Francis Beaumont (1584-1616) was an English playwright, mainly remembered for his successful collaboration with John Fletcher. Beaumont's most famous plays include The Woman Hater and The Knight of the Burning Pestle. He began to collaborate with Fletcher in about 1606-08, and their first success came in 1609 with Philaster, followed a year later by The Maid's Tragedy and A King ... Read moreand No King. Together, they wrote at least six plays; in a further seven or eight cases the attribution is probable but not certain. Michael Hattaway is Emeritus Professor of English Literature at the University of Sheffield. In 2010 he gave the 100th Annual Shakespeare Lecture for the British Academy. Show Less