WILLIAM Shakespeare
enjoyed sex with men as well as women, according to the classical actor, Sir Ian
McKellen.
The actor said, in an interview with a gay magazine,
Shakespeare’s sexual predilection was evident from his works.
He also
lambasted Hollywood for its sheepishness about homosexuality, and labelled Sir
Alec Guinness "a bit of a snob".
Generations of scholars have speculated
that the "fair youth" to whom Shakespeare’s early sonnets were addressed was
probably male.
The discovery of an unmistakably feminine portrait of the
playwright’s patron, Henry Wriothesley, last year added to the evidence.
Sir Ian told the magazine Attitude he had no doubt Shakespeare enjoyed
relationships with men as well as women.
He said: "We don’t know much
about Shakespeare’s private life. He was certainly married and I think he had
four children.
"But once they were born, he left his wife in Stratford
and came to work in London.
"Did he every sleep with another man? On the
balance of things, I would say, ‘Yes’."
Sir Ian said his belief was
backed up by evidence in the plays.
"In The Merchant of Venice, there is
a love triangle between an older man, a younger man and a woman. The Merchant of
Venice centres on how the world treats gay people as well as Jews," he added.
Sir Ian said the complexity of the sexuality in Shakespeare’s comedies
with their cross-dressing and disguises was "immense".
"We don’t really
know for sure if Shakespeare was gay and it is not especially that important.
But was he interested in the variety of human sexuality? Absolutely. Did he know
about it? Better than anybody."
Sir Ian, who publicly announced his
homosexuality 15 years ago, said Hollywood was still in the dark ages over the
issue.
"There is one extremely famous Hollywood actor who’s gay and
doesn’t like being in the same room as me.
"On the stage, there are lots
of openly gay actors working. But Hollywood?"
McKellen said he was
delighted with his new global status after playing Gandalf in The Lord of the
Rings. But he said he wouldn’t follow the example of Sir Alec Guinness, who
refused to be interviewed about his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars.
He said: "Sir Alec was a bit of a snob frankly. The Lord of the Rings is
making movie history and I am very proud to be in
it."