But dear McGrath of Harlow, the doubts started within 50 years of his death and have continued to grow in volume year by year.   The list of academics, scholars, historians, authors, and other good folk just grows and grows.   ("Barking mad, all of them" I hear you riposte). Even Malcom X wrote about his doubts on our Bill.   (Ok, Malcolm X was not noted as a historian of Elizabethean legends, but he was, by all accounts, a pretty smart guy).

I suspect that the words "perfectly adequate" are merely a device used by those, so inclined, to stop themselve having to do any really deep examination of a topic.   It seems to me that you should be saying "if Bill's mates said he did it, that is good enough for me".   I would be inclined to join you, if some contemporary of Bill, other than his drinking buddies, had ever once written anything that even remotely suggested Bill was the author.

But you do have a good point, for I also have always held that my opinions are the only ones that matter, and to hell with any so-called fact or theory that casts a doubt on one of them.   :-)