John Oldcastle alive. His heretical opinions and early friendship with Henry V created a traditional scandal which long continued. In the old play "The Famous Victories of Henry V", written before 1588, Oldcastle figures as the Prince's boon companion. When Shakespeare adapted that play in "Henry IV, Part 1", Oldcastle still appeared, but when the play was printed in 1598, the name was changed to Falstaff (modelled after John Fastolf), in deference to one of Oldcastle's descendants, Lord Cobham. Though the fat knight still remains "my old lad of the Castle", the stage character has nothing to do with the Lollard leader.
Bell Shakespeare they performed "Antony and Cleopatra", which toured to Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, "Julius Caesar", which as the 2018 National Tour travelled to 27 venues across Australia, and "The Misanthrope" which played in Sydney. Their 2019 season includes an adaption of "The Miser" and the 2019 National Tour "Much Ado About Nothing", with one more show still to be announced. One of the Company's artistic goals is "to use Shakespeare as Australians", and Bell Shakespeare is well known for using contemporary styles to make Shakespeare accessible for modern audiences. Founded by John Bell in 1990, Bell Shakespeare began as a theatre