Did William Shakespeare meet any very famous people?

Answer 1

He of course never met anyone who would be as famous as he would be himself. The theatre groups he worked with played for royalty (Queen Elizabeth and King James) and it is possible that a member of the royal party might have spoken to him after a performance. (The details of these performances were not arranged with the royalty but with their "people"--mostly the Master of the Revels.) Shakespeare did have some contact with some members of the nobility, most of whom are now only known because of their connection with Shakespeare, like the Earl of Southampton, although the Earl of Essex did arrange for a performance by Shakespeare's company and they may have met on that occasion. It is unlikely that Shakespeare met any political celebrities apart from the English royal family and the English nobility. As a member of the London theatre scene, he would certainly have known the well-known actors and playwrights of the day, only some of whom are known to anyone other than scholars now. He also knew some contemporary musicians like John Dowland and Robert Johnson, who cannot be described as "very famous", but then, no musicians from this time are that well-known nowadays.