Charing Cross is “Lady Macbeth”, Waterloo is renamed to “James I”, and “Plays” is the new name of the Circle Line.
This Shakespearean makeover of the London tube map was created by Transport for London in cooperation with Shakespeare’s Globe.
The names of stations are replaced with characters from Shakespeare’s tragedies and comedies. These names are cleverly places along lines that have been given a specific topic. There are also small icons next to the station names that help distinguish the plays by genre.
Obviously, you’ll also find on the map the places where Shakespeare’s plays were performed. Globe Theatre was added as a station connected through River Thames with Blackfriars, now called “Blackfriars Playhouse”. There is also Curtain Theatre station in Shoreditch, which was rediscovered recently.
Chris MacLeod, TfL’s Marketing Director, explains the idea behind the map:
The works of William Shakespeare are a global institution and have been loved by young and old for more than 400 years. This new map combines two Great British icons together in a fun but informative way.
This gorgeous map can be bought as a poster or art print, from online shops of the London Transport Museum or Shakespeare’s Globe. The 60 × 80 cm art print is for £14.99, but you can go for a cheaper option – the poster (61 × 91.5 cm) – that will cost you £3.99.
Londonist reports that a large vinyl of the map will be installed at Bankside Pier near Shakespeare’s Globe.
If you’re interested in exploring literature across the world, check out our growing collection of literary maps.
Via The Huffington Post, Londonist.
