Anthony Stewart is the most interesting person of Julie Stewart
There was great anticipation ahead of the interview with Anthony. Julie spoke about him with reverence, but in a way which hard to pin down. I was able to decipher that Anthony was a ‘big lad’ and that he was the subject of much Julie’s creative focus, but not much else.
I followed Julie in the car to pick Stewart up from his house at around 17.00 and was told to wait nearby rather then follow them to the door. I waited for quite some time before being told that Stewart was still sleeping and not answering his phone. Julie was sure he wouldn’t let us down and that he’d appear quite soon, however the scenario added to the enigma which had settled itself around my image of Anthony.
It wasn’t until I had made myself ‘comfortable’ in Julie and Anthony’s father’s body building gym that Anthony finally appeared. The gym, gritty, more gritty then any gym I’d seen, including any 80s film, was nestled between a disused Sheffield Steel Mill and another disused Sheffield Steel Mill. So it was mill, gritty gym, mill and Anthony, pulling up in a black Audi pumping funky house music, demanding coffee.
That’s not just a first impression of a person, it’s an impression of a whole world. Before Anthony answered a single question I could already feel why she had picked him.
Stuart Acker Holt
The Five Questions
What is your name and what would you say people best know you for?
My name’s Anthony, Anthony Stewart and I’m known by different types of people for different reasons.
Where are we and why is this place interesting for you?
I’ve taken you to Cemetery Road, where I grew up. I remember this place as it represents the things I got up to as a child. Running around, causing mischief, having fun. The good times I had.
If there was one piece of music the world should hear which piece would that be?
I like funky house music. It helps me get in touch with my feelings and express myself.
If there was one book the world should read which piece would that be?
Ray Shell’s, Iced. My sister Julie sent me that book while I was in prison as I had a few problems with drugs when I was younger. This book was something I could relate to and seriously helped me through that period of my life.
Who is the Most Interesting person you know in Sheffield and why?
That would be my boss and friend Collin Mitchell. He has been a friend and a support when no one else was and the support has been very practical. I now work for him and confide in him, in fact if it weren’t for Collin I think i may not even be alive anymore.