Belfry Gossip
Wellingborough Branch Meeting This was held on a chilly Saturday in May at St. Mary’s. The numbers attending from the district were rather down on the usual gathering. Our thanks are extended to Jean for accompanying the hymns and to the Rector for taking the service. We think he preached a good sermon but the sound of hailstones on the roof made listening difficult. A service in the Pemberton Chapel has a feeling of intimacy and togetherness. The tea following the service was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone and the business meeting did not take up too much valuable ringing time.
Late Brides The wedding season is in full swing and we have already rung for several couples. Most brides arrive on time and there is always a certain amount of latitude given to the bride who steps into the church a few minutes late. However, very occasionally the period of waiting is in excess of quarter of an hour and the congregation, officiating priest and ringers become somewhat agitated. On such a recent occasion and while whiling away the time, the ringers came up with some suggestions. The bridal couple could be charged double the usual fees and half could be refunded when the scheduled time is adhered to. Equally the fee is increased commensurate with the number of minutes of lateness or more drastically, for every five minutes the service overruns, one ringer goes home!! Thoughts, Rector?
Visiting Ringers We were extremely saddened and annoyed one Sunday morning in May when some expected ringers failed to turn up. We had agreed for ringers from Kent to join us for the usual Sunday Morning ringing. Their itinerary had been organised by a Cambridgeshire ringer. It was planned to be a great help to us as several of our own ringers were away on holiday. For some reason the arrangements were changed and we were not notified – pretty poor. And so we only had four ringers.
Ringing Mayors and MPs Congratulations to Peter Bone on his election as our MP, but your colleague, Philip Hollobone, the newly elected member for Kettering, is a ringer and belongs to the band at SS Peter and Paul. Can you run ringing in as well Peter? The new mayor of Westminster City Council, who was inaugurated at the end of May, is also a ringer. It is customary to ring the Westminster Abbey bells at 1pm after the installation ceremony and this year the new mayor was invited to join the Abbey ringers for a pull – a rare honour indeed. After the annual mayor making ceremony at Higham Ferrers, the bells used to be rung and certainly within the last 20 years, there has been a ringing mayor. Equally, Rushden and East Northants have had a ringing mayor and Chairman - admittedly the same person.
111/2 hours of Ringing Not at Rushden! Recently some London ringers managed a long extent of non-stop ringing for 111/2 hours with no complaints. The mind boggles – nourishment, calls of nature, how did they cope and what some people will do?
Italian Ringing One of our ringers has just returned from Italy, having ascended and explored the campaniles of Verona and Venice together with other activities. The churches give their parishioners plenty of notice for services. The bells swing to and fro, clanging away for several minutes, half an hour before the mass, then again a quarter of an hour followed by a five-minute single bell equivalent to our 5 minute bell. The bells do not appear to be swung for weddings, perhaps because couples firstly undergo a civil marriage followed by the church ceremony and blessing.
50 Years of Belfry Gossip Is this the longest running report at St. Mary’s? Together with various Rectors’ letters, Belfry Gossip has appeared regularly for all those years and it was interesting to note the extract in last month’s Grapevine, from one of the 1955 Belfry Gossips. May we still have plenty to Gossip about in the future.
Open Door Enjoy our company on Saturday morning August 13th. Have a go on the end of a rope; climb the steps to see the bells and enjoy a cuppa with us. See you there.
Tintinnabulum
www.stmarysringers.org.uk
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