Talk:William Shakespeare's Works/The Life of William Shakespeare

conjecture "The evidence we have for WS birth, life and death is so scanty it really proves nothing"

Could the name "William Shakespeare" have been sold as a "cover name" for record purposes? An unmarried women wants to legitimize her children - uses the name of a dead child as her "husband" on parish records. A separate character in London, buys the use of the "cover name" (possibly including a background story and references) from a Merchant from Warwickshire, to use as a fake ID and escape debtors? Could the Parish records have been "amended" to show the baptism of a dead baby, or did the babe named William die soon after Baptism and the fact was then kept off records in order to sell the ID. It is a very unusual name, thus should have allowed easy identification, unlike John Smith say. Anon 12th March 2008.