The mastery of words which made Shakespeare and Levin

A couple of weeks back I was reminiscing here about the sensational satirical TV programme of 1963, ‘That Was The Week That Was’. One of the highlights was when a member of the audience walked up to the journalist Bernard Levin, who was just about to start a pugnacious monologue, and thumped him! We teenagers loved it!

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The Remarkable Journey of Bernard Levin (BBC 4) is a fascinating retrospective which tells the story of Levin’s brilliance. He was born into the back streets of London’s Camden Town in 1928 to a recently arrived Jewish refugee family. By 1930 his father had deserted the family and Levin’s mother ensured he got the best education possible, including a scholarship to Christ’s Hospital, an Anglican boarding school in Sussex; possibly not the easiest education for a Jewish boy but one in which he thrived. After graduating from `the London School of Economics, he got several jobs in journalism where he learnt the basics of newspaper publishing. Within two decades he had reinvented political sketch writing, become a household name, was a regular guest on a TV panel game, written numerous theatre reviews and was writing for ‘The Times’ three days a week.

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Levin enjoyed the good things of life: gourmet food, vintage wines and beautiful women, though sadly, for at least one woman friend, he made it clear he preferred cats to children, so never married. His personal friends spoke highly of his kindness and good nature, but like many very clever people, there was a vicious, sarcastic streak which could be used for both good and ill. He had a masterly turn of phrase which could encapsulate so many ideas in just one sentence, such as: “Mozart’s music will endure as long as human beings can love, Bach’s as long as they can worship, Schubert’s as long as they can sing, Beethoven’s as long as they can hope, but the music of Richard Wagner will live as long as human beings can experience or even imagine, the greatest depths of suffering and the greatest heights of ecstasy”.

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It was Levin who wrote the brilliant piece of prose in which he plucked everyday sayings and pointed out that when we used them, we are actually quoting Shakespeare. I’m told it now adorns many an English teacher’s classroom notice board.

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The celebration of the fourth centenary of the publication of William Shakespeare’s ‘First Folio’ collection of his ?plays has brought out the very best in the BBC, who have mined their archives to bring some stunning plays back to our screens. Shakespeare: Rise of a Genius (BBC 2) traces the journey of our remarkable Bard from his humble roots in the backwater of Stratford-on-Avon to the court of the Queen of England. This five-part series has re-enactments, interwoven with narrative and commentary from contemporary actors who have used his words. We learn of his family life, the early disgrace of his father, his love for Anne and the death of his son Hamnet. Shakespeare was initially shunned by the newly emerging London theatre establishment. However, plague and Marlowe’s unfortunate demise at Deptford eradicated many of his competitors. As his career blossomed so did the dangers, with him being asked to perform ‘Richard II’, with its suggestion that at times rebellion can be justified, just before the Earl of Essex launched an abortive coup. Shakespeare weathered the storm, but could have come to a sticky end.

Just seven years after his death Shakespeare’s admirers published the ‘First Folio’, a collection of all his plays, together for the first time. Turning Point: First Folio (Radio 4) is a dramatic fantasy of how this was achieved. In places it’s gender-bending, sometimes about power and even some violence. It’s entertainment, but as one of the last journalists trained before new technology it was nice to be reminded of terms such as ‘forme’ and ‘casting off’. Also some fascinating references to the Stationers Office.

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On a much more serious note, Captain Tom: Where Did the Money Go? (Channel 5) shows what can happen when hubris gets the better of well meaning people. Captain Tom Moore was the old soldier approaching his 100th birthday who raised ￡40,000,000 for the NHS charities during the 2021 lockdown. All the money Captain Tom raised went to the designated charity, but ￡800,000 of book royalties stayed with his family which, they claimed, was his wish. Subsequently they got in a mess about planning permission and the family’s name is tarnished with many unanswered questions. It is a cautionary tale for anyone involved with a charity and well worth a watch.

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Catching up with The Australian Wars (BBC 4) came as a shock. We knew there was some friction with the original inhabitants when the first European settlers arrived, mainly transported convicts, but until recently few of us knew the extent of the military operation to round up First Nations people, ?sometimes kill them, and push them away from the land they had occupied for thousands of years. In Tasmania, the authorities literally let settlers get away with murder and the eventual deportation of the remaining handful of Aboriginal survivors to Flinders Island.

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If you prefer to see Australia’s story through European eyes, Bill Bailey’s Australian Adventure ?(Channel 4) is probably more your cup of tea. It’s all fun and sun in a state made rich by mineral wealth. Few references to the first Australians.