Will Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) is a known but struggling poet, playwright and actor who not only has sold his next play to both Philip Henslow and Richard Burbidge but now faces a far more difficult problem: he is bereft of ideas and has yet to begin writing. He is in search of his muse, the woman who will inspire him, but all attempts fail him until he meets the beautiful Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow).

A lover of the theatre (and of Shakespeare’s works), she would like nothing more than to take to the stage, but is forbidden from doing so as only men can be actors. Dressing as a man and going by the name of Thomas Kent, she auditions and is ideal for a part in his next play. Shakespeare soon sees through her disguise and they begin a love affair – one they know cannot end happily for them, as he is already married and she has been promised to the dour Lord Wessex.

With appearances by Judi Dench, Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth, this Academy Award-winning film charts the romantic course of two star-crossed lovers, drawing from one of Shakespeare’s most well-known tragedies. (1998)