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Simon Schama's Shakespeare Season 1 Episode 1 - Watch Legally and Safely

Simon Schama's Shakespeare Season 1 Episode 1

Episode Title: This England
Genre:
Countries: United Kingdom,
Airing Date: June 22, 2012
Runtime:60 min

Simon Schama argues that it is impossible to understand how Shakespeare came to belong 'to all time' without understanding just how much he was of his time. Schama explores how, in his history plays, Shakespeare created a vision of England that still rings true today. Against the backdrop of the Reformation, Shakespeare began to dramatize English history and the English character in a new and unprecedented way. From his first blockbuster, Henry VI, he made sure that his England was not just a place where King and Queens strutted and preened, but where ordinary Englishmen and women took centre stage. It was inclusive vision that Shakespeare expanded upon in his masterpiece - Henry IV - a play which presents England in glorious technicolour: kings and pickpockets, country squires and common prostitutes, corrupt knights and ragged soldiers. And at the centre of it all is the outsized figure of Sir John Falstaff - a character that transfixed Elizabethan audiences and still moves us today. Falstaff is Shakespeare's most stupendous creation; an outsized dream of Englishness who embodies more purely the essence of English irreverence, generosity and wit.

How to Watch Simon Schama's Shakespeare Season 1 Episode 1 Legally and Safely

If you want to stream Simon Schama's Shakespeare Season 1 Episode 1 through reputable and legal services, there are a few good options depending on where you are. Subscription platforms like HBO Max, Disney+, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Apple TV+ sometimes carry Simon Schama's Shakespeare Season 1 Episode 1 films or related DC titles—though availability depends on your country.

If you’d rather not commit to a subscription, there are ad‑supported, free (but legal) platforms such as Tubi, Pluto TV, Peacock or Crackle (where available in your region) that occasionally host superhero films.

Lastly, don’t forget about library‑linked streaming options like Kanopy or Hoopla (if your library or university is registered), and official uploads by film distributors on YouTube—these can also give you legal access to classic movies.

Simon Schama