Sewell Barn Theatre space for presentations, meetings and other private hire uses. Originally the barn belonged to Clare House which was owned by Philip Sewell, a local benefactor, from 1864 to 1906. Anna Sewell, author of the children’s story "Black Beauty", was Philip’s sister and lived in the White House, Spixworth Road, Spixworth. Philip owned a mare called Black Bess which used to draw his carriage along Spixworth Road and it might be supposed that Bess was the original inspiration for Black Beauty, and the barn a prototype for Black Beauty’s stable. The book was published by Jarrolds in 1877. Philip Sewell died
It Was Written not ready for the more prophetic themes of "Nastradamus", as it only sold 232,000 copies by its first week (less than half of "I Am…"s first-week figures). By 2001, "Illmatic" and "It Was Written" were both selling at a rate of over 3,000 copies a week, while "Nastradamus" was earning an average of little more than 2,000 copies a week, despite its relative newness. Both "I Am…" and "Nastradamus" received further criticism for their commercially oriented sound. Reflecting this widespread perception in the hip hop community and adding to his ongoing feud with Jay-Z at the time, Jay-Z mocked him