Free Shakespeare's Globe by Valerie Wilding Page A

remember telling Uncle Jem about my ambition.
    ‘That’s stupid, lad,’ he said.
    ‘It’s not,’ I told him. ‘I’ve even stood on the stage.’
    ‘Ha! You’re jesting!’ he said.
    ‘It’s true,’ I said. ‘I help at the Globe.’
    ‘Doing what, lad?’
    ‘Anything. They call me Billy-Odd-Job,’ I said proudly. ‘And Master Burbage and Master Shakespeare said that one day I can have a part.’
    He didn’t believe me. But they did say so. And I believe them. One day, I’ll have a part in a play by Master William Shakespeare!
    As Mother and I crossed the bridge into town, I said, ‘I wish we were back in London.’
    ‘So do I,’ she said, ‘in our own lovely house, with Jane helping to look after us, but we can’t be.’
    Jane was our maid and not more than a year older than me, so she was fun. She left London, too, to live with her family in Kingston, a village further up the River Thames.
    Mother smiled. ‘At least you have Hoppy.’
    That’s true. I’d never have had him if I’d stayed in London.
    We crossed Limping Lane, which made me smile, because that’s what Hoppy does. Limps! Actually, he runs with a funny little hop, because of his gammy leg. He was attacked by a big dog when
he was a pup. The stable man at the manor gave him to me.
    Hoppy’s the cleverest little dog in the world. I’ve taught him to beg, shut the door, and dance on his hind legs. If I clap twice, he bares his teeth and growls, looking so fierce.
Yet the only thing he would ever bite is a bone!
    I looked at the tiny cottages and tiny lanes in the tiny town. How much longer would we have to stay with Aunt Meg? I was bored in the country. I missed helping at the Globe. How would I ever
become a player if I never went near the playhouse? The plague was ruining my life.

CHAPTER TWO
    Mother pointed along Cake Lane, which opened into the market place. ‘A crowd’s gathering,’ she said, as more people headed that way talking excitedly.
    I walked faster, but Mother stopped me. ‘Come in here,’ she said, pulling me into the apothecary’s shop.
    ‘Good day, Mistress,’ said Master Bottell. ‘May I make something for you?’
    The apothecary was polite to Mother, because she looks like quality. That’s what Aunt Meg said, in a very sharp voice. She is jealous of Mother’s clothes. Father is secretary to a
rich merchant, and they go to far-away countries to buy silk. Mother gets so much gorgeous stuff to make gowns that she often gives some to Aunt Meg, who shouldn’t grumble.
    ‘Nothing, I thank you,’ said Mother. ‘Such a crowd…’
    ‘I understand.’ He fetched her a stool. ‘But they are simply excited because an acting company is in town.’
     

     
    ‘Acting company?’ I said. ‘Do you mean a company of players, sir?’
    ‘I do.’
    My heart leapt! Plays, in this very town, just like at the Globe! Well, not as grand as at the Globe, but plays all the same.
    ‘Which company, sir?’ I asked.
    ‘The King’s Men, no less. They will be several days here. Have you watched a play, boy?’
    ‘Yes, sir!’ I said. ‘My father permits me to help at the Globe playhouse in London. It belongs to the Chamberlain’s Men. Father says it’s better that I work for
Master Shakespeare and Master Burbage than run around the streets making mischief. He went to school with William Shakespeare in Stratford upon the Avon and—’
    ‘That’s enough, William,’ said Mother.
    When she calls me William, I know she means it. I didn’t want a cuff round the ear to go with my cut lip and bashed nose. She dislikes me being at the Globe, but cannot disobey
Father’s wishes. It annoys her when I speak of it.
    But the apothecary said, ‘You know William Shakespeare?’
    ‘I do, sir.’
    ‘William Shakespeare, the poet? The great play writer?’
    ‘Yes, sir,’ I said.
    ‘That’s
enough
,’ said Mother. ‘Master Bottell doesn’t want to hear any more about William Shakespeare.’
    He seemed most interested