The Isle of Dogs is a play by Thomas Nashe and Ben Jonson which was performed in 1597. It was immediately suppressed, and no copy of it is known to exist.

The Punishment
The suppression of Isle of Dogs has long been understood as a significant episode in the complex relations of city, court, and theatre-worlds; its precise significance, however, is difficult to determine. Chambers, while noting Langley's diamond involvement, viewed the play as related to the Privy Council's July 28 order prohibiting acting and ordering that the theaters be "plucked down"; in this view, the leniency shown to the companies later in the year reflects the transient nature of the offence. Others, among them William Ingram, have questioned this chronology. The July 28 order does not mention the play; it was written in response to one of the city authorities' periodic pleas for an end to the theatres. The Council issued specific orders against the play in the next month. In this light, Pembroke's men may have made their offence worse by performing the play (wittingly or not) after the date of prohibition. Moreover, Cecil's anger over the stolen diamond may suggest that Langley was the sole target of the July injunction. Andrew Gurr adds to this picture by noting the tendency of the Court to licence two chief companies throughout the later Elizabethan and early Stuart periods.