Richard III

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic prose and verse read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time.

‘Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York.’

Richard III completes the cycle of plays covering the Wars of the Roses. It’s the story of Richard, Duke of Gloucester’s villainous plan to take the throne. It is a tale of jealousy, manipulation and deceit based on Sir Thomas More's unfinished – and largely untrue – History of King Richard III.

All of the Shakespeare plays within the ARGO Classics catalogue are performed by the Marlowe Dramatic Society and Professional Players. The Marlowe was founded in 1907 with a mission to focus on effective delivery of verse, respect the integrity of texts, and rescue neglected plays by Shakespeare’s contemporaries and the less performed plays of Shakespeare himself. The Marlowe has performed annually at Cambridge Arts Theatre since its opening in 1936 and continues to produce some of the finest actors of their generations.

Thurston Dart, Professor of Music at London University and a Fellow of Jesus College Cambridge, directed the music for this production.

The full cast includes: Richard Wordsworth; David Dickinson; Patrick Garland; Patrick Wymark; John Shrapnel; David Rowe-Beddoe; John Tracy-Phillips; William Squire; John Hopkins; Corin Redgrave; Denis McCarthy; Terrence Hardiman; George Rylands; John Shearer; Roger Croucher; Peter Orr; David Buck; David King; John Tydeman; Margaretta Scott; Mary Morris; Beatrix Lehmann; Prunella Scales; Freda Dowie.

About the author

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest playwright the world has seen. He produced an astonishing amount of work; 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 5 poems. He died on 23rd April 1616, aged 52, and was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.