William Shakespeare's Birth and Death Anniversary: English playwright William Shakespeare was born on April 26, 1564 died a few days ahead of his 52nd birthday on April 23, 1616. This year will mark his 458th birth anniversary and 406th death anniversary. Shakespeare is widely renowned for the collection of plays. His plays are timeless and still continue to be adapted for screen and theatre performances. Some of the famous plays written by Shakespeare are Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth and Othello.