Box set featuring six Shakespeare adaptations starring legendary actor Laurence Olivier. In 'King Lear' (1983), the ageing King Lear (Olivier) decides to split his kingdom between three daughters - Regan, Cordelia and Goneril - with each receiving a share appropriate to the amount of love they feel for him. However, when the faithful Cordelia refuses to protest her devotion, an enraged Lear foolishly cedes complete control to the devious remaining siblings - with terrible results. In 'Henry V' (1944), the young king (Olivier) puts his rakish past behind him and rallies his men to invade France, winning against the enemy's superior numbers. The film was shot in Ireland to avoid the constant bombardment of the Blitz and Olivier was discharged from the Navy to make the film. In 'Hamlet' (1948), Hamlet (Olivier), Prince of Denmark, is still mourning over the death of his father and his mother Gertrude's (Eileen Herlie) subsequent remarriage to Hamlet's despised uncle, Claudius (Basil Sydney), who is now King. When his father's ghost appears to Hamlet and reveals that it was Claudius who murdered him, the young prince vows revenge. However, a fatal flaw in his character - hesitation - mars his efforts, resulting in murder, madness and treachery. In 'The Merchant of Venice' (1974), Jewish moneylender Shylock (Olivier) provides young Antonio (Anthony Nichols) with a loan, stating that if it is not repaid he will claim a pound of flesh. When Antonio's bond defaults, Shylock attempts to claim his grisly compensation in a court of law, but Portia (Joan Plowright) pleads Antonio's case. In 'Richard III' (1955), Olivier stars as the cold and calculating king, a treacherous and untrustworthy fellow who makes plans to kill anyone who threatens his position. Henry Stafford (Ralph Richardson), the Duke of Clarence (John Gielgud) and Lady Anne Neville (Claire Bloom) are just some of those moving in his orbit. 'As You Like It' (1936) was filmed in England in 1936 when Olivier was still considered a promising young actor rather than one of the finest thespians ever, as he would later become, this is his first filmed Shakespeare performance and thus a milestone in film history.

'When the Metro is Free' is an anthology of counter-cultural poetry from contemporary France, representing the work of a group of poets around by Frances Combes and 'Le Temps des Cerises'.

Laurence Olivier directs and stars in this classic adaptation of Shakespeare's play about the king who led England to victory in the Battle of Agincourt. The film pays tribute to its origins by opening in a version of the Globe Theatre in 17th century London, where Henry (Olivier) takes to the stage along with a variety of nobles to discuss his plans to stake a claim to the French throne. As the range of Henry's ambitions make themselves known, the theatrical artifice gives way to a more naturalised style and follows Henry as he sets sail from Southampton with his army. Inspired by Henry, the invading English hand the French several defeats, culminating in a triumph against far superior numbers at Agincourt. Shot during WWII, the film was designed to raise morale in the ongoing battle against Nazi Germany and earned Olivier an Academy Award for his 'outstanding achievement' in bringing the film to screen.

Alan Dent was born in Preston in 1951. He has published five volumes of poetry, four collections of translations from French, a book of reviews of contemporary poetry, five collections of short stories and nine novels under a pen name (all to be re-issued under his own name) and is the founder and editor of The Penniless Press and its successor, MQB.

Joe Orton was ruined and knew it, but he wasn't a hypocrite. He was ruined by his culture. He was poor, ill-educated, raised in a family whose dominating personality was a tyrant. He was deprived of love and figures he could identify with. His society was to blame for his poverty. It was widespread when he was born on 1st January 1933. At the time, most wage-earners didn't pay income tax. There was no health service, education was hit and miss. Deprivation was accepted by many of those in power as a fact of life. Orton was born into an exploitative, manipulative, abusive, hypocritical culture. He came to realize it and employed his genius in scathing mockery of the society which did him so much harm. Orton's plays show what happens when people won't face the truth about themselves. The carnage in Noel Road on 9th August 1967 might have been the final scene from one of his works. Orton had lived close to violence and abuse all his life. He knew a violent death was always possible.

Alan Dent was born in Preston in 1951. He has published five volumes of poetry, four collections of translations from French, a book of reviews of contemporary poetry, five collections of short stories and nine novels under a pen name (all to be re-issued under his own name) and is the founder and editor of The Penniless Press and its successor, MQB.

For the past twenty years Alan Dent's caustic, witty, polemical, enthusiastic and highly individual reviews of modern poetry have been the most eagerly read section of his magazines The Penniless Press and Mistress Quickly's Bed. Few critics can boast of having a poem written about their activity (Dentistry by Edward MacKinnon), but it isn't surprising Dent has: he may divide opinion, but he is always memorable and never afraid of making enemies ( at least the right ones). This volume contains all his poetry reviews since 1995 together with a few longer pieces. Follow the thread of their argument and you will find an original and bracing view of modern poetry in Britain. The title is drawn from a quotation by Miroslav Holub used as the book's epigraph. Taking his cue from the great Czech, Dent hunts down the excessive subjectivity of modern poets and spikes it. In doing so he works out a different possibility for poetry. No one interested in modern poetic practice should miss this book.

This is a witty, funny, barbed piece of iconoclasm about emotional double dealing and hypocrisy, of superficial materialism and skewed values and the tragicomic ending of a long established relationship. It's a sharp, trenchant parody set in a milieu of the inescapable expectational norm of profit.

Laurence Olivier directs and stars in this adaptation of Shakespeare's famous tragedy. Hamlet (Olivier), Prince of Denmark, is still mourning over the death of his father and his mother Gertrude's (Eileen Herlie) subsequent remarriage to Hamlet's despised uncle, Claudius (Basil Sydney), who is now King. When his father's ghost appears to Hamlet and reveals that it was Claudius who murdered him, the young prince vows revenge. However, a fatal flaw in his character - hesitation - mars his efforts, resulting in murder, madness and treachery. The film won five Oscars, including Best Actor for Olivier (who was also nominated for Best Director) and Best Film.

Laurence Olivier directs and stars in this adaptation of Shakespeare's famous tragedy. Hamlet (Olivier), Prince of Denmark, is still mourning over the death of his father and his mother Gertrude's (Eileen Herlie) subsequent remarriage to Hamlet's despised uncle, Claudius (Basil Sydney), who is now King. When his father's ghost appears to Hamlet and reveals that it was Claudius who murdered him, the young prince vows revenge. However, a fatal flaw in his character - hesitation - mars his efforts, resulting in murder, madness and treachery. The film won five Oscars, including Best Actor for Olivier (who was also nominated for Best Director) and Best Film.