 Consequently, there is no direct evidence that Kyd wrote it, nor any evidence that the play was not an early version of "Hamlet" by Shakespeare himself.This latter idea—placing "Hamlet" far earlier than the generally accepted date, with a much longer period of development—has attracted some support, though others dismiss it as speculation.Francis Meres's "Palladis Tamia" (published in 1598, probably October) provides a list of twelve named Shakespeare plays, but "Hamlet" is not among them.