The 12 bells of St Paul's Church, Bedford, are down from the tower and on view inside the church from 8 to 26 November, before they go away for refurbishment.

The 12 bells of St Paul’s Church, Bedford, are down from the tower, and from Sunday 8 November anyone can go in and see them up close. The church opened its doors to watch the lowering on Monday 2 and Tuesday 3 November.

Updated 7 November: the church’s photographs from the work show the bells were lowered over 2, 3 and 4 November. It has still not given special hours for the viewing; its visiting page says the building is normally open 11am to 3pm, Monday to Friday.

Then, from 8 to 26 November, the bells will sit inside the church where visitors can see them up close. After that they leave Bedford to be refurbished.

The church announced the dates in a press release on 30 October. It marks the start of work after a five-year fundraising appeal for the tower, the clock and the bells.

What you can see, and when

Dates What is on view
Monday 2 November, 12pm to 4pm The bells being lowered from the tower
Tuesday 3 November, 10am to 2pm The lowering continues
8 to 26 November The bells, at close hand, inside the church
Now until the end of November The 1811 clock mechanism and the bell-ringers’ peal boards

St Paul’s is on St Paul’s Square in the town centre, MK40 1SQ. The release does not give daily opening hours for the 8 to 26 November viewing. The church’s visiting page says the building is open 11am to 3pm Monday to Friday, on Saturday mornings when there is an organ recital from 10.30am, and at service times. The church office is on 01234 340163.

The bells

Most of the bells were cast in 1896 and 1897 by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough, the church says. The heaviest weighs one and a half tonnes.

The church says they have not been seen in public since the Second World War, when they were taken down and stored in the churchyard for safety.

Once overhauled, they will be rehung in the tower later next year, in a new metal frame.

About 30 bell-ringers standing together in the ringing chamber at St Paul's Church, Bedford, with the striped bell ropes hanging around them
Ringers at their final practice before the bells are removed. Photo: supplied by St Paul's Church, Bedford

The clock and the peal boards

The tower clock dates from 1811. Its mechanism is already on display inside the church, before it is repaired. The clock faces will then be repainted and gilded.

The church says the clock is “one of the earliest surviving examples of a public clock with a deadbeat escapement mechanism”. The appeal’s own site says the clock was originally paid for by public subscription, as a symbol of the town’s civic pride.

The peal boards are on display until the end of November too. These are the painted boards that record notable peals rung in the tower, often to mark special events, with the names of the ringers.

A black and gold painted peal board of the Bedfordshire Association of Change Ringers recording peals rung in the tower in January and February 1897, with the ringers' names
One of the peal boards now on display, recording two peals rung in the tower in 1897. Photo: © A C-W, via St Paul's Church, Bedford

How it was paid for

The work follows a five-year appeal. The church says the appeal target was £940,000, and that only £25,000 is still to be raised.

The biggest single award came in May. The appeal announced a grant of £209,948 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The appeal says the tower itself is “crumbling from the inside out” and needs work to stabilise the structure and masonry. The bells “urgently need re-hanging to prevent them falling silent forever”, it says.

The vicar, the Revd Anthony Davis, said: “This landmark project will help ensure that the treasured features of St Paul’s continue to serve Bedford and its community for generations to come.”

He thanked “sponsors, supporters, trusts and the National Lottery Heritage Fund”, and said: “we can now embark on the first stage of the work.”

St Paul's Church, Bedford, seen from the square under a blue sky, its tower and spire rising above the nave
St Paul's Church in October, with the clock hands removed before the clock is dismantled and restored. Photo: © A C-W, via St Paul's Church, Bedford

What it means for you

  • The bells will be silent for months. They are being removed for refurbishment and will not be rehung until later next year, so there will be no change ringing from St Paul’s over Christmas.
  • This is a one-off chance to see them. The bells have not been on public view since the war, by the church’s account. They are on view inside the church from 8 to 26 November, then they leave Bedford.
  • You can still give. Donations go through the appeal’s donation page towards the last £25,000.

Planning a day in town? Our what’s on in Bedford page has the rest of November, and our parking guide has the car parks nearest St Paul’s Square.

Sources