Meanwhile - back at the ranch

"Shakespearean schollars"
Very little is known about Shakespeare, apart from his plays (and even the authorship of those is under constant dispute)
Information on his background, influences, accent, sources... is sparse to the point of non-existence (a trip round the Globe Museum shows that pretty clearly) so it is as likely that the writers of 'Shakespeare in Love' (lovely, re-visitable film) are as as accurate as most (and certainly a damn sight more entertaining)
I believe it is Shakespeare's use of the English language that makes him the literary colossus that he remains after all these centuries
Whether he invented his quoteable outpourings or borrowed them is immaterial - his use of them is uniquely superb - you don't find his equal in Jonson, or Marlow, or Webster, or Kyd, or Fletcher .... or any of his contemporaries.... or those from a later date, as enjoyable as they are

I'm not sure that originality is that important anyway - for me, the knack of observation and recreation is every bit as important as imaginative new creation
As people who know my tastes in music will be aware, I consider MacColl to be the finest song-maker of my lifetime creating in traditional forms.
In my opinion, his best and most ageless songs are the ones he made by recording the people he was writing about and making songs from what they said - 'Freeborn Man', 'Shoals of Herring', 'The Tenant Farmer', Shellback..... all - and more lifted directly from the spoken word, with all its literary flaws and grammatical inconsistencies.
MacColl seeped himself in the vernacular - wherever Shakespeare took his inspiration from, his use of language leaves me with the same impression
Jim