Matthew Baynton, Martha Howe-Douglas, Ben Willbond, Simon Farnaby, Laurence Rickard, Jim Howick

Bill Shakespeare is a hapless lute-player who leaves home to follow his dream, and becomes involved in the fortunes of kings, spies and a plot to blow up the Queen.

Meanwhile, in Madrid, King Phillip II of Spain has hatched his latest plan to rid the world of his mortal enemy, Queen Elizabeth, and seize the English throne for himself. Sneaking into England with a motley crew of assassins, Phillip fools desperate courtier the Earl of Croydon into helping with his devilish plot.

From the performers behind the immensely popular children’s TV series Horrible Histories’, with the six starring cast members taking on 40 roles in total, mixing historical accuracy, inaccuracy and contemporary humour, comes this fictional take on the young Shakespeare’s quest for fame and fortune during his ‘lost years’.