Category:William Bird

William Bird (also Birde, Borne, Bvrde, Burde, and Byrd) is one of the players in Shakespeare's time about which a great deal is known, not only in the business side of two playing companies but also as a player. Furthermore, he appears in non-theatrical records.

Theatrical records:

Player and Sharer

• 1597: Bird and several fellow players sued Francis Langley, owner and builder of the Swan playhouse, where the company of Pembroke's men had been playing for some months; Bird joined the Admiral's men on 10 August, and his name appears frequently in the company accounts recorded by Philip Henslowe in his memorandum book or "diary." Nungezer characterizes Bird's activity in subsequent years as "authorizing payments, borrowing from Henslowe, paying personal debts, selling properties, acknowledging company debts in the capacity of shareholder, and" witnessing various transactions ((Nungezer, p. 48).

• 1603: Bird is recorded as joining (with other Admiral's men) the newly formed company of the Prince's men, where he remained until Prince Henry's death in 1612.

• 1601613: The company of players in Prince Henry's men reformed as Palgrave's men in January 1613, where he remained until 1622 ("probably," Nungezer, p. 49).

Playwright

Bird also wrote plays, usually in collaboration with

Player

William Bird (Byrd, Borne) appears in Henslowe's diary as a member of Pembroke's men who in 1597 left Francis Langley's enterprise at the Swan and joined the Admiral's men at the Rose. He was married by 1600; two sons were christened at St. Saviour, Southwark (1600, 1602).

Non-theatrical records:

Works Cited