t's a mystery that has gripped historians and Shakespeare experts for generations - and one archaeologists believe they could have finally found an answer to.
After a hi-tech investigation concluded the legendary playwright's skull was probably taken by trophy hunters more than 200 years ago, which direction should the search for his missing bones now take?
As a Channel 4 documentary reveals his Stratford resting place has been disturbed at the head end, and proves a mystery skull thought to be his is actually that of a woman, new theories about what happened to Shakespeare's head are beginning to emerge.
Here, experts and enthusiasts give their opinions on where the hunt for the elusive part of his skeleton should go - or, as we approach the 400th anniversary of his death, whether it is finally time to let him rest in peace.
'It's not quite back to square one - but we need to look at the legends of other churches to see if they hold the key'
Kevin Colls is the Staffordshire University archaeologist who led the investigation into Shakespeare's grave at Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.
He firmly believes the findings of a disturbance of, and repair to, the tomb are too similar to the trophy-hunting allegations printed in 1879 to dismiss them - and plans to keep looking for the skull.
"Our research will continue - we're going to try and do as much as we can to locate it," he said. "Because we had two possible locations - Holy Trinity and St Leonard's in Beoley - and we've ruled out those, we now need to look through documents again to help us find where it could be.
"It's not quite back to square one. We need to look at the myths and legends surrounding other churches in Stratford and the West Midlands to see if any of those could hold the key.
"It is of course possible that the skull was removed before the burial, and what our research has done is open a whole can of worms.
"But the fact is that our findings correlate so well with the documented theft in 1879 - particularly the reference to the grave being shallow. If it was going to be made up, the story would be entirely different.
"The evidence of disturbance to the grave and repair to the chancel floor leads us to this conclusion."
