Groundbreaking new app brings world of DH Lawrence to life in Eastwood
Eastwood literary legend DH Lawrence has been brought back for his 140th birthday celebrations through a groundbreaking interactive app which allows visitors to walk in his footsteps and learn about his life.
Through funding from the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund, Broxtowe Council has launched the DH Lawrence AR (Augmented Reality) Experience – an all-new immersive augmented reality app – to celebrate the author and help attract people to the town.
Lawrence (1885-1930) stands as one of Britain's most influential modernist writers, well known for his infamous novel Lady Chatterley’s Lover (1928) which has been widely adapted for film and TV around the globe.
Born in Eastwood to a coal miner father and an educated mother, Lawrence's working-class origins profoundly shaped his literary perspective and fierce social consciousness, permeating his works, in particularly Sons and Lovers (1913) and Women in Love (1920).
Launching during the DH Lawrence Festival the free app offers the most immersive, cutting-edge visitor experience.
Through a phone or tablet, visitors can explore five locations to learn about significant events that shaped the town over the last 200 years, and its most famous son.
Coun Milan Radulovic (Brox All), council leader, said: “This app is a fantastic way to engage with our rich literary heritage.
“It’s interactive, educational and a brilliant way to explore Eastwood and while here people can visit the museum as well as some of our fantastic local businesses.”
The app is supported by a new walking trail and audio trail, also funded through the Shared Prosperity Fund, offering alternative accessible ways to learn about Lawrence’s heritage, on top the house and museum giving a detailed glimse into the author’s life.
The DH Lawrence walking trail takes visitors past on a 1.5-mile route around all the homes that the Lawrence family lived in, as well as other significant sites.
Scan the QR codes on signs around the town to learn more about each stopping point, watch videos from Lawrence experts offering more insights into their significance and admire the same views that Lawrence did.
The audio trail features commentary by David Amos – a former miner who has a PHD on the History of the Nottinghamshire Miners (1980-85), offering an alternative way to learn about the sites.
Carolyn Melbourne, collections officer at the DH Lawrence Museum, said: “Visitors to the museum enjoy being able to explore the area that Lawrence grew up in and wrote about so vividly.
"The new trails will give a fascinating insight into Lawrence’s development as a writer and will have something to offer everyone.”