Watching the House

Watching The House was an interactive smartphone adventure exploring the colonial history of the site. Audiences were invited to pick up a pair of headphones, explore the house and uncover its secrets and untold stories; from its original aristocratic owners to the enslaved Africans whose unfree labour provided the goods that furnished it.

The experience was the result of a collaboration between Coney and English Heritage’s youth engagement programme, Shout Out Loud. Shout Out Loud provides a platform for young people to explore heritage sites and collections across England, helping them to uncover untold stories from our past in new and exciting ways.

Over two creative weekends, a group of young people aged 16-18 worked with Coney artists, historians and English Heritage curators to explore the colonial history of Marble Hill, learn about game design and interactive theatre-making and develop ideas for a new interactive smartphone game.

This is your first day on your new job as a Watcher at Marble Hill. As a guardian of the house, your role is to sit quietly. To observe. To remain invisible and protect the treasures of the past. But as you sit, you hear a voice. You hear many voices, asking you to take notice. Things are not always as they seem…