Caesar and Cleopatra is a 1901 play by George Bernard Shaw. It was first published as part of his 1901 collection Three Plays for Puritans (together with Captain Brassbound's Conversion and The Devil's Disciple).

The play has two layers. The first one deals with the fact that Shaw wanted to prove that it wasn't love but politics that drew Cleopatra to Julius Caesar. In his play, Shaw stresses the relations between the Roman and Egyptian conquerors. In contrast to what probably happened historically, Cleopatra successfully arranges for the murder of the eunuch Pothinus after he humiliates her in front of Caesar.

Movie

A film version of this Shaw play was produced by Gabriel Pascal in 1945, starring Claude Rains and Vivien Leigh. At the time it was rumoured to be the most expensive film made in Britain. Pascal was so lavish that he went to Egypt to collect sand to match the color on the set. It was described as a box office stinker at the time and virtually ended Pascal's career.