Episode Hive Logo
Show cover for Shakespeare Uncovered

The Best Episodes of Shakespeare Uncovered

Every episode of Shakespeare Uncovered ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Shakespeare Uncovered!

Celebrity hosts guide viewers through William Shakespeare's plays in performance. Each episode serves as a primer for newcomers to Shakespeare while serving up enough historical and theatrical insights to enchant lifelong fans.

Genre:Documentary
Networks:PBSBBC Four

Top Episode Ratings Summary

The best episode of "Shakespeare Uncovered" is "Antony & Cleopatra With Kim Cattrall", rated 9.3/10 from 42 user votes. It was directed by N/A and written by N/A. "Antony & Cleopatra With Kim Cattrall" aired on 2/13/2015 and is rated 0.4 point(s) higher than the second highest rated, "Jeremy Irons on the Henrys".

  • Antony & Cleopatra With Kim Cattrall
    9.3/10 42 votes

    #1 - Antony & Cleopatra With Kim Cattrall

    Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 2/13/2015

    Kim Cattrall searches for the truth behind Shakespeare's middle-aged love story and examines inspirations for the play in Rome; with Janet Suzman, Harriet Walter and Vanessa Redgrave.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Jeremy Irons on the Henrys
    8.9/10 34 votes

    #2 - Jeremy Irons on the Henrys

    Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 7/7/2012

    Jeremy Irons uncovers the extraordinary appeal of Shakespeare's History Plays. He unravels the differences between the real history and the drama that Shakespeare creates.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • King Lear With Christopher Plummer
    8.9/10 20 votes

    #3 - King Lear With Christopher Plummer

    Season 2 Episode 2 - Aired 1/30/2015

    Christopher Plummer explores how "King Lear" may have been staged during Shakespeare's time; actors Ian McKellen and Simon Russell Beale discuss playing the role of King Lear.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Joely Richardson on Shakespeare's Women
    8.7/10 51 votes

    #4 - Joely Richardson on Shakespeare's Women

    Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 6/19/2012

    Shakespeare Uncovered: In Twelfth Night and As You Like It, Joely Richardson investigates (with a contribution from her mother Vanessa Redgrave) the great comic heroines created by Shakespeare in those hugely popular plays.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • David Tennant on Hamlet
    8.6/10 41 votes

    #5 - David Tennant on Hamlet

    Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 7/17/2012

    David Tennant, whose own RSC performance as Hamlet was a huge hit, meets other actors who have played the role and tries to unravel the meaning of the play.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • The Taming of the Shrew With Morgan Freeman
    8.5/10 19 votes

    #6 - The Taming of the Shrew With Morgan Freeman

    Season 2 Episode 3 - Aired 2/6/2015

    Morgan Freeman is determined to understand why Shakespeare wrote "The Taming of the Shrew"; interviews include Tracey Ullman, Sinead Cusack and Julia Stiles.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Measure for Measure With Romola Garai
    8.5/10 27 votes

    #7 - Measure for Measure With Romola Garai

    Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 10/19/2018

    Romola Garai explores “Measure for Measure,” one of Shakespeare's most provocative plays. It presents a surprisingly timely drama of sexual morality, hypocrisy and harassment.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • A Midsummer Night's Dream With Hugh Bonneville
    8.4/10 17 votes

    #8 - A Midsummer Night's Dream With Hugh Bonneville

    Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 1/30/2015

    Actor Hugh Bonneville talks with Ralph Fiennes about the appeal of "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Trevor Nunn on The Tempest
    8.3/10 22 votes

    #9 - Trevor Nunn on The Tempest

    Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 7/3/2012

    Trevor Nunn looks at the magical and mysterious world created in Shakespeare's last complete play, The Tempest. Trevor finds out where Shakespeare got his material from and the strange personal insights hidden within it. It is a truly experimental work but sadly perhaps also Shakespeare's farewell to the theatre. The Tempest is peculiarly suitable to film - ambitious, experimental and full of magic. Not surprisingly, one of the very first silent film adaptations of a Shakespeare play was The Tempest in 1911.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Othello With David Harewood
    8.2/10 16 votes

    #10 - Othello With David Harewood

    Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 2/6/2015

    David Harewood unravels the issues of prejudice and jealousy embedded in "Othello"; Adrian Lester portrays Othello at the National Theatre in London; interviews include Simon Russell Beale, Ian McKellen, Julia Stiles and Patrick Stewart.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Romeo & Juliet With Joseph Fiennes
    8.1/10 14 votes

    #11 - Romeo & Juliet With Joseph Fiennes

    Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 2/13/2015

    Joe Fiennes considers why "Romeo and Juliet" remains the most adapted and performed of all of Shakespeare's works; interviews include Orlando Bloom, Condola Rashad and Stephen Sondheim.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Much Ado About Nothing with Helen Hunt
    8.1/10 28 votes

    #12 - Much Ado About Nothing with Helen Hunt

    Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 10/12/2018

    Helen Hunt explores how “Much Ado About Nothing” became one of Shakespeare’s most beloved romantic comedies.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • The Merchant of Venice with F. Murray Abraham
    8.1/10 23 votes

    #13 - The Merchant of Venice with F. Murray Abraham

    Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 10/12/2018

    F. Murray Abraham untangles the controversies surrounding “The Merchant of Venice,” addressing the ubiquitous anti-Semitism that characterized Europe in Shakespeare’s time.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • The Winter's Tale with Simon Russell Beale
    8.0/10 1 votes

    #14 - The Winter's Tale with Simon Russell Beale

    Season 3 Episode 5 - Aired 10/26/2018

    Simon Russell Beale uncovers the romance and betrayals of "The Winter's Tale" and shows that in this play Shakespeare offers something for which everyone longs: the ability to make amends for an irreversible mistake.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Richard III with Antony Sher
    8.0/10 1 votes

    #15 - Richard III with Antony Sher

    Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 10/26/2018

    Antony Sher unveils the life of Shakespeare's "Richard III," comparing the historical king's reputation with the play's enduring portrait of ruthless ambition and vengeance.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Derek Jacobi on Richard II
    7.6/10 24 votes

    #16 - Derek Jacobi on Richard II

    Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 6/30/2012

    Derek Jacobi looks at Richard II, a role he played 30 years ago. He reveals why the might have cost Shakespeare his life, and shares some of the extraordinary political parallels within the play that still resonate today.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Ethan Hawke on Macbeth
    7.5/10 31 votes

    #17 - Ethan Hawke on Macbeth

    Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 6/26/2012

    Ethan Hawke sets out to prepare himself for the possibility of playing the role of Macbeth by uncovering the true story behind the play, seeing some of the greatest productions and discovering the extraordinary insights into the criminal mind that Shakespeare reveals.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Julius Caesar with Brian Cox
    7.3/10 17 votes

    #18 - Julius Caesar with Brian Cox

    Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 10/19/2018

    Brian Cox looks at Shakespeare's most revered political play, “Julius Caesar,” to analyze what can be learned about freedom and tyranny today.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A