Shakespeare in Philosophy (ShiP) is a non-profit public symposium series created by Richard Wilson, Sir Peter Hall Professor emeritus of Shakespeare Studies at Kingston University. Events are held at Garrick’s Temple to Shakespeare on the banks of the River Thames, or online. These events are a direct continuation of the ‘Shakespeare at the Temple’ symposia organised at Garrick’s Temple to Shakespeare originally under Richard Wilson’s Kingston Shakespeare Seminar (2013-2019).

Our last event was on 14 June 2025, and discussed ‘Shakespeare and the Slovenian School of Philosophy and Psychoanalysis’. Full details of the event can be found here. Our next event is on 27 June 2026 on the theme of ‘Shakespeare and British Inter-war Philosophy’.

The goal of these symposia is to help support the Temple and its charitable Trust by organising quality events. Attendees are Shakespeare and philosophy enthusiasts coming from a wide range of educational and professional backgrounds. ShiP is run on a volunteer basis by an executive committee of academics from within and outside the UK in collaboration with Timo Uotinen from the Shakespeare and Philosophy project 2019-2023.

Richard Wilson’s original formulation for these events:

David Garrick built his Shakespeare Temple beside the Thames at Hampton in 1756, as a place where ‘the thinkers of the world’ would meet to reflect on the plays. He hoped Voltaire would come. Now the Kingston Shakespeare Seminar is realising the great actor’s vision, with a series of symposia on Shakespeare in Philosophy. Each of these Saturday events features talks by leading philosophers and Shakespeare scholars, coffee and tea in the riverside garden designed by Capability Brown, and lunch at the historic Bell Inn.

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