Shakespeare's squint

Dr Stephanie West discusses Shakespeare's possible strabismus

In Sonnet 43 Shakespeare writes "When most I wink, then do mine eyes see best." People with squints often close one eye to help them see better, so could this be a clue that Shakespeare had a squint?

A lot of people who see the Wadlow portrait mention the eyes. "Does he have a squint?" After our documentary "Stuff of Dreams" was aired on Netflix we were approached by a doctor who asked us that question. So we we approached Stephanie West who is a consultant opthalmic surgeon in Southampton to get the answer. Here is the video we made with Strephanie in which she compares the Wadlow, the Chandos and the Cobbe portraits wit.h the Droeshout engraving and the funerary bust.

"Stuff of Dreams" is available on Netflix until march 2026 and "Picturing Shakespeare" is on PBS as part of Secrets of the Dead from Novemeber 12th 2025.

So, did Shakespeare have a squint? Let us know what you think.