Turning Russell Crowe into an archery hot shot

Steve Ralph is the man who taught Robin Hood to shoot an arrow. Quite a claim to fame. The production company making the new Robin Hood film needed a professional to turn the star Russell Crowe into a credible bowman, so they turned to Steve Ralph.

It’s not the first time, he’s taught stars how to loose an arrow. (Steve says this is the correct term – ‘guns are fired, arrows are loosened and shot’.) Kevin Costner, Keira Knightley, Dame Judi Dench, Ray Winstone and Clive Owen have all been his archery pupils.

Ironically, it was Robin Hood who inspired Steve, 55, to pick up a bow. ‘There’s a family tradition of making bows but it was my father reading me Robin Hood books that fired my imagination,’ he says. Steve describes his job as a bowyer – the ancient art of making bows. And he’s been making bows for film and stage for over 25 years.

Steve spent two weeks in Australia – the only continent not to have the bow and arrow – teaching Russell Crowe to be an authentic Robin Hood and he was impressed with the star’s commitment. ‘He’s a very competitive guy who’s sport mad. If he had to fire 1,000 arrows a day to get it right, he would. And that kind of attitude is rare,’ says Steve. In fact, Steve says Russell Crow is so taken with archery that he asked him to make bows for his children. ‘He’s now a very good shot,’ says Steve.

All of which is a far cry from Kevin Costner’s early 1990’s Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, which Steve left in a hurry after making a number of bows for the production. ‘I walked out because it was terrible. Little John says, “Robin of Loxley, you’ve got balls of solid rock.” I said to my wife “we’re out of here”.’

For Steve, the image of the precious Hollywood star is a myth. ‘I have found all the actors I have worked with to be very professional and keen to learn. Dame Judi Dench is a natural archer because, like a lot of women, she listens,’ he says.

And his favourite Robin Hood? ‘I grew up with Richard Todd and Richard Greene but I can honestly say Russell Crowe, because he’s my Robin Hood,’ says Steve.

For people who want to try the ancient art of the longbow, Steve believes modern target archery is a good place to start (click here).

If you wish to learn more about the longbow, try the English Field Archery Association or the National Field Archery Society. 

And when you get as good as Russell Crowe and want your own bow, Steve will make you your own longbow https://www.steveralphs.com/.