‘Is this a dagger which I see before me,The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee:I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.’Often referred to superstitiously as ‘the Scottish play’, Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s best-loved works. As a general in the army of the Scottish king, Macbeth meets three witches who prophesy that he will one day take his master’s place.A tumultuous tale of how ambition, guilt and paranoia lead to deceit and murder, it is one of the greatest studies of morality and corruption.This edition is based on the First Folio and includes an extensive introduction that examines the origins of the work, the plot and the characters as well as notes on the text, a glossary and a timeline of Shakespeare’s life and work.

‘There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,Than are dreamt of in our philosophy.’Arguably Shakespeare’s greatest play and certainly his most performed, Hamlet tells the impassioned story of the grief-stricken Danish prince’s revenge against his uncle, Claudius, for murdering his father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet’s mother.A thought-provoking study of the human psyche and familial relationships, the play has been analysed by audiences, critics and psychologists (including Sigmund Freud) alike ever since its first performance at the beginning of the 17th century.This edition is based on the First Folio and includes an extensive introduction that examines the origins of the work, the plot and the characters as well as notes on the text, a glossary and a timeline of Shakespeare’s life and work.