William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright of the 16th and 17th centuries, now widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the word's pre-eminent dramatist.Series editor Stanley Wells. Stanley Wells is Emeritus Professor of the University of Birmingham and Chairman of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. He is General Editor of the Oxford Shakespeare, and his books include Shakespeare: the Poet and his Plays, Shakespeare: For All Time, Looking for Sex in Shakespeare, and (with Paul Edmondson) Shakespeare's Sonnets.