Ring for your Supper


Ring for your Supper - Central Branch - 14th August 2010

This is becoming quite a popular event and is always very well supported. Ring at one tower for your starter, another for your main course and a third tower to get your (just?) desserts.

The first tower was the three bell tower of Boothby Graffoe. These can be a challenging set of bells to ring as the only way to ring the treble is by having the church safe stuck in your back. To say that the second is a bit light set is understating it somewhat. It's not often I'm caught out by a light-set bell, but I was this time. There was a choice of starter, this being either Garlic Mushrooms or Prawn Salad.

Ringing at Boothby Graffoe

Ringing swiftly moved on to Navenby which is an excellent ring of 6. Whilst a wide variety of methods were being rung upstairs, some musical entertainment was provided downstairs by Les Townsend on the entirely capable Conacher organ. Once ringing was over a choice of main courses was presented, this being either Shepherds Pie or Coronation Chicken.

Ringing at Navenby
Queuing up for main course

Once the main courses had been consumed it was time for the meeting. This was quite a perfunctory meeting, but with some important content. Firstly there was a presentation to the Branch President, Sylvia Taylor. This was a bell that had been the property of David Collis. The bell had been handed to John Ketteringham at David's funeral and John wished to turn it into something which would find regular use in the Branch as a fitting memory to David Collis. Dave Birkett had expertly mounted the bell in a wooden frame along with a little wooden mallet. The intention is that it will be used as a gavel at future branch meetings.

John Ketteringham and the Branch Ringing
Master present Sylvia Taylor with the Collis Bell

Next was the judging of the photo competition. This year's theme was stained glass from a church in the Central Branch. There were roughly 15 entries and they were judged by Christine Hasman from Winthorpe. The winner was Betty Stracey with a picture of the stained glass window in the ringing room of St. John's, Washingborough. She was presented with the "Onion" trophy, which is a throwback to the onion growing competition that preceeded this competition.

Betty Stracey wins the photo competition
Ringing at Wellingore

With business concluded, the crowd moved to the final ring of the day at the 6 bell tower at Wellingore. There was a slight departure from the previous two courses of the supper which had been served in the church. For our dessert we walked round to the Red Lion where the pub staff served either Trifle or Apple Sponge with Custard. Some alcohol may have been consumed as well. All in all it was an excellent afternoon.

Jonathan Clark