I’m not sure where to begin. I’ve tried, in vain, to draft a suitable introduction to Ben. He is an actor, a voice-over artist, a teacher and a writer, among other things I’m likely to be unaware of. In fact, it is in his capacity as a writer that I met Ben. He has since, set up his own Shakespeare Theatre company, is producing a play, writing a TV series and inspite of all of this, is (annoyingly) likeable.
Ben co-authored ‘Shakespeare’s Words’ and ‘The Shakespeare Miscellany’ with his father David Crystal before releasing his own ‘Shakespeare on Toast‘. For somebody who has never had any interest in Shakespeare, she admits embarassadly(is this a real word?! Probably not, but hey! Shakespeare made up loads of words), Shakespeare on Toast was an eye-opener. It is humbling to realise that William Shakespeare was just an everyday guy with immense talent and balls. I’m under no miconception that that is an under-estimation. Shakespeare on Toast is wonderfully interesting, funny and informative- many phrases that most of us use in a casual throw-away context were made up by Shakespeare! If you dont believe me, heres what other people said about it-
A brilliantly enjoyable, light hearted look at Shakespeare which dispells the myths and makes him accessible to all. I love it. -
You gotta love a writer who opens his book with action hero lines and stage directions for Hamlet the Terminator (”shoots Polonius with an Uzi… lights his cigar, castle explodes”). - The Times
He is a linguist and an actor, but most of all a fan. He is convincingly blown away by Shakespeare; he would just like everyone else to be, too. This educated enthusiasm is Crystal’s greatest strength as a writer. – The Independent
Listen to my interview with Ben-
For more and more info about Ben Crystal, go to www.bencrystal.com
