilliant writer and dramatist though he was, Shakespeare was not known for writing original stories. He used and adapted the stories from the works of others - often from classical works or other printed books, but there's no doubt he was great at drama, the use of language, and the art of story telling.

A contemporary aggrieved author, Robert Greene, dying in poverty, referred to Shakespeare as an "upstart crow beautified with our feathers".

Answer: There is no record of him attending university

No concrete evidence of Shakespeare's education survives and it seems unlikely that he went to university. Ben Jonson accused Shakespeare of having "little Latin and "less Greek". As they were rivals, some jealousy may have been behind the comment. All we know is that there was a grammar school in Stratford-on-Avon and as the son of an alderman, Shakespeare would have been entitled to go there for free.

There was a teacher with a Welsh name,(Thomas Jenkins) at the school in Shakespeare's time. Shakespeare includes a teaching scene in Act IV scene I of "The Merry Wives of Windsor", with a cheeky schoolboy called "William" and a teacher with a Welsh name, Sir Hugh Evans, where William is tested on his Latin.

Answer: Not Without Mustard

Does this perhaps indicate that Shakespeare was very fond of mustard on his food? There are several references to Shakespeare's works in this play also, which is one reason why scholars have identified the motto as a parody of Shakespeare's.

Answer: William Shakespeare

Shakespeare seems to have been the most financially astute and successful of his generation of playwrights. He had bought various properties and parcels of land as well as being an occasional moneylender, having stores of grain even in a time of famine and being a shareholder in his theatre company. Records indicate Robert Greene was in poverty at the end of his life, Ben Jonson was buried upright which is thought to be "an indication of reduced circumstances at the time of his death". Thomas Kyd's mother "renounced the administration of his estate" probably because it was in debt.

Answer: False

Shakespeare was buried quietly in his local church in Stratford-upon-Avon. There was no national celebration or recognition at the time. Scholars have argued over why this might be and "Oxfordians" have suggested it supports their theory that he was not the author of the plays.