The Globe theatre burns to the ground

In the summer of 1613, William Shakespeare was at the height of his fame. He had written most of his best-loved plays and audiences still flocked to see his work being performed. However, on 29 June that year, one of his performances took the popular phrase ‘burning down the house’ a little too literally.

On that warm summer’s day, was being watched by eager theatregoers at the Globe in Southwark, London. As per the script, the actor (or ‘player’, as they were known) in the role of King Henry VIII made a surprise entrance on the stage at the end of the first act, accompanied by cannon fire. However, during this performance, a stray