BBC's online streaming service, BBC iPlayer, will show content from organisations such as the British Film Institute and the Royal Shakespeare Company.
The plans are part of the BBC's aims to encourage the growth of not-for-profit creative institutions, and broaden its cultural offering online. Organisations in the deal are all involved in the Shakespeare Lives festival 2016.
"We’re experimenting live with digital formats like never before," said BBC Director General Tony Hall. "For the first time, the BBC will be showcasing the great talent we have in our leading cultural institutions on BBC iPlayer. It’s another step towards an open BBC – something we all believe in.”
Shows will be available to viewers on iPlayer from 23rd April as part of Shakespeare Day Live, inaugurating the six month celebration of the 400th anniversary of the death of the Elizabethan playwright.
Other not-for-profits featured in the deal include Shakespeare's Globe, the Royal Opera House, Hay Festival, and the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Feature length footage of Shakespearean plays will appear alongside filmed ballet interpretations, as well as discussions with actors including an in-depth interview with Ian McKellen about the Bard's work.
Earlier this year the BBC increased its online offering further when it launched the iPlayer Kids app of age appropriate content for children.
