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Malvolio
Malvolio is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's comedy ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will''. His name means "ill will" in Italian, referencing his disagreeable nature. He is the vain, pompous, authoritarian steward of Olivia's household. Style In the play, Malvolio is defined as "a kind of Puritan". He despises all manner of fun and games, and wishes his world to be completely free of human sin, yet he behaves very foolishly against his stoic nature when he believes that Olivia loves him. This leads to major conflicts with characters such as Sir Toby Belch, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Maria, mistress of the household. Much of the play's humour comes from Maria, Feste, Toby Belch, and Andrew Aguecheek tormenting Malvolio with drinking, joking, and singing. After Malvolio interrupts their party and chastises them for their lewdness, Maria devises a way to gain revenge on the steward, which she proposes to Sir Toby and the others. Maria composes a love letter in Olivia's h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Twelfth Night
''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Viola and Sebastian, who are separated in a shipwreck. Viola (who is disguised as Cesario) falls in love with the Duke Orsino, who in turn is in love with Countess Olivia. Upon meeting Viola, Countess Olivia falls in love with her thinking she is a man. The play expanded on the musical interludes and riotous disorder expected of the occasion, with plot elements drawn from the short story "Of Apollonius and Silla" by Barnabe Rich, based on a story by Matteo Bandello. The first recorded public performance was on 2 February 1602, at Candlemas, the formal end of Christmastide in the year's calendar. The play was not published until its inclusion in the 1623 First Folio. Characters * Viola – a shipwrecked young woman who disguises hers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sir Toby Belch
Sir Toby Belch is a character in William Shakespeare’s ''Twelfth Night''. He is Olivia's uncle. Character Sir Toby is an ambiguous mix of high spirits and low cunning. He first appears in the play's third scene, when he storms onto the stage the morning after a hard night out, complaining about the sombre melancholy that hangs over his niece's household. "What a plague means my niece to take the death of her brother thus? I'm sure care's an enemy to life." This immediately establishes Sir Toby at the opposite pole from the languishing melancholy which dominated the first scene (including Orsino's speech, "If music be the food of love..."), identifying him as a force for vitality, noise and good cheer, as his name suggests. At the beginning Sir Toby appears to be friends with another character, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, a guest of Olivia, Sir Toby's niece. However, as the play progresses, it transpires that Sir Toby is just taking advantage of Sir Andrew's riches. His torment ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Posthumous Hoby
Sir Thomas Posthumus Hoby (1566 – 30 December 1640), also spelt Hobie, Hobbie and Hobby, Posthumous and Postumus, was an English gentleman and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1589 and 1629. A Puritan, he has been claimed as the inspiration for Shakespeare's character Malvolio in ''Twelfth Night''.J. L. Simmons, "A Source for Shakespeare's Malvolio: The Elizabethan Controversy with the Puritans", ''Huntington Library Quarterly'', vol. 36 (May 1973), pp. 181–201. Life Hoby was the younger son of Sir Thomas Hoby (1530–1566), the English Ambassador to France in 1557, by his wife, Elizabeth Cooke. Elizabeth was one of the daughters of the humanist Sir Anthony Cooke (1504–1576). Hoby was born after his father's death, which led to his gaining the additional name Posthumus.The Ghost of L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Olivia (Twelfth Night)
Olivia is a fictional character from William Shakespeare's play ''Twelfth Night'', believed to have been written around 1600 or 1601. She is at the centre of the various plots, both the comedic and the romantic. She has various suitors. Background Olivia is a beautiful lady of noble birth who lives in Illyria. Before the play begins, she lost her brother, her guardian, after her father died. This loss has made her grief-stricken and she has refused to see anyone who does not reside in her household and declared that she will be in mourning for seven years (The element itself, till seven years' heat, Shall not behold her face at ample view). Because of her wealth and beauty, Olivia attracts various men (Malvolio, Sir Andrew Aguecheek) who wish to marry her. The play begins with the Duke of Illyria, Orsino, pining away over his love for Olivia while she refuses to accept him as a suitor. Sir Andrew has been invited to her household by Sir Toby, and Andrew hopes to use ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alec McCowen
Alexander Duncan McCowen, (26 May 1925 – 6 February 2017) was an English actor. He was known for his work in numerous film and stage productions. Early life McCowen was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, the son of Mary (née Walkden), a dancer, and Duncan McCowen, a shopkeeper. He attended The Skinners' School in Tunbridge Wells - he was known as 'Squeaker' McCowan by his friends - and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Career Early theatre work McCowen first appeared on stage at the Repertory Theatre, Macclesfield, in August 1942 as Micky in ''Paddy the Next Best Thing''. He appeared in repertory in York and Birmingham 1943–45, and toured India and Burma in a production of Kenneth Horne's West End comedy '' Love in a Mist'' during 1945 with the Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA). He continued in repertory 1946–49, during which time he played a season at St John's, Newfoundland, Canada. He made his London debut on 20 April 1950 at the Arts Theatre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maria (Twelfth Night)
Maria is a fictional character in the play ''Twelfth Night'' by William Shakespeare. She is a servant in Olivia's household. Maria is shown to have a friendly relationship with Sir Toby Belch, and exhibits a witty attitude. Maria also forges a love letter to Malvolio which results in Malvolio being confined to a dark room (a treatment for madness). Connections with other characters * Maria is Olivia's personal house-maid * Sir Toby Belch is Olivia's uncle * Malvolio Malvolio is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's comedy ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will''. His name means "ill will" in Italian, referencing his disagreeable nature. He is the vain, pompous, authoritarian steward of Olivia's househo ... is the steward in Olivia's household and therefore Maria's superior Performers ReferencesGuide to Twelfth Night [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stephen Fry
Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director and writer. He first came to prominence in the 1980s as one half of the comic double act Fry and Laurie, alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of Fry & Laurie'' (1989–1995) and ''Jeeves and Wooster'' (1990–1993). He also starred in the sketch series ''Alfresco'' (1983–1984) alongside Laurie, Emma Thompson and Robbie Coltrane, and in ''Blackadder'' (1986–1989) alongside Rowan Atkinson. Since 2011, he has served as president of the mental health charity Mind. Fry's film acting roles include playing his idol Oscar Wilde in the film '' Wilde'' (1997), for which he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor; Inspector Thompson in Robert Altman's murder mystery '' Gosford Park'' (2001); and Mr. Johnson in Whit Stillman's ''Love & Friendship'' (2016). He has also made appearances in the films '' Chariots of Fire'' (1981), ''A Fish Called Wanda'' (1988 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tamsin Greig
Tamsin Margaret Mary Greig (; born 12 July 1966) is an English actress, narrator and comedian. She played Fran Katzenjammer in the Channel 4 sitcom '' Black Books'', Dr Caroline Todd in the Channel 4 sitcom '' Green Wing'', Beverly Lincoln in British-American sitcom '' Episodes'' and Jackie Goodman in the Channel 4 sitcom ''Friday Night Dinner''. Other roles include Alice Chenery in BBC One's comedy-drama series ''Love Soup'', Debbie Aldridge in BBC Radio 4's soap opera ''The Archers'', Miss Bates in the 2009 BBC version of Jane Austen's '' Emma'', and Beth Hardiment in the 2010 film version of ''Tamara Drewe''. In 2020, Greig starred as Anne Trenchard in Julian Fellowes' ITV series ''Belgravia''. Greig is also an acclaimed stage actress; she won a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in 2007 for ''Much Ado About Nothing'', and was nominated again in 2011 and 2015 for her roles in ''The Little Dog Laughed'' and ''Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown''. Early life Gre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard Briers
Richard David Briers (14 January 1934 – 17 February 2013) was an English actor whose five-decade career encompassed film, radio, stage and television. Briers first came to prominence as George Starling in ''Marriage Lines'' (1961–66), but it was a few years later, when he narrated ''Roobarb'' (1974–76) and '' Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk'' (1976–77) and played Tom Good in the BBC sitcom '' The Good Life'' (1975–78), that he became a household name. He starred as Martin in ''Ever Decreasing Circles'' (1984–89), and had a leading role as Hector in '' Monarch of the Glen'' (2000–05). From the late 1980s, with Kenneth Branagh as director, he performed Shakespearean roles in ''Henry V'' (1989), ''Much Ado About Nothing'' (1993), ''Hamlet'' (1996) and ''As You Like It'' (2006). Early life Briers was born on 14 January 1934 in Raynes Park, Surrey, the son of Joseph Benjamin Briers and his second wife Morna Phyllis, daughter of Frederick Richardson, of the Indian Civil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Derek Jacobi
Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. He has appeared in various stage productions of William Shakespeare such as ''Hamlet'', ''Much Ado About Nothing'', '' Macbeth'', ''Twelfth Night'', '' The Tempest'', ''King Lear'', and '' Romeo and Juliet''. He has also performed in Anton Chekhov's ''Uncle Vanya'' and Edmond Rostand's ''Cyrano de Bergerac''. He was given a knighthood for his services to theatre by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994 and is a member of the Danish Order of the Dannebrog. In addition to being a founder member of the Royal National Theatre and winning several prestigious theatre awards, Jacobi has also made numerous television appearances, starring in the 1976 adaptation of Robert Graves's ''I, Claudius'', for which he won a BAFTA; in the titular role in the medieval drama series ''Cadfael'' (1994–1998), as Stanley Baldwin in '' The Gathering Storm'' (2002), as the Master in '' Doctor Who'' (2007), as Stuart Bixby in the ITV ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Puritan
The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. Puritanism played a significant role in English history, especially during the Protectorate. Puritans were dissatisfied with the limited extent of the English Reformation and with the Church of England's toleration of certain practices associated with the Roman Catholic Church. They formed and identified with various religious groups advocating greater purity of worship and doctrine, as well as personal and corporate piety. Puritans adopted a Reformed theology, and in that sense they were Calvinists (as were many of their earlier opponents). In church polity, some advocated separation from all other established Christian denominations in favour of autonomous gathered churches. These Separatist and Independent strands of Puritanism bec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nigel Hawthorne
Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne (5 April 1929 – 26 December 2001) was an English actor. He is most known for his stage acting and his portrayal of Sir Humphrey Appleby, the permanent secretary in the 1980s sitcom '' Yes Minister'' and the Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister''. For this role, he won four BAFTA TV Awards for Best Light Entertainment Performance. He won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for portraying King George III in '' The Madness of King George'' (1994). He later won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor, for the 1996 series '' The Fragile Heart''. He was also an Olivier Award and Tony Award winner for his work in theatre. Early life Hawthorne was born in Coventry, Warwickshire, England, the second of four children of Agnes Rosemary (née Rice) and Charles Barnard Hawthorne, a physician. When Nigel was three years old, the family moved to Cape Town, South Africa, where hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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