Jonathan Thacker, the King Alfonso XIII Professor of Spanish Studies and a Fellow of Exeter College at the University of Oxford, discusses Lope de Vega (1562–1635), a playwright and poet who played a crucial role in Spanish literature during the Golden Age. He was a contemporary of Cervantes and Shakespeare, and he authored as many as 800 plays and numerous poems, making substantial contributions to the evolution of Spanish theater through works such as 'Fuente Ovejuna' and 'El castigo sin venganza'. 

BOOKS AND PUBLICATIONS ABOUT LOPE DE VEGA 

Dixon, Victor, "Lope Félix de Vega Carpio”, 'The Cambridge History of Spanish Literature', Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2004, pp. 251-264.  

García Reidy, Alejandro, 'Las musas rameras: oficio dramático y conciencia profesional en Lope de Vega', Madrid/Frankfurt, Iberoamericana/Vervuert, 2013.  

García Santo-Tomás, Enrique, 'La creación del “Fénix”: Recepción crítica y formación canónica del teatro de Lope de Vega', Madrid, Gredos, 2000. 

McKendrick, Melveena, 'Theatre in Spain, 1490–1700', Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1989.  

Samson, Alexander and Thacker, Jonathan, 'A Companion to Lope de Vega', Woodbridge, Tamesis, 2008. 

Sánchez Jiménez, Antonio, 'Lope: el verso y la vida', Madrid, Cátedra, 2018. 

Thacker, Jonathan, 'A Companion to Golden Age Theatre', Woodbridge, Tamesis, 2007.