Sir Stanley William Wells, (born 21 May 1930) is an English Shakespearean scholar, writer, professor and editor who has been honorary president of the

Shakespeare Birthplace Trust The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT) is an independent registered educational charity based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, that came into existence in 1847 following the purchase of William Shakespeare's birthplace for preser ...

, professor emeritus at

Birmingham University The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

, and author of many books about Shakespeare, including ''Shakespeare Sex and Love'', and is general editor of the ''

Oxford Shakespeare Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

'' and

New Penguin Shakespeare New Penguin Shakespeare is a series of the works of William Shakespeare published from 1967 to 1987 as an imprint of Penguin Books. Printed in paperback the editions were very popular in schools where they were used for teaching Shakespeare. Thi ...

series. He lives in

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon ( ), commonly known as Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon (district), Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of Engl ...

and was educated in English at

University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

(UCL).

Biography

Wells was born in

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

, the son of Stanley Cecil Wells MBE and Doris Wells."WELLS, Prof. Stanley William", ''Who's Who 2012'', A & C Black, 2012; online edn,

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, Dec 2011; online edn, Nov 201
accessed 11 Sept 2012
/ref> His father was a bus company traffic manager. Wells was educated at the Kingston High School

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

in Hull. Wells took a degree in English at

University College In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies f ...

, London. He was invalided out of

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

for the RAF in 1951. He became a

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

school teacher before moving to Stratford to complete his PhD. He was awarded his PhD in English by

in 1961. He was Professor of Shakespeare Studies and director of the

Shakespeare Institute The Shakespeare Institute is a centre for postgraduate study dedicated to the study of William Shakespeare and the literature of the English Renaissance. It is part of the University of Birmingham, and is located in Stratford-upon-Avon. The Ins ...

(

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

) 1988–1997, and is now emeritus professor of Shakespeare Studies. Wells is co-editor (with Gary Taylor, John Jowett and William Montgomery) of the

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

Complete Works and (with Michael Dobson) the ''Oxford Companion to Shakespeare'', and has been general editor of the ''

'' series since 1978. He edited several volumes for the

series. In 2009, Wells revealed the existence of the

Cobbe portrait The Cobbe portrait is an early Jacobean panel painting of a gentleman which has been argued to be a life portrait of William Shakespeare. It is displayed at Hatchlands Park in Surrey, a National Trust property, and the portrait is so-called bec ...

. He stated his belief, based on three years of research, that the portrait is a true

portrait of Shakespeare No contemporary physical description of William Shakespeare is known to exist. The two portraits of him that are the most famous (both of which may be posthumous) are the engraving that appears on the title-page of the First Folio, published i ...

, painted from life. On 20 October 2009, Wells appeared on

BBC 4 BBC Four is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

's comedy panel show ''It's Only a Theory'' – defending the prevailing opinion within contemporary Shakespeare studies that "The plays of William Shakespeare were written by William Shakespeare of Stratford-Upon-Avon" and debunking the theory that Shakespeare's plays were written by some of his contemporaries. In June 2010, Wells was awarded the

Sam Wanamaker Award The Sam Wanamaker Award or Sam Wanamaker Prize is an award established in 1994 for pioneering work in Shakespearean theatre, usually given to individuals who have worked closely with Shakespeare's Globe or the Royal Shakespeare Company; the award ...

Shakespeare's Globe Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, an Elizabethan playhouse first built in 1599 for which William Shakespeare wrote his plays. Like the original, it is located on the south bank of the River Thames, in Southwark, Lon ...

, an award given annually in the name of the Globe's founder

Sam Wanamaker Samuel Wanamaker (born Samuel Wattenmacker; June 14, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American actor and director, whose career on stage and in film and television spanned five decades. He began his career on Broadway theatre, Broadway, but sp ...

to celebrate work which has increased the understanding and enjoyment of Shakespeare. In 2013, together with Rev. Dr. Paul Edmondson, he called upon the Dean and Chapter of Westminster Abbey to remove the question mark which appears in place of a date of death in the memorial window to

Christopher Marlowe Christopher Marlowe ( ; Baptism, baptised 26 February 156430 May 1593), also known as Kit Marlowe, was an English playwright, poet, and translator of the Elizabethan era. Marlowe is among the most famous of the English Renaissance theatre, Eli ...

Poets' Corner Poets' Corner is a section of the southern transept of Westminster Abbey in London, England, where many poets, playwrights, and writers are buried or commemorated. The first poet interred in Poets' Corner was Geoffrey Chaucer in 1400. Willia ...

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

Personal life

Wells remains married to novelist

Susan Hill Dame Susan Elizabeth Hill, Lady Wells (born 5 February 1942) is an English author of fiction and non-fiction works. Her novels include '' The Woman in Black'', which has been adapted for stage and screen, '' The Mist in the Mirror'', and '' ...

, though separated in 2011, and the couple was once considered part of the "Gloucestershire mafia" set of well-connected writers and socialites. He is the father of author Jessica Ruston and of Clemency Wells. Imogen, Hill and Wells' second-born child, died in infancy.

Honours

Wells was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in the

2007 Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours 2007 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 17 June 2007, to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2007.Antigua & Barbuda list: The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and ...

for services to literature. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in the

2016 Birthday Honours The 2016 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as p ...

for services to scholarship. Wells was awarded an honorary

DLitt Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or '), also termed Doctor of Literature in some countries, is a terminal degree in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. In the United States, at universities such as Drew University, the degree ...

by the

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded in 1965 as part of ...

in 2008. In 2016, he was awarded the President's Medal by the

British Academy The British Academy for the Promotion of Historical, Philosophical and Philological Studies is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the sa ...

"for his lifetime service to the study, knowledge and enjoyment of William Shakespeare".

Commonwealth honours

Scholastic

;Honorary degrees

Awards

Major publications

*''Re-Editing Shakespeare for the Modern Reader'' (1984) *''The Oxford Dictionary of Shakespeare'' (1998) *''Shakespeare in the Theatre: An Anthology of Criticism'' (2000) *''Shakespeare: The Poet and his Plays'' (2001) *''The Oxford Shakespeare:

King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...

'' (2001) *''Shakespeare For All Time'' (2002)Holden, Anthony
"All Wells End Well"
review of ''Shakespeare For All Time''. ''The Guardian'', 1 December 2002. *''The Oxford Shakespeare: The Complete Works'' (with Gary Taylor, 1986, 2005) *''Shakespeare & Co.'' (2006) *''Shakespeare, Sex, and Love'' (2010) *''Shakespeare Beyond Doubt'' (editor with Paul Edmondson, 2013) *''Great Shakespearean Actors'' (2015) *''The Shakespeare Circle'' (editor, 2016) *''All the Sonnets of Shakespeare'' (with Paul Edmondson, 2020)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Stanley 1930 births Living people Academics of the University of Birmingham Alumni of the University of Birmingham Alumni of University College London Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Knights Bachelor Recipients of the President's Medal (British Academy) Shakespearean scholars Writers from Kingston upon Hull