to a larger and more prestigious location. They therefore purchased Upper Frater Hall at Blackfriars on the west side of the City, another liberty outside the control of the authorities. Unfortunately, they were not welcomed there by their new neighbours, who complained to the powerful Privy Council. The council were effectively the Queen’s government, the most powerful body in the land, so the Burbages were forced to give up on that plan. They then attempted to negotiate with Charles Allen, their landlord at Holywell. Allen, however, decided to terminate their lease and threatened to tear down the playhouse and use the timbers.

Faced with the loss of the Theatre, the Burbages waited until Allen had left his home at Holywell for the Christmas holiday of 1598. They assembled agroup of workmen and on the night of 28th December dismantled the building and transported the parts over the river to Bankside. When he discovered the building had been removed Allen attempted to sue the brothers’ carpenter, Peter Street, for the loss of the materials but his case was dismissed. For the following year the Chamberlain’s Men performed at the Curtain at Shoreditch.

The Theatre had been cleverly constructed by James Burbage using timber frames and pegs in case of such need. Its parts were reused at Bankside and a new theatre built there, reopening as the Globe. It was a twenty-sided polygonal open-air building with a diameter of around twenty-four to thirty metres, making it similar but larger than The Rose. In its centre was a yard for