Shakespeare on the London Underground

As regular readers of this blog will know, I believe that too many people have made assumptions about Shakespeare’s work without ever really being exposed to it - something I regularly bemoan.

I was therefore delighted to read that London Underground will be issuing Shakespeare quotes over the tannoy system in their stations to enrich the humdrum commuting experience of its 3.5 million daily riders.

Tube drivers on the Piccadilly line have been issued with a booklet of quotations entitled What Is The City But Its People by Turner Prize winner Jeremy Deller. Shakespeare’s words (along with quotations from other literary giants) will now echo through the tunnels of London Underground and replace monotonous announcements like “mind the gap” and “stand behind the yellow line”.

Now, I’m sure that this isn’t going to create an army of 3.5 million Shakespeare fans overnight, but it will increase the Bard exposure of the general public – which can only be a good thing.

If you travel on the London Underground and hear a Shakespeare quote on your journey, I’d love to hear from you. How did it affect your journey? Could you identify the play?