Don’t Look Back: A Personal Take on Nottingham Castle
Framed picture of Bob Dylan at Nottingham Castle, 1966
On 21 November 2022 it was announced that Nottingham Castle Trust had gone into liquidation, resulting in the immediate closure of the site.
It marked the end of a tumultuous eighteen months since Nottingham Castle had re-opened, following a £31 million redevelopment. A period marked by outrage over ticket pricing, the dismissal of the Chief Executive and allegations of structural racism following an incident in the castle grounds.
Reasons cited for the closure were the economic downturn and subsequent failure to attract visitors in the numbers required. A fact common to many arts and culture venues in a post-COVID, cost of living crisis world. But there is more to this story when it comes to Nottingham Castle.
One year ago, I completed a module in Contemporary Issues in the Visitor Economy as part of my MA in Cultural Heritage and Management at the University of Lincoln. The module explored issues of authenticity and identity within heritage sites, and so the problematic re-opening of Nottingham Castle was my chosen and approved subject for my module paper.
My argument then and now is that Nottingham Castle is a confused site that plays with authenticity to the detriment of the city and the confusion of its visitors.
When discussing the Castle’s redevelopment in 2021, visitor attraction consultant Martin Barratt clearly identified the elephant in the room. A fact that has hardly appeared in all the social media conversations of the Castle’s recent demise:
“But of course, we have to talk about the greatest disappointment of all. The lack of a castle at Nottingham Castle will surprise just about anyone who doesn’t live in Nottingham. It would be funny if it didn’t let down the expectations of nearly every out of towner.” [1]
The actual Nottingham Castle was first built in 1067 as a major medieval fortress. Decay, fires and rioting resulted in the eventual ducal mansion on the site, restored in the 1870s as an art gallery and museum. Some evidence of the original castle persists, but to market the site as equivalent to Warwick or Lincoln is wishful thinking. Please can we all agree, Nottingham Castle is not a castle.
Nottingham Castle Ducal Mansion. Note - not a castle.
It is worth reading Thomsen and Vester’s 2015 study of Nottingham Castle and its various authenticities, with a reliance on a symbolic authenticity based on a cultural concept, namely the Robin Hood mythology.[2] Nottingham Castle continued to mix and match these multiple identities, as if the site was managed by M. Night Shyamalan.
It sold itself as its former medieval self, perhaps emphasized by the main entry to the site through its 800 year old gatehouse, the only major building section that remains of the castle’s medieval history. The gatehouse was then used in major advertising, reinforcing visitor expectations of what a castle should be like, rather than depicting the 19th century mansion that lies behind it.
Heritage Fund advertisement for Nottingham Castle in Oxford city centre, December 2021
This medieval predominance shows how the Castle clearly wants to present its authenticity within the fictional Robin Hood myth. The revamp saw the creation of Hood’s Hideout in the grounds, a children’s adventure playground, complete with mock medieval turrets. But it is also obvious in the gift shop, where the majority of souvenirs available featured Robin Hood merchandise, or stereotypical castle items, such as jousting knights.
Sample of items for sale in Nottingham Castle Gift Shop
When faced with such objects, one must remember the prime use of the Ducal Mansion building, the site of the former castle, is an art gallery. Work by celebrated artists such as Lowry, Rossetti and Laura Knight are on display. Yet, at the time of my visit, I was unable to purchase a print or postcard of such work in the shop. The message was clear. Visitors were being firmly nudged to take home an advertisement of a Warwick like medieval castle experience.
No wonder there was such wide disappointment and anger expressed by visitors on TripAdvisor:
“I wish I'd done my homework first and actually looked to see what was there. Can't believe there's no castle! I feel missold! There's more interesting parts to it on the outside that I can look at for free. Very disappointed.”
TripAdvisor also reveals an overwhelming sense of loss and exclusion in regard to the site from local people:
“As a Notts resident it’s so dispiriting that an attraction that was open and available to all is so, so expensive … I can’t describe how sad I feel that our castle is no longer for everyone. I wish they had kept their £30million. What would Arthur Seaton say?”
Nottingham Castle did review its pricing for local people, but ultimately “world-class status” needs to begin at home.
Coombes and Jones state how TripAdvisor can enable visitor sites to better understand the “behavioural and experiential considerations of customers”. [3] It would be advisable for this policy to be adhered to in relation to Nottingham Castle and to ensure that local people do not feel excluded from an important green space within the city.
View of section of Nottingham Castle grounds
Recognising customer concerns that the site is not a recognisable castle and the development of its other significant resources, such as the grounds and art displays, including its excellent Rebellion Gallery, created as part of the redevelopment, would make for a more purposeful and honest visitor experience.
A final note …
As I was researching and writing about Nottingham Castle in December 2021, my wife gave me a framed print of one of my musical heroes for Christmas. It is a picture of Bob Dylan at Nottingham Castle. The banner image for this blog article.
Taken in 1966 by photographer Barry Feinstein, Dylan made an impromptu visit to Nottingham, whilst travelling to a gig in Sheffield. This was during the infamous ‘Judas’ tour, in which Dylan infuriated his devotees by ditching his acoustic guitar in the second half of the show and performing his “new electric sound” [4]
Despite what some believed, this was not an outright rejection of his folk roots, but Dylan moving on and developing as a songwriter and musician. This artistic change was soon accepted, and Dylan remains a vital artist to many.
It therefore shows how cultural institutions can advance, whilst not completely forgetting their past. This is not to deny Nottingham Castle its medieval heritage, but to not simply allow that story to be the loudest one that is told.
[1] Barratt, M. (2021) Nottingham Castle: Was the Redevelopment Worth the Money? Blooloop.com Available at https://blooloop.com/museum/opinion/nottingham-castle-redevelopment/
[2] Thomsen, R.C. and Vester, S.P. (2016) Towards a Semiotics-Based Typology of Authenticities in Heritage Tourism: Authenticities at Nottingham Castle, UK and Nuuk Colonial Harbour, Greenland. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 16 (3) 254- 273. Available at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15022250.2015.1084148?needAccess=true
[3] Coombes, P. and Jones, S. (2020) Toward Auto-Netnography in Consumer Studies. International Journal of Market Research, 62 (6) 658-665. Available at Toward auto-netnography in consumer studies (sagepub.com)
[4] Baird, J. (2019) Literary Locations #38: 18 Castle Boulevard: Dylan in ‘Fair Nottamun Town’ [blog] Nottingham UNESCO City of Literature, 11 October. Available at Literary Locations #38: 18… | Nottingham UNESCO City of Literature (nottinghamcityofliterature.com)
