00:00 St Mary
02:51 Cathedral
06:54 Stanground
11:44 St John
Saturday, 16th March 2024 saw The Lilliputters Guild descend on the city of Peterborough for our AGM. For some, the weekend started on the Friday evening, with a peal of Grandsire Triples at St Mary’s. The day itself saw us visit four towers - three in the city centre, broken up with a pleasant post-lunch walk to nearby Stanground.
Our first tower of the day was St Mary, a modern building whose architecture will divide taste! The original church was built between 1859-60, and six bells, by John Warner & Son, installed in 1887 for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. However, by the late twentieth century, the building had fallen into a state of disrepair, and become too costly to keep up. The vicar, James Bates, proposed a plan to sell the old building, with its surrounding prime land, to local developers in exchange for them building a new church. The old St Mary’s closed in 1989, and the new church opened in 1991. The old six bells were transferred to St Saviour, Pimlico in London, and replaced with a brand new Whitechapel eight. The bells themselves aren’t especially interesting - a modern ring which handle well and sound fine - but are readily available, with good sound control. The ringing chamber is in a slightly odd place - on top of a staircase landing! - but is also very homely. Touches featured here are Stedman Triples (inside) and Cambridge Major (outside).
Up next was the “feature” tower - the ring of 12 housed in Peterborough Cathedral. The Cathedral itself is a magnificent building, regarded as one of the finest Norman buildings in the UK. The present structure was begun in 1118, replacing the old monastery (and much of the town) that burnt down in a fire, probably from an unattended bakery fire. It is the resting place of Katherine of Aragon (first wife to King Henry VIII) and Mary, Queen of Scots. Well worth a visit!
The Cathedral bells have a long and fascinating history. There were at least 4 bells present in 1539, although one was probably a Sanctus bell. In 1709, Henry Penn, a local bellfounder (and nephew of Henry Bagley, another well-known bellfounder) was contracted to cast a new ten for the Catehdral, with a tenor of some 35cwt in D. In 1831, however, the front five were sold, and the 9th recast. They were rehung in a new cast iron frame, and the canons removed, by Taylors 1898. However, a big five like this would never have been practical, and soon fell into disuse. In 1986, the ten Taylor bells from St John the Divine, Leicester were transferred to the Cathedral, where they were hung, and augmented to 12 (plus a 2#) by Whitechapel. They handle very smoothly, and are one the clearest twelves I know. Our ringing here was kept to standard fare, with call-changes and Plain Hunt on Eleven featured here, alongside three leads of Bristol on the back eight as a party-piece to finish.
A convivial lunch, taken at the local Wetherspoons (where else!), was needed, as our next tower, Stanground, required a little walk. Despite still being within the City of Peterborough boundaries, around 1½ miles away from the Cathedral, Stanground is actually in the Ely DA, not the Peterborough DG, as the River Nene (separating the two) marks the Diocesan boundary! The six bells are a real mixed bag, each being cast in a different year by a different founder! The back four are hung on big wooden headstocks, and the two tenors retain their canons. The bells were rehung in a new frame by Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel in 1935, when they were augmented to five; the treble was installed in a separate rider frame above the others by Gillett & Johnston in 1948. They are not the easiest bells going; a relatively long-draught, noticeable oddstruckness, and aging fittings were enough to stir us from our post-lunch slumber. However, we did manage some Cambridge Minor and Stedman Doubles (featured here), alongside a handful of other methods, under the leadership of our very own Captain Michael. Whilst the others headed back into the city, Alex and I stayed whilst some muffles were fitted, and got to play upstairs.
Back to the city centre for our final tower; the big, old-fashioned eight at St John’s. The back six were cast in 1808 by William Dobson of Downham Market, and almost certainly replaced an older ring of some description - in 1541, the “great bells” of St John’s and Leicester Abbey were traded, though the reason for the swap is unclear! The bells were rehung in a new frame, and the trebles recast by Gillett & Johnston in 1909-10. They more recently received an overhaul by Hayward Mills. Personally, I like these bells a lot, although they don’t have a lot of hum! Ringing featured here is Bristol Major and call-changes (inside), and Grandsire Triples (outside). (The photos used here, including belfry pictures, date from a previous visit in 2017).
As expected, the outing concluded in the Brewery Tap, concluding another splendid day out.