How is it that 400 years ago Shakespeare took the time to pen godly sonnets by lakes in the summertime that speak of immeasurable, ageless devotion hidden by the most masterful and heart-stompingly wondrous conceits, and we can't get a text back?

While Will's own sexual persuasion is still the topic of many an academic debate – was he gay? Straight? Bisexual? Asexual? – his ability to capture the most severe of human emotion with the precision of a piercing arrow has cemented his iconic status as the undisputed historic voice of the human heart.

We still lean on his metaphors and refrains, joke in his rhythms, sing in his intonations, and his poetry floods our everyday romantic lexicon. Love is blind, love at first sight, I love you more than words can say – we're all plagiarists.

While we wait on that text (4G must be down) we thought we'd take a look back at some of Shakespeare's finest romantic lines. Why? Well, this week marks 400 years since the Bard's death and we'll take any excuse to delve into some Shakespearian love-making.