Eric Sams

Who was Eric Sams?

Eric Sams was a British musicologist and Shakespeare scholar.

Born in London, he was raised in Essex; his early brilliance in school earned him a scholarship to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge at the age of sixteen. His lifelong passion for puzzles and ciphers stood him in good stead in his wartime service in British Intelligence. After the war he read modern languages at Cambridge, 1947–50; upon graduation he entered the Civil Service. In 1952 he married Enid Tidmarsh, a pianist. Their elder son, Richard, is a Japanese scholar and chess master working in Tokyo; their younger son Jeremy Sams is a composer, lyricist, playwright, and theatre director.