As reported in last month’s Gossip, our Friday evenings are spent joining the Irchester ringers for their practice evenings. We can all gain satisfaction in that we continue with our usual 8-bell ringing; we also gain satisfaction in helping some of the less advanced ringers achieve or attempt some ringing they would normally be unable to try and similarly they benefit from our expertise.

The terrible damage to the church fabric, caused by some moronic persons, in July, has obviously put back the time of completion of the restoration work. This inevitably means that our bells will not be heard for some time. People have missed not hearing them and have enquired as to the time of recommencement. Unfortunately we are unable to give any indication.

Once again we do apologise to the many wedding couples who have obviously been bitterly disappointed at not having the bells rung for their weddings.

No building seems to be safe or immune from vandalism, graffiti etc. and no longer are safety or preventative measures an effective deterrent.

The weather did change for our annual barbecue held in July. The sun shone, the food sizzled, the drink flowed and the conversation was non-stop. Unfortunately several of the ringers were absent for good legitimate reasons, but a most relaxing and enjoyable afternoon was had by everyone.

Some people are all for change but there are some activities that are best left unchanged and allowed to continue without interference – our barbecue is like that.

Two of ringers recently enjoyed an unusual experience at Newton Bromswold Church. The bells at Newton are termed "unringable", which means the bells cannot be swung the full circle and therefore are unable to be rung properly. However they can be chimed which simply means that the ropes attached to each bell can be slightly pulled to allow the bell to swing to and fro and thereby create a sound.

Normally for Newton weddings, the churchwarden, Alan Fuller, chimes three of the bells by using two arms and a leg – now that’s a sight to see. With Alan unavailable, Rushden came to the rescue and two of our ringers swung all four bells and an interesting sound came forth!

Should you have ever ventured to parts of Europe for your holidays, you may have heard the clanging and clattering sound made by the continental style of chiming – Newton beat that!

This month sees the annual Peterborough Diocesan Guild 8-bell striking competition to be held at Aynho – right on the Oxfordshire county boundary. St. Paul’s Cathedral in London is closer to the village than our own cathedral at Peterborough. Last year the Wellingborough Branch, comprising mostly of Rushden ringers, was placed first and won the fine trophy, which can be seen in our belfry.

Most churches throughout the land celebrate their Patronal Festival in some form or other – maybe a flower festival, special events, guest preachers, extra ringing etc. Traditionally, St. Mary’s Patronal Festival is the Sunday following September 19^th, known as Feast Sunday and this used to be celebrated until several years ago. As well as commemorating the Patron Saint, it is also a time to thank God for all the craftsmen and women, various members of the ancient guilds who since the church was founded over 800years ago, have worked tirelessly to create, enlarge and maintain our glorious parish church. We should not overlook the many people involved in the many aspects of today’s restoration work. How disappointing to see these ancient celebrations relegated to the past. But then it may be revived.

How so much of all that hard and dedicated work to the church over all those years can be ruined in one night of sheer madness.