This week on the podcast, we’re joined by special guest Maggie O’Farrell. The author of eight novels, plus the Sunday Time no. 1 best-selling memoir I am, I am, I am, she has been nominated for the Costa Novel Award three times, winning it for The Hand That First Held Mine. Her new book – Hamnet – is set in the summer of 1596 and imagines the story behind one of Shakespeare’s best-known tragedies and its connection to Shakespeare’s only son, Hamnet. It’s a stunning novel and a tender story of love and grief that shifts the focus to the family that Shakespeare left behind in Stratford when he moved to London to become the playwright we know today. We spoke to Maggie about how she researched the story and how she approached the daunting prospect of writing about such a well-known figure as Shakespeare. This episode features an extract from Hamnet, read by Maggie O’Farrell.

S5 Ep6: Hamnet with Maggie O'Farrell

Such Stuff goes behind the scenes at Shakespeare's Globe, sharing the incredible stories and experiences that come through our doors every day. We'll be exploring the big themes behind all of the work that we do here and asking: what is Shakespeare's transformative impact on the world?

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In the last episode in our series on arts and wellbeing, we explore the question of creativity. Creativity has come up again and again in this series, as a way of expressing ourselves, but also as a way of managing the thoughts and the periods in our life which can feel overwhelming. Why is exercising our creative brain such a helpful way of taking ourselves out of negative thought processes? How can all of us – even if we don’t think we’re particularly creative people – use creativity to feel better? We speak to our literary manager Jess Lusk about her relationship to that crucial connection between creativity and mental health. And she chats to actor and writer Steffan Donnelly and our associate artistic director Sean Holmes to get their ideas on why creativity matters, and to hear some of the ways they’ve kept their creativity alive this year, whilst they’ve been unable to work. 





This episode does contain discussion of mental health issues, anxiety, depression and suicide.  

S8 Ep5: Creativity

In the latest episode of our series on arts and wellbeing, we catch up with some of the creatives and scholars in our Globe network to find out about the inspirations that have helped them through this period and why the arts provide such a vital lifeline. Without the opportunity to go out and experience the arts in person, we’ve been turning inwards, to books, televisions, films, plays and paintings. How can inspirations help to find escape in difficult periods? Or bring comfort in moments of crisis? We hear from actor and writer Tom Stuart in conversation with our literary manager Jess Lusk. And lecturer and senior researcher Dr Will Tosh speaks to actor, storyteller, writer and Globe Education Practitioner Alex Kanefsky, and Shakespeare scholar Dr Vanessa Lim.  





This episode does contain discussion of mental health issues. 






S8 Ep4: Inspirations

In the latest episode of our series on arts and wellbeing, we turn to the question of connection. What are the connections that arts spaces can bring and how can that impact our mental health? And for theatre in particular, how important is the moment of connection, the shared experience, that comes from spending an evening with an audience of strangers? We chat to Jemima and Alistair, two of the wonderful Globe volunteers, about why they volunteer, how it impacts them, and why they think connection is so important for wellbeing. Performances at the Globe can only happen thanks to the extraordinary contribution of our eclectic, committed and joyful volunteers. Every season, they watch countless performances and meet so many of the audience members who come through our doors. Who better to speak on the elusive but extraordinary power of connection? 





This episode does contain discussion of mental health issues and anxiety. 






S8 Ep3: Making a connection

In this next episode in our series on the connection between the arts and wellbeing, we dig a little deeper into expression and vulnerability.

S8 Ep2: Being vulnerable

In a new series dedicated to the connection between the arts and wellbeing, we explore the many ways in which the arts enrich our lives. As we head out of lockdown and back into our beautiful theatres, what role can the arts and theatre play in helping us to tackle mental health issues, in restoring wellbeing, and to help us find expression and connection again after a year of isolation? We’ll be speaking to drama therapists, to psychologists, to artists and creatives, to dig deeper into the links between the arts and wellbeing and to think about some of the practical ways that the arts can play a part in a sort of collective healing.  
First up, in this episode, Artistic Director Michelle Terry speaks to psychotherapist Rachael Williams about how creativity, vulnerability, and engaging with the arts can help us to work through the mental health problems we experience. 



This episode contains discussion of mental health, anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicide. 

S5 Ep6: Hamnet with Maggie O'Farrell

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