Henry IV, Pt.2

Written by William Shakespeare

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic prose and verse read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time.

‘O sleep, O gentle sleep, Nature's soft nurse, how have I frightened thee. That thou no more will weigh my eyelids down, And steep my senses in forgetfulness?’

Shakespeare’s heartbreaking conclusion to his epic pair of history plays.

King Henry IV suffers from illness, so his youngest son Prince John fights the rebels, while Prince Hal prepares to be king. Meanwhile, Hal's friend Falstaff causes trouble, recruits, and speaks ill of Hal. Henry dies, and Hal becomes King Henry V. He banishes Falstaff from court, ready to wage war on France.

All of the Shakespeare plays within the ARGO Classics catalogue are performed by the Marlowe Dramatic Society and Professional Players. The Marlowe was founded in 1907 with a mission to focus on effective delivery of verse, respect the integrity of texts, and rescue neglected plays by Shakespeare’s contemporaries and the less performed plays of Shakespeare himself. The Marlowe has performed annually at Cambridge Arts Theatre since its opening in 1936 and continues to produce some of the finest actors of their generations.

Thurston Dart, Professor of Music at London University and a Fellow of Jesus College Cambridge, directed the music for this production.

The full cast includes: Denis McCarthy; Anthony Jacobs; Gary Watson; Corin Redgrave; Ian McKellen; Richard Kaye; Terrence Hardiman; Ian Lang; Anthony Arlidge; Derek Jacobi; John Tracy-Phillips; John Wilders; John Barton; Denis McCarthy; Toby Robertson; Clive Swift; John Tydeman; Richard Marquand; Frank Duncan; David Jones; David Coombes; Donald Beves; Philip Strick; Tony Church; Paul Draper; William Squire; Toby Robertson; Peter Foster; Roger Hammond; Roger Hammond; Roger Hammond; Richard Cotterell; Simon Relph; Camille Prior; Dilys Hamlett; Vivienne Chatterton; Diana Chadwick.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Release date: Nov 26, 2020
• ISBN: 9780008442910

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest playwright the world has seen. He produced an astonishing amount of work; 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 5 poems. He died on 23rd April 1616, aged 52, and was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.

Reviews for Henry IV, Pt.2

[amerynth · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Shakespeare's "Henry IV: Part Two" really doesn't live up to the marvelous story told in part one. I read somewhere that both parts were originally a single play and Shakespeare broke it into two... I don't know whether that's true but I find it fairly easy to believe.There isn't much of a story here-- the battle is over and everyone is just waiting for Henry III to expire so his son can take over. It's pretty slow moving and not terribly interesting.

[mrslee_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not a scholarly review here, just a note for myself that I read this. The drama was pretty good, but my reading mood was off and so it took me two months to finish. Not good for continuity. Even so, I was able to pick up the main characters and plot. All the side characters became rather muddled for me though. Not sure what to think of Henry V. Seems a rather calculating and mean sort of man. Used Falstaff harshly, although I don't have much sympathy or care for Falstaff, either. Not sure why people have loved him so, I found him repulsive. Possibly the language barrier? I would like to read this in a more modern language to see if it makes a difference. Loved Henry the IV's speech about sleep, or the lack thereof. Also, one of the women who gave her father-in-law (or was he her father?) what-for because he deserted her husband when he needed him most.

[coach_of_alva · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This play is not as enjoyable as its predecessor, largely because the remaining rebels to be mopped up are foolish weasels, not the roaring lion that Hotspur was. There remains the tension between father and son, which ends in a moving deathbed reconciliation and the prince's coming-of-age as king. More interesting is the career of Sir John Falstaff in the countryside, as we are allowed to see how a man of some shrewdness and no honor survives and profits while the kingdom is in an uproar, and the introduction of Justice Shallow, who so wants to be the Elizabethan equivalent of "cool." The play ends with the new king forbidding the evil old man his presence. This is a necessity, especially considering the old fool's plans for graft and glory, but it is a sad necessity.

[stillatim · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Overall, I thought this was less interesting than Henry V, but that might just be because I paid more attention to HV (I have to teach it; I read this for kicks). There's not a whole lot of beautiful Shakespeare moments, the humor didn't hit me (possibly my fault, of course), and the best bit was probably the Induction, in which Rumour discourses on herself. On the upside, I learned the word 'fustilarian' and the phrase 'I'll tickle your catastrophe!', and I'm pretty sure I now understand the title of Javier Marias' 'Your Face Tomorrow': "What a disgrace it is to me to remember thy name! or to know thy face tomorrow!", says the prince in II.2. Here he's mocking/despairing over those who abandon their friends when they become famous; by the end of the play (V.5) he's the person who's abandoning his friends. This adds a fair bit to Marias' repeated question, "Can I know your face tomorrow?", which for most of the novel seems more epistemic and existential. If he got it from Henry IV, 'YFT' takes on a whole new moral overtone. I guess I should re-read it even sooner than I'd planned.

This now has nothing to do with Henry IV, which I doubt I'll re-read anytime soon.

[medievalgirl-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This play was the third in a series of 8 which together formed Shakespeare’s masterful saga of 'History' plays chronicling the turbulent final century of the Plantagenet Dynasty from the deposition of Richard II in 1399 to the death of Richard III at Bosworth field in 1485.

Altogether, they have all the high drama of an epic saga with their vivid accounts of treachery, ambition, power, betrayal, feuding and war in an age of bloody upheaval.
If all this sounds gloomy and depressing, there are also colourful well-developed and memorable characters including the 'man mountain' plump and usually tipsy John Falstaff and the heroic Henry V as well as plenty of courage, chivalry and deeds of daring-do with a smattering of romance and humour.

Whoever said Shakespeare was boring? It should be said, however, that I could not fully appreciate these plays by simply reading them- they had to be seen as well. They are not, after all, novels, and reading through them in the way one would a book can be a tedious experience.

An increasingly unstable and insecure King Henry faces yet more rebellion and opposition from within and without.
Beset by failing health and troubled all the more by his conscience and fear of divine judgement upon him and his line for his crime of the deposition and murder of the rightful King.
The Earl of Northumberland and other nobles gather together their forces to make war against the King once again, but their readiness to negotiate proves fatal.
Meanwhile, Prince Hal still frequents the taverns of London, but his old friend Falstaff has come up with a new scheme to make gain money, prestige and hopefully the favour of the King and is the source of as much humour as before.
As King Henry's troubled reign comes to an end, however, Price Hal has some must mature to accept the great responsibility which is soon to be thrust upon him, even though it comes at the price of disowning his former companions of friends.

[katieloucks · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I'm not big into the histories

[trilliams · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Falstaff has an entire speech about drinking. Of course. Not as entertaining as the first part, but acts IV and V make it worth it.

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Falstaff is at his best in this play. Hal's abuse of him almost inspires sympathy for the blackguard. The transformation of the irresponsible Hal into a stately King is, however, rather hard to swallow.The death scene of HIV is a wonderful scene. It's easier for me to see Hal take the crown for his own head before his father is even cold (or dead for that matter) than it is for me to see Hal become a serious young man.

[dinadansfriend · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This play ends with the death of Henry IV of England, and the crowning of Henry V and his dramatic rejection of Falstaff. I prefer it to the first part, and find the play has more pacing and tighter characterization. I guest I'm not that fond of Falstaff, having had to deal with the fallout from some "Lovable Rogues" in my own life. The Henry IV camp deals with the rebellion in the north, and Hotspur Percy gets killed.Read it 9 times, apparently.