A replica of it was built for a 1912 exhibition in Earl’s Court, 85 years before another opened on the other side of the river

Wednesday, October 14, 2026’s Final Jeopardy clue came from the category “Famous Buildings”: “A replica of it was built for a 1912 exhibition in Earl’s Court, 85 years before another opened on the other side of the river.” The dates 1912 and 1997 connect two attempts to recreate the same legendary London playhouse: Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre.

What Is the Globe Theatre?

The answer is the Globe Theatre, the Elizabethan playhouse forever associated with William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare’s acting company performed there beginning in 1599, and the theatre became connected with some of the most important works ever written for the English stage.

Shakespeare’s England at Earl’s Court

The 1912 reconstruction was created for an exhibition called Shakespeare’s England, staged at Earl’s Court.

The exhibition attempted to immerse visitors in an idealized version of Elizabethan London, with reconstructed buildings and theatrical attractions. Among its most conspicuous features was a replica of the Globe.

Sir Edwin Lutyens Designed the 1912 Globe

The architect responsible for the Earl’s Court version was Sir Edwin Lutyens, who would become one of Britain’s most prominent architects.

His Globe was constructed at roughly half scale. Although it could not claim archaeological precision by modern standards, it represented one of the earliest serious efforts to recreate Shakespeare’s famous theatre in London.

A Working Theatre, Not Just a Display

Visitors to the 1912 exhibition could watch performances within the reconstructed playhouse.

Short excerpts from Shakespearean and other Elizabethan and Jacobean works were staged there, giving audiences an impression of how drama might have been presented during Shakespeare’s lifetime.

Sam Wanamaker’s Dream

Decades later, actor Sam Wanamaker began campaigning for a new reconstruction near the original Globe site.

When Wanamaker visited London after World War II, he was surprised to find that Shakespeare’s famous theatre was commemorated only modestly. That experience helped inspire a campaign that would occupy much of his life.

The 1997 Shakespeare’s Globe

The modern Shakespeare’s Globe formally opened in 1997 on Bankside, on the south side of the Thames.

Its design was based on decades of historical and archaeological research and sought to reproduce important features of an Elizabethan open-air theatre, including its circular form, galleries and standing area around the stage.

Why the 85-Year Gap Is Exact

The arithmetic in the clue is deliberate. The Earl’s Court recreation appeared in 1912, while the modern Globe opened in 1997.

That is an 85-year gap, giving contestants a powerful confirmation once they connect the Earl’s Court exhibition with Shakespeare.

The Original Theatre’s Dramatic History

The first Globe opened in 1599 but lasted only until 1613, when a theatrical cannon used during a performance ignited the thatched roof and burned the building down.

A replacement opened in 1614 and continued operating until the Puritan authorities closed London’s theatres. The second Globe was eventually demolished in the 1640s.

Why Shakespeare’s Globe Fits the Clue

The combination of Earl’s Court, a 1912 exhibition and a second reconstruction opening 85 years later is highly specific.

That makes Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre the correct Final Jeopardy answer: a building lost for centuries, temporarily recreated in Earl’s Court in 1912 and reconstructed permanently on Bankside in 1997.