A FEAST of Shakespearean song, dance and activities will fill Oxford to the rafters in the coming months to mark the 400th anniversary of the Bard's death.

With a programme almost as jam-packed as in Stratford-upon-Avon itself, Shakespeare Oxford 2016 will celebrate the life and works of England's greatest literary treasure.

Venues have pitched in to hold events from April through to August and individuals involved are well into the hundreds, co-ordinator Jacqui Ibbotson said.

She added: "It has been wonderful. We started planning this two years ago and I'm now getting an email about some different event every day.

"One came from the John Radcliffe Hospital the other day – they're doing graphic art on Twelfth Night."

The city has been challenged to put on every single one of the Bard's plays, with 22 out of 37 adopted so far including King Lear at Oxford Playhouse, Titus Andronicus at Oxford Castle and a hip-hop version of Richard II at the O2 Academy in Cowley Road.

Youngsters can take part in a Shakespeare-themed graphic art workshop with manga artist Sonia Leong at the Story Museum, and interact with Flintlock Theatre's living Shakespeare characters at the Blackbird Leys, Cowley, Oxford Central and Weston libraries.

Medieval gem the Painted Room, part of a former tavern tucked away above Cornmarket Street, will be opened up to the public on April 23 and 24 for a rare glimpse inside.

Ms Ibbotson said: "We have this lovely, special room where there's strong evidence Shakespeare stayed. He knew the innkeeper's wife well so there are a lot of rumours.

"Shakespeare is still very much relevant. The life lessons are the same now as they were 400 years ago. I keep hearing on the radio of a young boy from Syria who has put up with five years of conflict, and learning Hamlet by heart kept him going. "Nelson Mandela was kept going in prison by the Complete Works of Shakespeare."

The Weston Library is laying on a macabre exhibition entitled Shakespeare's Dead, which will explore death and dying in Shakespeare's plays and time, from Friday.

Curator Emma Smith said: "Shakespeare channelled the universal fear of death into dramatic moments that affirm life for audiences and readers around the world.

"This exhibition will be an opportunity to rediscover Shakespeare in a whole new light."

Visitors to the Weston Library can also marvel at two of the Bodleian Libraries' First Folios and early editions of Romeo and Juliet, learn to use a quill pen with authentically-dressed 16th century scribes and record themselves reciting sonnets and soliloquies in Creation Theatre's special booth.

For more information or a full line-up of events visit shakespeareoxford2016.co.uk