Filmmaker and alumna Cheryl Eagan-Donovan’s documentary questioning the identity of William Shakespeare will soon be broadcast in the country that gave birth to the Bard.
The film, which debuted in 2018 with Eagan-Donovan’s Controversy Films, has been available to view in the United States and Canada under the name “Nothing Is Truer than Truth” since 2019. It has been renamed “Shakespeare: The Man Behind the Name” for the international market and will be distributed globally by Gravitas Ventures. The film will be available throughout the United Kingdom beginning in September 2022 via Sky TV UK.
The documentary introduces Edward de Vere as the true author behind the pseudonym William Shakespeare. Described as an “A-list party boy,” a poet, a patron of theater and a reckless spendthrift, the wealthy and bisexual 17th Earl of Oxford traveled throughout Europe during his life, with a yearlong stint in Italy. Eagan-Donovan and a cadre of literary scholars posit that his experiences abroad are the basis for many works attributed to Shakespeare.
Although there was a man named William Shakespeare or perhaps Shakspere (there were dozens of spelling variations during his lifetime), some believe that the man from Stratford-Upon-Avon could never have penned such a breadth of work with his limited education and world experience. It’s believed he never left the south of England.
“There is no evidence that he could read or write,” Eagan-Donovan, who teaches undergraduate and graduate students at Lesley, said in an interview on our "Why We Write" podcast in 2018. “The six signatures that we have of his are all different and almost illegible, so it's suspected that he was illiterate himself. Some of his children were illiterate. There have always been questions about who wrote the works.”
In her search for proof, Eagan-Donovan filmed in Venice, Verona, Mantua, Padua, and Brenta, Italy, all sites visited by de Vere and the settings of Shakespearean classics including “Romeo and Juliet” and “Othello.” The documentary also features interviews with scholars and actors who have studied both Shakespeare and de Vere.
The wider distribution of Eagan-Donovan’s film means more may join the movement to recognize de Vere as more than a rich playboy.
“We are very excited about bringing the true story of Shakespeare’s life and work to audiences around the world, especially as we approach the 400th anniversary of the publication of the First Folio in 2023,” says Eagan-Donovan.
Since the release of the film, she has continued her research in London and plans to begin a related documentary project in October
“Nothing Is Truer than Truth” is available to watch on Amazon Prime.
