The BARD Game is part scavenger hunt, part board game. To play, visit William Shakespeare haunts around London, UK.
English playwright, poet and actor William Shakespeare made an incomparable contribution to literature, language and quite possibly your London vacation!
William Shakespeare is widely known as the Bard (a Celtic word for storyteller)
More than 400 years after his passing and the presence of William Shakespeare, who is often referred to by academics as the Bard, can still be felt around London. From statues, fountains and temples to souvenirs, books and collectables in practically every gift shop, Shakespeare is well represented throughout the United Kingdom’s capitol city, as you’ll see playing The BARD Game.
The BARD Game
This game is part scavenger hunt, part board game – designed for those interested in Bard-spotting.
Powered by a famous Shakespearean quote from Hamlet and drawn as a circle like the Globe Theatre, The BARD Game rewards you for noticing nods to Shakespeare while you are out and about in the UK.
To be, or not to be, that is the question.
Hamlet’s soliloquy in Hamlet (1603) Act 3 Scene 1
Traveleth one space ‘long ye bard of gaming f ‘r each activity thou doth did complete. Hencef’rth, gath’r all six to claimeth thy prize. (For transparency’s sake, this is not a direct Shakespearean quote, rather it is a silly translation from an online source.)
Translation: For each Shakespeare-related sight you visit, mark a word of the board.
Order gave each thing view.
Norfolk in Henry VIII (1613) Act 1, Scene 1
These are the locations mentioned on page 142 of Texans Touring LONDON and on this downloadable pdf.
- See a live show or peruse the Globe Theatre bookshop
- Map a trip on the Shakespeare Underground (as seen in the top photo), Bankside river stop, near the Globe Theatre
- Acknowledge his statue, Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey
- Pose before Shakespeare’s Fountain, Leicester Square
- Marvel at the Bard’s First Folio, the British Library
- Insta a selfie of street art, Click Street tunnel near Globe Theatre
- View Shakespeare’s only known portrait, National Portrait Gallery
Instant win: visit Shakespeare’s hometown of Stratford upon Avon
If you discovered others, please share them in the comments!
What win I if I gain the thing I seek?
A line in the narrative poem The Rape of Lucrece (1594)
Is the pleasure of taking in six or more William Shakespeare novelties enough?
Yes???
Then WOOHOO!!!
I hope you have a great time traipsing around and celebrating the genius of a writer who lived during the English Renaissance and was a subject of Queen Elizabeth I.
Please tag me with #theBARDgame and @vinotourist on Instagram! I’d love to see your pictures!
However… Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ’em.
Spoken by Malvolio in Twelfth Night (1601) Act 2, Scene 5
If you require a more tangible prize, scan the QR code in Texans Touring LONDON or on the downloadable pdf above to collect your free, exclusive printable!
I’m so happy you played along!
Cheerio, y’all!
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