Prominent people of Britain: William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

William Shakespeare, the greatest dramatist and writer, was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564. His father was a glover, and his mother was the daughter of a famous farmer. Shakespeare went to grammar school, but he never entered any university. He is famous for his great tragedies including Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth and the best known love story in the world Romeo and Juliet. Many well-known sayings come from his works, and Shakespeare also had a great influence on English literature and the language. His plays are studied by British schoolchildren as part of their school programme.

Shakespeare’s works are known for their beautiful language and for the understanding of how people think and feel. William Shakespeare also wrote poetry, including the sonnets. He worked as an actor and a playwright at the Globe Theatre in London, which has recently been rebuilt as a copy of the original theatre. Shakespeare married once and had three children. After his death in 1616 his house in Stratford became a museum and now it is a popular place with tourists. Shakespeare’s plays were staged in many theatres and translated into numerous languages. They are still read and loved by many people.

Alexander Bell (1847-1922)

Alexander Graham Bell was the inventor of the telephone. He was born in Scotland in 1874. Bell entered the University of Edinburgh and became a teacher. Later he decided to become a doctor and he entered the medical department at the University of London. Then Bell left for the USA and studied sounds there. An idea of inventing a special machine for deaf people occurred to him. Working on this machine he invented the telephone in 1876. At first the telephone was not popular with the public, but after a big campaign it became famous in America. Bell started the Bell Telephone Company to produce telephones. Alexander Bell also improved the telegraph which could send more than one message at a time. Later he gave up his business and spent his money on other scientific research. He also founded the National Geographic Society in 1888. Bell died in 1922 in Canada respected both in Britain and the USA.

Charles Dickens (1812-1870)

Charles Dickens, a famous English writer, was born in 1812 into a poor family in London. When Charles was ten his father was taken to prison and the boy stopped going to school. Dickens had to work hard to earn money for his family. Later he described this period of life in his book David Copperfield. This novel is a biographical one. At the age of 12 he started going to school again. In 1829 Dickens became a reporter, and in 1830 he met and fell in love with Maria Beadnell, the daughter of a banker. In 1833 their relationship ended because Maria's parents did not think Dickens a suitable man for their daughter.

When Dickens was twenty-five he became one of the best newspaper reporters in London. He liked the job a lot. In 1838 he published his novel Oliver Twist which had a great success. His books show how hard life was in Victorian England, especially for poor people and children. Dickens's father was taken to prison again and Charles had to pay to help him. Later the family asked Dickens to give them money again and again. In 1835 Charles met and became engaged to Catherine Hogarth. Charles Dickens spent much of his adult life abroad traveling with his family in France, Spain, Switzerland, but died suddenly at Gadshill near Rochester in 1870. His novels are still popular and people read them with Pleasure. Some of his works are: Little Dorrit, A Tale of Two Expectations and other wonderful novels.