Webinar on revising 'Macbeth' in the Leaving Certificate
On Tuesday 18th November 2025 I am giving a webinar on how teachers can help students revise Macbeth in the months leading up to the Leaving Certificate.
Read MoreWebinar on teaching 'Othello'
A webinar introduction to teaching Othello, especially in the Leaving Certificate, on Wednesday 10th September 2025.
Read MoreThe New Oxford Shakespeare 'Macbeth'
Emma Smith’s introduction to the Macbeth volume in The New Oxford Shakespeare series is excellent.
Read MoreHarriet Walter's 'She Speaks! what Shakespeare's women might have said'
Harriet Walter’s She Speaks! What Shakespeare’s women might have said is an entertaining and insightful account of many of the plays’ female roles.
Read MoreThe 'King Lear scene by scene' series
Links to all the podcasts and transcripts from the ‘King Lear scene by scene’ series.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 12
The final episode of King Lear scene by scene looks at the cataclysmic last scene of the tragedy,
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 11
The penultimate episode of the King Lear scene by scene podcast looks at the lull before the storm: Act 4 scene 7, and Act 5 scenes 1 and 2.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 10
In episode 10 I whizz through three quick scenes first - Act 4, scenes 3, 4 and 5, and then pay proper attention to the immense and complex scene 6.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 9
Episode 9 of the King Lear scene by scene podcast looks at the first two scenes in Act 4, the first in the immediate aftermath of Gloucester’s blinding, the second an opportunity to look at the character development of Albany throughout the play.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 8
Episode 8 of the King Lear scene by scene post looks at the horrifying Act 3 scene 7 - the blinding of Gloucester, and how images of seeing and blindness ramify through the story.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 7
Episode 7 of King Lear scene by scene looks at Act 3 scene 4 (the second one in the storm) and scene 6 (the mock trial). Scene 5 is skipped - little to say.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 6
Episode 6 of the King Lear scene by scene podcast looks at the first three scenes of Act 3, as the storm takes over.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 5
Episode 5 of King Lear scene by scene looks at the very significant but very short Act 2 scene 3 and then the much more meaty Act 2 scene 4. They are both connected by the idea ‘nothing’.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 4
Episode 4 of the King Lear scene by scene podcast looks at Act 1 scene 5, Act 2 scene 1 and Act 2 scene 2.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 3
The third in the King Lear scene by scene podcast looks at Act One scenes Three and Four.
Read MoreSpecial Fortnightly: King Lear
A special issue from the Fortnightly, kicking off my podcast series King Lear scene by scene.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 2
The second talk in the series King Lear scene by scene looks at Act 1 scene 2, in which we are introduced to the sub-plot (unique in Shakespeare's tragedies), starting with the fascinating villain Edmund.
Read More'King Lear' revision webinar
Notes, links and resources from a webinar on revising King Lear for the Leaving Certificate on Wednesday 16th October via Tralee Education Support Centre.
Read More'King Lear' scene by scene 1
The first in the series of King Lear: scene by scene podcasts (with transcripts) looks at Act I scene i
Read MoreJudi Dench on Shakespeare
Judi Dench's reflections on playing many roles in Shakespeare's plays over decades are essential reading, in a marvellous collection of conversations with Brendan O'Hea.
Read More