England's greatest ever poet and playwright William Shakespeare would be celebrating his 455th birthday if he were alive today.
Born in Straford-upon-Avon in 1564, Shakespeare died in the same town and on the same date in 1616 on what was sadly just his 52nd birthday.
One of the greatest writers of the English language, Shakespeare's powerful prose has endured the centuries and he is as loved now as he was 500 years ago.
Not only did he contribute thousands of words and phrases to English, but he was also a master of romantic musings and spent days writing about devotion and what it means to love someone.
Below we’ve rounded up 10 of Shakespeare's best quotes about love on his 455th birthday.
1. From the star-crossed classic Romeo & Juliet
“My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
My love as deep; the more I give to thee,
The more I have, for both are infinite.”
2. On why you should never doubt love, from Hamlet
“Doubt thou the stars are fire;
Doubt that the sun doth move;
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt I love.”
3. Wedding vow inspiration from The Merchant of Venice
“One half of me is yours, the other half yours
Mine own, I would say; but if mine, then yours,
And so all yours.”
4. A fresh take on cupid from A Midsummer Night’s Dream
“Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind,
And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.”
5. Love at first sight from The Tempest
“Hear my soul speak
Of the very instant that I saw you,
Did my heart fly at your service.”
6. Falling in love from Romeo & Juliet
"This bud of love, by summer's ripening breath,
May prove a beauteous flower when next we meet."
7. A new way to say I love you from King Lear
“I love you more than words can wield the matter,
Dearer than eyesight, space and liberty.”
8. Being compared to a summer’s day in Sonnet 18
“Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate.”
9. A romantic take on life from The Tempest
“We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep.”
10. Life and love summed up in As You Like It
“No sooner met but they looked, no sooner looked but they loved, no sooner loved but they sighed, no sooner sighed but they asked one another the reason, no sooner knew the reason but they sought the remedy; and in these degrees have they made a pair of stairs to marriage.”
Ah Shakespeare, you do know how to make us swoon.
