Belfry Gossip
Diocesan Guild 8 Bell Striking Competition
Wicken is a pleasant little village, with many stone built cottages nestling around the church and village green. On one of those idyllic Saturday afternoons in September, ringers from all over the Diocese descended on this village, situated next to Deanshanger and not far from Milton Keynes. It was the annual Diocesan Guild Summer Festival and 8 bell Striking Competition. Each Branch of the Diocese is invited to enter the competition and, true to form, the Wellingborough Branch took up the challenge. Five of St. Mary’s ringers helped to make up the Branch Team with a further two, helping to form the Branch team representing the Guilsborough area.The Guild Ringing Master called for silence and the draw, to decide the order of ringing, was made. With 6 teams entering, the Wellingborough Branch band drew 6th place. Time then to sit and listen to the other competing teams, time to catch up with campanological and other gossip, time to find the warmest gravestone and enjoy the sunshine, time for a cuppa. By all that time, it was team 6 to ring. On entering the ringing chamber, the heavy, sweaty atmosphere from the previous five teams, nervously concentrating, was over-powering.
The practise piece completed, the tenor bell donged a few times, notifying the two judges, tucked at the rear of the churchyard, the team was ready to attempt the test piece – Grandsire Triples. And so the competition was completed. Some ringers were already on their way home, while others grabbed another cuppa and sandwiches to await the judges’ verdict. Wellingborough Branch was easily placed in 1st position.
Conductor Brenda:
To "call" a 3 hour peal is a great accomplishment. The conductor is responsible for the ringing. The ringing should sound good with everyone concentrating and on task. The person "in charge" of the peal has to call the "bobs" and "singles" in the correct place and at the correct time or the peal would falter or collapse. So well done, Brenda.Peal Boards:
The new boards have arrived. Michael Hadley and Clive Wood are kindly making two further boards commemorating the major restoration work to the tower and spire, together with the construction of the new ringing chamber. The restoration work board will be placed in the old ringing chamber alongside the original board commemorating the 1953 work, while the board for the construction work for the new ringing chamber will be placed in the ringing chamber itself. When these have been completed, all the boards will be hung in their appropriate places.Ventilation:
It can get rather stuffy in the ringing chamber and the architect has approved an opening window in one middle section of the glass screen between the nave and the chamber itself. This will help, but more work may need to be carried out.Cheese and Wine Evening
: Ringers are always game for a social gathering and enjoy their drink. In October, Meg threw a party for the ringers, taking the form of a cheese and wine "do". The wine flowed, the many varieties of cheese were tasty, the company was in good form and the entertainment, well……! Remembering some of the pop tunes and titles of the 60’s is bad enough, but only being given the opening few bars of the music proved that some of us should just stick to our ringing! An enjoyable evening though.Remembrance Sunday:
On November 9th 2003, church bells throughout the land will be rung half muffled. A piece of leather is strapped to one side of each clapper, producing an open, followed by a muffled sound, rather like an echo. Bells are rung half muffled for solemn occasions and Remembrance Sunday is one of those occasions.Branch Practice
On the afternoon of Saturday November 15th, members of the Wellingborough Branch will meet at St. Mary’s for a Branch practice. Alan, one of St. Mary’s ringers, is the Branch Ringing Master and is responsible for organising these practices. The practices, which take place about once a month at churches within the Branch, give everyone an opportunity to gain more experience ringing something new, consolidating something already learned, or helping to teach some of the ringers. Directly after this two- hour practice, we welcome some visiting ringers from Maldon in Essex.