Elon Musk reacts ‘wow’ as book claiming Shakespeare was ‘black woman’ sparks debate

Elon Musk reacts as bold Shakespeare claim goes viral. (Image credit: Reuters/@EndWokeness: X)

• Elon Musk reacted to claims that Shakespeare was a black Jewish woman with "wow"
• Historian Irene Coslet's book argues Emilia Bassano wrote Shakespeare's plays
• The claim sparked viral debate on X, with users sharing mixed reactions

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Elon Musk has sparked a fresh debate online after reacting with “wow” to a book making bold claims about William Shakespeare’s identity. The newly published book by feminist historian Irene Coslet, Britain’s most famous playwright, argues that Shakespeare was a “black Jewish woman”, igniting discussions around history, race and authorship.

The claim featured in "The Real Shakespeare" argues that Shakespeare's plays were written by Emilia Bassano, a poet connected to the Tudor court. According to the book, Shakspear was a pen used by Bassano, with the works later attributed to William Shakespeare of Stratford.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Coslet said "If Shakespeare was a female of colour, this would draw attention to issues of peace and justice in society. What if women had a pivotal role and a civilising impact in history, but they have been silenced, belittled and erased from the dominant narrative?"

"What would a paradigm shift reveal about ourselves? Such a reflection challenges us to reconsider our understanding of society," the historian added.

The X post featuring Elon Musk’s response quickly went viral, with users sharing their views on the newly published book.

Somehow, this isn't satire pic.twitter.com/tJMSFp0bWV

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) January 26, 2026

One X user wrote, “Next they're going to say he identified as an animal...I actually had someone tell me that in a game stream chat on Twitch...the woke mind virus is sadly real.”

Another user commented, “Was a black woman, but later transitioned to a white man", or something like that.”

A third user said, “This is actually true. Her real name was Shanequa. She was obese, had the first horse hair extensions, had 11 different kids from 12 separate fathers, she was delinquent on all debts and charges, ultimately dying before she ever made even one payment on them.”

Another wrote, “In ancient times, most white people believed that Black people worked honestly and diligently; furthermore, white people also held the belief that Black people were beautiful.”