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As the playwright’s work renews its position in the cultural spotlight, we celebrate the most accessible architectural flourishes of the era, writes Florence Hallett
Verona, Italy | Italy Sotheby’s International Realty
The much-anticipated release of “Hamnet,” the big-screen adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s acclaimed novel, is proof—if it were needed—that Shakespeare never grows old. Starring Paul Mescal as William and Jessie Buckley as Agnes, Chloé Zhao’s film reimagines the intimate family history behind Shakespeare’s tragedy “Hamlet.”
From speculative fiction to the most commonplace phrases, the playwright’s influence is woven into the fabric of the English-speaking world. And that includes its architecture: whether original Tudor and Elizabethan period pieces or the arts and crafts style of the late 19th century, many of the coziest, most glorious homes nod to the time of Shakespeare.
Plymouth, England | United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty
The Grade II* listed Langdon Court, an Elizabethan manor house hidden deep in the Devon countryside of southwest England, was built c.1577, within Shakespeare’s lifetime. Today, authentic hand-carved fireplaces and wooden floors, a lake and a formal walled garden offer the perfect retreat into old England, with updated facilities—including a professional-standard kitchen—bringing modern-day comfort and convenience.
It’s no coincidence that Shakespeare’s England has such enduring design appeal, says architectural historian Oliver Gerrish. “It was a time when the country was really flourishing,” he explains. “These houses were often built by great merchants, and there was an element of showing off, with beautiful lead work in the windows and very ornate plastering.”
Berkshire, England | United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty
Tucked away on a private island, on a secluded stretch of the River Thames in Cookham Dean, Berkshire, The Islands is just the place to catch a glimpse of Titania, fairy queen of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Flashes of river can be seen from its gardens, which include croquet lawns, orchards, a paddock and flower meadow, evoking Oberon’s “bank where the wild thyme blows, / Where oxlips and the nodding violet grows.”
Built in the arts and crafts style, the house imagines a return to a world unspoiled by industrialisation, its oak detailing and exposed beams, stained glass and open fires all key elements of the aesthetic.
It’s a look that’s “really about paneled rooms, deep fireplaces, crisp white decorative plaster, ornamental ceilings, armorial glass heraldry, wooden floors and tapestries,” says Gerrish.
East Hampton, New York | Sotheby’s International Realty – Bridgehampton Brokerage
Meanwhile, for buyers with a taste for high drama, 64 Huntting Lane, in East Hampton, New York, is also a trip back in time.
Designed by architect Francis Burrall Hoffman Jr., and built in 1916, its 75-foot-long half-timbered salon is a stunning recreation of the great halls of Elizabethan England. The house has a theatrical pedigree of its own, becoming known as the “Playhouse” because of the performances that were regularly staged there.
Verona, Italy | Italy Sotheby’s International Realty
Shakespeare is unlikely to have traveled abroad but in his writing he ventured far and wide. Of his three plays set in Verona, “Romeo and Juliet” is surely the best known and loved, and it is beautifully evoked in the balconies of this art nouveau villa on the banks of the Adige river, right in the heart of the city.
With its loggia and balcony, marble columns and fireplaces, it is a tribute to Shakespeare’s contemporary, the great Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. As Celia in “As You Like It” says of the forest of Arden: “I like this place, and willingly could waste my time in it.”
Live like Downton Abbey: an ode to English country house style
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Kate Marburger
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