 Also, he was assumed to be in Ireland at the same time as the manuscript was produced.Other sources believe that John Clavell could not have written it, because they trace the date that it is written before 1630 (with the death of actor Richard Sharp) - before John Clavell traveled to Ireland.John Clavell and Shakespeare's Falstaff

Some sources speculate that John Clavell was influenced by Shakespeare's character Sir John Falstaff from "Henry IV" as a source for ideas in "A Recantation".