Do you believe in witches?

In the modern world few of us still fear the power of witchcraft, yet Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is still thought by many to be tainted by a curse. There is a strong belief in the theatre world that the play is plagued by ill-fortune and actors even today refuse to speak the play’s name inside the theatre, referring to it instead as ‘The Scottish Play.’ Any actor who speaks the name other than in context of the play itself must perform a cleansing ritual such as turning three times, spitting over their left shoulder, swearing, or reciting a line from another of Shakespeare's plays.

There are a number of traditions associated with the origins of the curse. One story is that Shakespeare was under a curse himself from a coven of witches, who were offended by his use of actual incantations. Another tale claims a stage dagger was replaced by a real one, which caused a fatal injury to the actor involved. And yet another suggests that the original prop master couldn’t find a cauldron so stole one from a real coven, attracting a curse for his actions. But no one really knows the true story behind the legend, wherein lies my story.

There are other legends surrounding the play too – here’s a link to some others:

https://www.rsc.org.uk/macbeth/about-the-play/the-scottish-play

If you know of any more, I’d love to hear from you!

My new novel, Shakespeare’s Witch, is a dark and seductive tale set against the first production of Macbeth at the Globe theatre in 1606.

Interested? You can read the first chapter here:

https://dl.bookfunnel.com/j5tv8lmxb2

I’ll be sending out more information in the next few days, so watch your inbox to find out more about Shakespeare’s witches and to be the first to see the cover.

Shakespeare’s Witch will be released on the full moon on March 20, 2019.