Belfry News October 2017

The Way we Were

A flight of spiral stairs followed by a sloping passage with walls so confined that my shoulders brushed them as I ascended, then more spirals giving access to the ringing room at St Swithins, Bicker. Panting and out of breath I crawled into this pleasantly carpeted room, a low ceiling with eight bell ropes awaiting our attention. It was Saturday, September 23rd and Doug, Angela and myself had been invited to assist with ringing for the wedding of Samantha Rippin and Philip Wright.

The bells here are a "mixed bag" of different founders and dates of casting, the tenor cast in 1661 by Norris of Stamford with the 3rd and 7th by Thomas Osborn of Downham Market dated 1784 and 1785 respectively with three modern bells by Taylor of Loughborough. Some history in this tower, but it was the old photographs on the ringing room walls that excited my interest. One of these depicted what appeared to be a bearded clergyman with cloak-like garments which for a few seconds inspired a mental impression of the late Demis Roussos, the Greek singer known as "the singing bell tent". A second photograph I immediately recognised as the striking figure of Henry Law-James MA, Vicar of Surfleet from 1898 t0 1932. Clever and a brilliant bell ringer and character to boot he did much work in improving many facets of Surfleet church.

However it was a larger group photograph that arrested my attention- a group of smiling young lads and girls. "The 1950's Angela"? "No certainly not,"she replied, implying (rightly) that my knowledge of fashion is minimal, "look at that mini skirt-it has to be the 1960's" Well by now they must all be Grannies and Grandads but who has replaced them over the years? Well the answer to that question is "no one" as we no longer have interested youth. Sadly I was reminded of yet another pop song, 1970's era by Joni Mitchell where the punch line goes something like "you don't know what you've got till it's gone". Yes, gone indeed as unfortunately those times have gone for all time.

John Bennett