Solihull Arts Complex

Festival 36 is part of the ‘Everything to Everybody’ Project -­‐ an ambitious three-­year celebration of one of the UK’s most important cultural assets: the vast Shakespeare Memorial Library housed within the Library of Birmingham. Everything to Everybody will give the city’s uniquely democratic Shakespeare heritage back to the people, and is a collaboration between the University of Birmingham and Birmingham City Council, with funding also contributed by National Lottery Heritage Fund and History West Midlands.

As part of Festival 36 and the 'Everything to Everybody Project', Solihull MBC Cultural Services are delighted to announce that the Birmingham copy of Shakespeare's First Folio will be visiting The Core on Sunday 2 July. The Birmingham copy of the First Folio is usually archived in the Shakespeare Memorial Library on the top floor of the Library of Birmingham. For preservation purposes, it is kept in storage away from public view and so this exciting 400th anniversary tour of The Folio is offering people a rare opportunity to view this extraordinary book, right here in Solihull.

There will be a number of time slots to view the Folio throughout the day. Each time slot will have a limited capacity, so booking is essential. There is no charge to view the Folio, but each attendee will need to have a ticket. Please do not book a ticket if you think you might be unable to attend.

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About The First Folio

Shakespeare's First Folio, published in 1623, is an extraordinary book. The First Folio is the first published collection of Shakespeare’s plays, produced seven years after his death. Its title is Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories & Tragedies, and it groups his plays into those categories—comedies, histories, and tragedies—for the first time. 

About half of Shakespeare’s plays had never previously appeared in print before. Without the First Folio, 18 plays might have been lost forever, including As You Like It, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, The Tempest, and many more!

 

The Birmigham First Folio, and The Shakespeare Memorial Library

The Birmingham copy of The First Folio was purchased in 1881 for all the people of Birmingham - no matter what their background, wealth or occupation. This was part of a collection collated by preacher and lecturer George Dawson (1821-1876), who was passionate in his belief that Birmingham should be home to the greatest collection of Shakespeare writings in the world.

This collection is now on display in the Shakespeare Memorial Library on the top floor of The Library of Birmingham, which is free for members of the public to access. The collection of more than 100,000 items is totally unique as both the first major Shakespeare library in the world and also the only extensive Shakespeare collection which belongs to the people of a city.

 

Find out more about Festival 36