The Three Inch Fools were co-founded by me and my brother in 2015. The Fools are a four-strong troupe of actors with all manner of musical instruments, travelling with set, props, costumes and a timber stage, performing highly imaginative and vibrantly musical takes on Shakespeare’s plays fit for all the family. To date, we have performed Shakespeare in castles, stately homes, gardens, churches – all the world’s a stage! We’ve created productions of 16 of the Bard’s best-loved plays so far, including Macbeth, Twelfth Night and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Below you can read more about our other projects Robin Hood, The Gunpowder Plot and The Secret Diary of Henry VIII and listen to music from our shows. Also check out our trailer for The Most Perilous Comedie of Elizabeth I which is currently touring the UK (until September 2025).
In 2020, we collaborated with Sean Turner (The Play That Goes Wrong) to create our first ever non-Shakespeare title: Robin Hood. I wrote an original script and songs, and we performed it across the UK in the summer of 2021 to rave reviews.
We followed it up with an original retelling of The Gunpowder Plot. You can see the trailer below and listen to music from the shows. If you want more information or book tickets to our most recent shows, visit the Three Inch Fools website.
Each Fool plays many different instruments – we’ve had everything from bouzouki to banjo and melodica to melodeon. Take a listen to some of the tracks from our productions over the years.
stephen hyde 