Creative Quarter | Ade Andrews, Ezekial Bone

We’ve teamed up with Ade Andrews of Ezekial Bone to bring you exciting new tours of the Creative Quarter – launching with six FREE tours this July and August. Ahead of the fun, we thought we’d find out more about Ade…or as you may know him…Robin Hood himself.

So, what brought you to Nottingham?
I arrived here in 1993, via my hometown of Glasgow and spells in Chester and London. As an historian and actor I noticed some gaps in the market in terms of Nottingham really promoting and celebrating its colourful history and decided to fill the boots of Robin Hood and then created Ezekial Bone. It’s been the path of my life for the last 20 years now and it’s great being part of Nottingham’s cultural regeneration.

Glasgow, Chester, London…you’ve lived in some lovely cities…why have you chosen to make Nottingham your home?
I’ve invested a great deal of time in Robin Hood over the years and this is his stomping ground of course, but beyond that, I see Nottingham as one of the best cities in the country.

Tell us more about Ezekial Bone – where did the name come from?
Ezekial Bone is the ‘spirit of place’, a manifestation of myth and history. The character takes a different form depending on the work I’m doing, influenced by what I’m helping people to discover, whether that’s a specific venue or part of the city, or a particular story or time in history. This character device brings history to life and really captures people’s imaginations. Ezekiel was a prophet in the Bible. In the story he casts a handful of earth into the dirt and it takes human form which God then breathed life into. As Ezekial Bone, what I do is take the dry bones of history, create a skeleton of historical fact, which I then flesh out with my words and performance to bring history to life.

What tours do you offer?
At the moment, I run the Robin Hood Town Tour, which is one of Nottingham’s leading tourist attractions, and the Robin Hood Sherwood Forest Tour. Plus, I offer the Magic Lantern Backstage Tour of the Theatre Royal and the Guts & Gore Tour of the Lace Market. This summer, I’m launching tours of the Creative Quarter and also two new tours for schoolchildren, one in the city and one in Sherwood Forest.

We have to ask, what’s it like being Robin Hood?
Robin Hood embodies the spirit of the common man and woman fighting to make the world a better place. In that way, there’s a real responsibility in playing the part and it has to be done well. It’s about the empowerment of the people. On top of that, I’m also flying the flag of the city on the world stage.

How did the new Creative Quarter tours come about?
I’ve been interested in developing tours of the Creative Quarter area for a while now, so when the Creative Quarter Company put out a call for artists to create a project, I jumped at the chance to apply.

What has the new project entailed?
In short, I’ve been researching and producing potential tours of the Creative Quarter area and I’ll be launching the project with six free tours throughout July and August. And that’s just the beginning. I’m hoping to run tours around the Creative Quarter area into the future and make it sustainable.

What can people expect if they come on one of the free tours?
Well, they’ll be character led with the character inspired by the spirit of the area. The idea is to raise awareness of the area’s history and heritage and also the work of cultural regeneration going on today. If people understand they appreciate. This will be another tool for people to be part of, and buy into, the remarkable work that is transforming the Creative Quarter area.

The tours will last around an hour and a half and will explore The Lace Market, Hockley and Sneinton Market. In the future, my Creative Quarter tours could tie into special events too, say at Sneinton Market. In a nutshell, they’re very much about telling the story of the area, and that’s a human story, it’s about celebrating the past while throwing open the doors to the future. After all, every human story is woven into the fabric of time, including our own. We are part of that continuum. The tours are suitable for everyone and over time, I’m up for developing tours around people’s specific interests.

Will Creative Quarter businesses benefit and be able to get involved?
Very much so. History is a continuum, so the people and stories that make the Creative Quarter what it is today, will be as much part of the tour as the people and stories of the past. For example, lace is a fascinating part of the area’s history, but lace – and heritage crafts like it - are also a fascinating part of the area’s present and future economic, cultural and social regeneration. I’m already working with Creative Quarter-based venues like Debbie Bryan and St Mary’s Church and I’m sure I’ll develop many more partnerships as the tours evolve. Plus of course, my tours will end with a coffee or a drink somewhere, and perhaps recommendations on where to eat. The tours are about the human story of the area, so that will work better the more I work together with the area’s modern day inhabitants.

What do you like about the Creative Quarter?
I love the DIY ethos of the whole area and the way people just start doing things. That’s essentially what I’ve been doing with Ezekial Bone and it’s great to be working with people who share the same ethos. The Creative Quarter initiative has helped to harness the potential of the area and I’m looking forward to being part of that. There’s an amazing story being told through the Creative Quarter project, in terms of making the area relevant for the 21st century, with new industries like the creative and digital industries making their home here. It’s a fitting part of Nottingham’s wider renaissance which includes the transformation of areas like Market Square, Trinity Square and Weekday Cross for example, as well as the introduction of the tram. Nottingham is becoming a European city for the 21st century.

How can people book on a Creative Quarter tour?
To find out more and to book your place please visit Eventbrite

The tours are on:

15 July – 2pm

20 July – 12 noon

29 July – 2pm

6 August – 11am

18 August – 7pm

26 August – 2pm

www.ezekialbone.com