Amazon Prime Video has figured out the algorithmic way to my heart, through Cozy English Murder Mysteries, so I’ve been happily working my way through all that Prime, BritBox, and Acorn TV have to offer. The most recent show that came up was Shakespeare & Hathaway (2016-), which is about Luella “Lu” Shakespeare (Jo Joyner) and Frank Hathaway (Mark Benton), a pair of private investigators working together to solve mysteries in Stratford-Upon-Avon. While the show itself is set contemporaneously, the references to the Bard’s plays and poems are woven into each episode, starting of course with the lead characters’ names; obviously, Shakespeare and Hathaway refer to William Shakespeare and his wife, Anne Hathaway, though Lu and Frank aren’t a romantic pairing, just business partners. The name of their police counterpart is named DI Marlowe, after William Shakespeare’s contemporary and competitor, Christopher Marlowe. Other characters pop up with names that reference Shakespearean characters and often the plot of each episode has an allusion to a Shakespearean play worked in.
“That’s all very interesting, Sarah,” I hear you saying. “But this is a historical costume blog. What does a contemporary show have to do with historical costuming?”
Well, quite a bit it turns out! Pretty much every episode shows at least one main character in a historical costume, or there are costumed interpreters wandering about in the background. And the thing that caught my attention right off the bat was that the costumes are actually really well done, for the most part. Unless there’s an intentional reason for the costume to be silly or weird, there is often a good sprinkling of Very Nice Costumes drifting in and out of the scene through out most episodes. Costume designer Claire Collins has worked on a number of recent period shows, such as Outrageous (2025), Father Brown (2015-20), and Sister Boniface Mysteries (2022-24), and as I’m digging into her resume, I am definitely impressed with Collins’ mastery of many different period silhouettes.
Have you watched Shakespeare & Hathaway (2016-)? Share your thoughts about it in the comments!
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I love Shakespeare and Hathaway. I’m so glad they came back with a fifth season. I missed Sebastian.
Me too! I was beginning to think the show ended at four seasons. The latest episode with Seb performing a soliloquy at the end was chef’s kiss. The pathos was real. Not to mention the costumes worn by the Murder Mystery Dinner Party guests were for delight for the eyes.
I wonder if detective by the name of ‘Marlowe’ is as much an homage to Philip the Gumshoe as to Christopher the Playwright?