Shakespeare’s London Contemporaries

Abstract

This paper looks at some of the people Shakespeare must have known in London other than those primarily associated with his theatre career. The aim is to gain a sense of the social circles in which he moved and perhaps of the influence that these circles may, however indefinably, have exerted on his work. Particular attention is paid to the Mountjoy household, where Shakespeare lodged, to George Wilkins, with whom he collaborated, and to Simon Forman, who had clear connections with the Mountjoys.