Author Archives: Roger

Andrew reaches Level 5

By ringing inside to a quarter of Grandsire Doubles at Isle of Dogs, Andrew Booth has become the 28th person to achieve Level 5 of Learning the Ropes and qualifies for a prize under the ART Awards scheme.

The Association of Ringing Teachers is now moving out of its set up phase. Going forward the focus will be less on delivering ITTS courses and is shifting to supporting the 250+ and growing number of members who have gained Accreditation. Thanks to the generosity of various parties, the inaugural ART Awards will be presented at the Annual Conference at Loughborough Bell-foundry on Saturday 12th March 2016.

One of the Awards is for all those who have achieved Learning the Ropes Level 5, who will be invited to a centrally-organised weekend event: The Learning the Ropes Masterclass. This will be run in the second half of 2016 by a team of hand-picked, top flight ringers and will be designed to provide opportunities that are not normally available locally. Travel and accommodation will be arranged/paid for participants based in the mainland UK.

Andrew thanks all those who have helped him reach this milestone over the last couple of years and with twelve of our other ringers at various stages on the pathway, we hope that they too will qualify for similar awards over the next year or two. We look forward to celebrating their success.

http://bb.ringingworld.co.uk/view.php?id=984637

The band after the quarter, Andy, Mike, Morag, Drew, Bridget, Roger.

Roger

Bermondsey ringers on Italian on-line TV channel

On-line TV channels are becoming quite popular, especially with younger people, as they provide short snappy easily digestible content rather than the longer content of traditional TV channels and media. Therefore it makes sense for us to follow up any opportunities for us to feature.

We were recently approached by Francesca Albini of Tele-in-liguria, who contacted us through the Association of Ringing Teachers website and wanted to film one of the Bermondsey practices. Francesca thanked us very much for a lovely evening and the video is already online, if you want to watch it visit:

http://tele-in-liguria-webtv.com/2015/12/09/chi-suona-la-campana-breve-viaggio-nel-mondo-della-campanologia-inglese-dalla-storia-alla-pratica-servizio-di-francesca-albini-inviata-speciale-da-londra-per-tele-in-liguria-web-tv/

Roger

Summer Funday and Tower Tours

On Sunday 6th September, between 2pm and 4pm there will be a rare opportunity to enjoy a behind the scenes guided tour of the tower at St Anne’s Church in Limehouse. Designed by Wren’s assistant Nicholas Hawksmoor and built 1714-1727, St Anne’s was one of twelve churches built to serve the new suburbs after the great fire of London, funded by a tax on coal coming up the River Thames. The church did not open till 1730 because a change in government repealed the tax before the work was complete.

This historic church was almost completely gutted by fire in 1850. It was restored between 1851 and 1854 by Philip Hardwick.

With support from the London Docklands Development Corporation, the roof and tower were again restored between 1983 and 1997, and completed when a ring of eight bells was finally added, these bells having previously hung in the tower of St Peter’s Church, Walworth in South London. Two more bells were cast at the Whitechapel Bellfoundry in 2004 to complete the present ring of ten bells.

Those coming on Sunday on Sunday afternoon will be able to climb to the top and see the restored Victorian clock mechanism and admire the view across the local area. The Docklands Ringers will also be on hand to demonstrate the bells being rung, you will be able to have a go. You will also be able to view inside the main roofspace and see how the Victorian timbers have been ingeniously strengthened with a delicate space age tubular steel framework, threaded between the old timbers.

If you can’t make 6th September, the Docklands Ringers will be holding a ‘taster evening’ on Wednesday 9th September between 7.30 and 9.00pm when you can also come up and see the tower and find out more about the bells.

Half muffled quarter at Bermondsey for local undertaker

The funeral procession through Bermondsey

The Senior Undertaker during the repatriation ceremony of ten British Servicemen killed when the C130 Hercules they were travelling in crashed in Iraq.

Barry Albin-Dyer: The Senior Undertaker during the repatriation ceremony of ten British Servicemen killed when the C130 Hercules they were travelling in crashed in Iraq.

Today we rang a half muffled quarter peal of Plain Bob Triples as the cortege of Barry Albin-Dyer passed the church.

http://www.bb.ringingworld.co.uk/view.php?id=468504

The following is taken from Barry’s obituary in the Daily Telegraph:

Barry Albin-Dyer, who has died of cancer aged 64, was for 30 years the chairman of F A Albin & Sons, a venerable firm of funeral directors in Bermondsey, south London, which was tasked by the MoD with organising the repatriation and funerals of members of the Armed Forces who had died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Clad in immaculate top hat and undertaker’s frock-coat and brandishing a cane, Albin-Dyer was a familiar sight at Bermondsey funerals, as well as at Wootton Bassett (and later Brize Norton), leading the cortege in the tradition known as “paging”.

It was Albin-Dyer who walked ahead of the flower-draped vintage Rolls-Royce containing the coffin of Jade Goody, the reality television star, in 2009. When the procession arrived at the market in Bermondsey where Jade Goody’s grandfather had kept a stall, Albin-Dyer released a white dove from a cage.

His pall-bearers also officiated at the funeral of 10-year-old Damilola Taylor in 2001.

Open towers at Bermondsey and Rotherhithe – 20th June

This Saturday 20th June, between 2.30 and 5.00pm the Docklands Ringers are opening the bell towers at both St James’ Bermondsey and St Mary’s Rotherhithe to members of the public. This is an opportunity to climb the tower to see the bells ringing and watch the ringers pulling the ropes. The art of ringing the changes is quite fascinating and the ringers will explain how it is done. You may even be able to have a quick go – it is great fun.

The eight bells at St James’ were installed in 1990, but replaced an earlier set cast in 1828, reputedly from canon captured at the battle of Sebastapol. The eight bells at St Mary’s were restored in 1996, but six of the bells were originally cast in 1748 and they replace an even earlier set. Both peals of bells therefore have a long history and the bells have been rung to celebrate many historic occasions over the centuries.

There is an active team of ringers who ring at both towers. For those who would like to find out more and have a longer go there will be a ‘taster evening’ at both towers on Tuesday 23rd June 7.30pm – 8.30pm