Ye Olde Stories & Songs | #Shakespeare400

This weekend the whole world celebrates 400 years of William Shakespeare, one of the world's greatest storytellers. I thought I'd celebrate the Bard in my own small way with a new instalment of Stories & Songs, pairing songs with some of Shakespeare's most famous couples.

Which songs would you pair with Shakespeare's characters?

Romeo and Juliet

from Romeo and Juliet

"C'est la Mort"

The Civil Wars

Let's walk down the road that has no end;

Steal away where only angels tread.

Heaven or hell or somewhere in between,

Cross your heart to take me when you leave,

Don't go.

Please don't go.

Don't go without me.

Desdemona and Othello

from Othello

"What Kind of Man"

Florence + the Machine

And with one kiss

You inspired a fire of devotion

That lasted for twenty years

What kind of man loves like this?

To let me dangle at a cruel angle

Oh my feet don't touch the floor

Sometimes you're half in and then you're half out

But you never close the door

What kind of man loves like this?

What kind of man?

What kind of man loves like this?

What kind of man?

Beatrice and Benedick

from Much Ado About Nothing

"True Love"

P!nk ft. Lily Allen

At the same time, I wanna hug you

I wanna wrap my hands around your neck

You're an asshole but I love you

And you make me so mad I ask myself

Why I'm still here, or where could I go

You're the only love I've ever known

But I hate you, I really hate you,

So much, I think it must be

True love, true love

It must be true love

Nothing else can break my heart like

True love, true love,

It must be true love

No one else can break my heart like you

Stories & Songs #5

Today I'm here with another installment of Stories & Songs, and this one is made up entirely of classics and 21st century music!

Gone With the Wind

by Margaret Mitchell

"Blank Space"

Taylor Swift

Nice to meet you

Where you been?

I could show you incredible things:

Magic, madness, heaven, sin

Saw you there and I thought 'oh my god

Look at that face, you look like my next mistake

Love's a game, wanna play?'

New money, suit and tie

I can read you like a magazine

Ain't it funny rumours fly

And I know you heard about me

So hey, let's be friends

I'm dying to see how this one ends

Grab your passport and my hand

I can make the bad guys good for a weekend

So it's gonna be forever

Or it's gonna go down in flames

You can tell me when it's over

If the high was worth the pain

Got a long list of ex-lovers

They'll tell you I'm insane

'Cause you know I love the players

And you love the game

'Cause we're young and we're reckless

We'll take this way too far

It'll leave you breathless

Or with a nasty scar

Got a long list of ex-lovers

They'll tell you I'm insane

But I got a blank space baby

And I'll write your name

Little Women

by Louisa May Alcott

"Unwritten"

Natasha Bedingfield

I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined

I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned

Staring at the blank page before you

Open up the dirty window

Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance

So close you can almost taste it

Release your inhibitions

Feel the rain on your skin

No one else can feel it for you

Only you can let it in

No one else, no one else

Can speak the words on your lips

Drench yourself in words unspoken

Live your life with arms wide open

Today is where your book begins

The rest is still unwritten

Persuasion

by Jane Austen

"Just Give Me a Reason"

P!nk feat. Nate Ruess

I'm sorry I don't understand

Where all of this is coming from

I thought that we were fine

(Oh, we had everything)

Your head is running wild again

My dear we still have everything

And it's all in your mind

(Yeah, but this is happening)

You've been having real bad dreams, oh, oh

You used to lie so close to me, oh, oh

There's nothing more than empty sheets

Between our love, our love

Oh, our love, our love

Just give me a reason

Just a little bit's enough

Just a second we're not broken, just bent

And we can learn to love again

I never stopped

You're still written in the scars on my heart

You're not broken, just bent

And we can learn to love again

The Tenant of Wildfell Fall

by Anne Brontë

"Roar"

Katy Perry

I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath

Scared to rock the boat and make a mess

So I sat quietly, agreed politely

I guess that I forgot I had a choice

I let you push me past the breaking point

I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything

You held me down, but I got up

Already brushing off the dust

You hear my voice, you hear that sound?

Like thunder gonna shake the ground

You held me down, but I got up

Get ready 'cause I've had enough

I see it all, I see it now

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter

Dancing through the fire

'Cause I am a champion

And you're gonna hear me roar

Louder, louder than a lion

'Cause I am a champion

And you're gonna hear me roar