#HappyBirthdayShakespeare

Twitter users from around the world will come together today to celebrate the life and work of William Shakespeare, as lovers of literature commemorate the 450th anniversary of the playwright’s birth.

Widely regarded as the greatest writer in the history of the English language, fans will take to Twitter 140 characters at a time to pay tribute to the Bard of Avon. There will be a number of special Twitter activities throughout the day designed to celebrate his life and work.

At 10am, the Royal Shakespeare Company (@TheRSC) will host a Twitter Q&A with its Artistic Director Gregory Doran. Fans of the bard can tweet questions using the hashtag #AskGreg for a chance to have them answered by this eminent Shakespearean director:

And over the course of the day, the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (@shakespearebt) will be tweeting a host of beautiful archive images. Along with other organisations around the UK linked to the life and work of the Bard, they will be tweeting a series of messages using #HappyBirthdayShakespeare. The participating organisations are inviting fans from around the world to join in by tweeting with the hashtag and their birthday wishes for the poet and playwright:

At 10.40pm, there will be a birthday firework display in Shakespeare’s birthplace Stratford-upon-Avon. The RSC (@TheRSC) are encouraging those in Stratford and beyond to tweet selfies of themselves enjoying the event:

The ease with which Shakespeare lovers can connect with his works through Twitter in new and exciting ways shows just how far communication has progressed in the last 450 years. It’s also a testament to just how relevant Shakespeare remains for generations of literature fans across the globe.