Richard of Gloucester murders his way to the crown while telling the audience exactly what he’s doing and daring us to enjoy it — which, uncomfortably, we do. The wooing of Lady Anne over a coffin remains one of the most audacious scenes ever written.
It is long, and it rewards knowing the Henry VI plays (Margaret’s curses land harder when you’ve seen what she’s lost), but it stands alone perfectly well as the canon’s definitive study of charismatic evil.
Richard III on screen
1Richard III (1955)
Film · dir. Laurence Olivier
2Richard III (1995)
Film · dir. Richard Loncraine
3The Hollow Crown: Richard III (2016)
TV film · dir. Dominic Cooke
Reading Richard III this year?
Mark it in your record when you finish — one seat, kept for decades.