The Reduced Shakespeare Company is believed to have set a world record after its actors performed an abridged version of the playwright’s works at 11,275 metres – on an Easyjet flight from Gatwick to Verona, Italy.

The Bard's plays were performed under the title Shakes on a Plane in front of a captive audience, in celebration of the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth.

Actors Simon Cole, 38, Gary Fannin, 45, and William Meredith, 40, are believed to have set a Guinness World Record for the highest theatrical performance by acting continuously, at more than 11,275 metres, for almost an hour during the 1,126-kilometre journey.

The performance has been recorded and is expected to be officially verified within the next week.

Passengers smiled and clapped as the actors began with a 12-minute performance of Romeo and Juliet and charged up and down the length of the plane for the next hour, performing Shakespeare's comedies and tragedies, including Titus Andronicus, Othello, Macbeth, Julius Caesar and Hamlet.

As well as quick costume and wig changes, which were made in between the seats at the front of the plane, the actors used props including a shark puppet, a ukulele, a severed hand and plastic swords.

The production, which took place on board a special edition Easyjet plane, complete with a three-metre image of the Bard on the fuselage, was part of a wider campaign to make April 23 National William Shakespeare Day.