Ringer Ollie

16/07/2025

The Bells of Takeley, Essex.

The church of Holy Trinity in Takeley, Essex, hold a ring of four bells. Rung from a gallery, the bells are tuned as bells 2 to 5 of a ring of 8 and are hung in an anticlockwise rope circle. For anyone wondering, that would make these 4 bells, the 2-5 of a ring of 8 in C #! The treble was cast in 1579 by an unidentified founder, the 2nd was cast in c1510 by William Culverden and is the oldest bell in the ring. The 3rd was cast in 1896 by John Warner & Sons and is the youngest bell in the ring. The tenor was cast in 1609 by Robert Oldfield. The tenor weighs 13cwt and is tuned to F #.

4 bells, 12cwt in F #.

The church of Holy Trinity in Takeley, Essex, hold a ring of four bells. Rung from a gallery, the bells are tuned as bells 2 to 5 of a ring of 8 and are hung...

08/07/2025

The Bells of East Coker, Somerset.

The Church of St Michael and All Angels holds a ring of eight bells. They are one of only 7 complete peals of bells cast by Thomas II Bilbie, and the only complete octave by the founder. The bells were cast over two dates in 1770 and 1771, with a tenor weighing 10 hundredweight and being tuned to the note of 'G'. The bells are hung in an oak frame by Richard Davis, dated c 1793. The eight bells were last rehung in 1987 by Robert Parker. There have been 98 peals rung at the tower, most of which between 1966 and 1995.

8 bells, 10cwt in G.

The Church of St Michael and All Angels holds a ring of eight bells. They are one of only 7 complete peals of bells cast by Thomas II Bilbie, and the only co...

05/07/2025

The Bells of Lavenham, Suffolk.

The stunning church of St Peter & St Paul in Lavenham holds a ring of eight bells. The treble and 2nd were cast in 1811 by William Dobson. The 3rd and 5th in 1702 and 1703 respectively by Henry Pleasant, the 4th and 6th in 1603 by Richard Bowler. The 7th is the youngest bell in the tower, having been cast in 1846 by Charles & George Mears. The tenor was cast in 1625 by Miles I Graye and I maintain it to be one of the finest sounding bells in the land. All the bells except the tenor have had their canons removed. The tenor weighs 21-0-7cwt and is tuned to 'Db'. There is also a service bell with a weight of 1-3-20cwt. It was cast in c1350 by an unidentified founder and is tuned to G #.
The bells were last rehung in 1965 by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough, during which time the bells were rehung on new fittings in a new frame.

8 bells, 21-0-7cwt in Db.

The stunning church of St Peter & St Paul in Lavenham holds a ring of eight bells. The treble and 2nd were cast in 1811 by William Dobson. The 3rd and 5th in...

23/06/2025

The Bells of Arkesden, Essex.

The church of St Mary the Virgin in Arkesden holds a ring of six bells. The treble, 3rd, 4th and 5th are the oldest bells in the peal, having been cast in 1701 by Richard Keene. These bells are listed for preservation. The 2nd was cast in 1814 by John Briant and the tenor, the youngest bell, was cast in 1931 by Alfred Bowell.
At the time of the recasting of the tenor in 1931, it was rehung on new fittings and the clappers of the other five bells were restored. Four years later, in 1935 the front five bells were rehung. In 1999 all six bells were retuned and rehung in their existing frame, constructed of oak in 1855, with mainly new fittings.
The tenor weighs 5-2-19cwt and is tuned to 'G # major'.

6 bells, 5-2-19cwt in G #.

The church of St Mary the Virgin in Arkesden holds a ring of six bells. The treble, 3rd, 4th and 5th are the oldest bells in the peal, having been cast in 17...

12/06/2025

The Bells of Warehorne, Kent.

The church of St Matthew in Warehorne, holds a ring of six bells. The tower is rather starkly constructed of red brick. Having originally been constructed of stone, it was struck by lightning in 1770, and by 1777 it had been completely reconstructed. There were originally 3 bells in the tower, all cast by John Waylett in 1771, and are therefore are older than the tower they hang in! These three bells were augmented to five in 1913 and again in 1936 by the same founder.
The treble was cast in 1936 by Alfred Bowell. The 2nd, 3rd and tenor were cast in 1721 by John Waylett. The 4th and 5th were cast in 1913 by Alfred Bowell. All six bells hang in a timber frame built in 1777, at the time of the reconstruction of the tower.

6 bells, 9-2-8cwt in G

The church of St Matthew in Warehorne, holds a ring of six bells. The tower is rather starkly constructed of red brick. Having originally been constructed of...

09/06/2025

The Bells of Clavering, Essex.

The parish church of the village of Clavering in Essex is rather uniquely dedicated to St Mary and St Clement. The tower holds a ring of six bells, rung from an upstairs ringing gallery accessed from the ground floor by a single long wooden ladder. The bells were largely remodelled in 1866, when John Warner & Sons added three bells to the existing two 1830 Thomas II Mears bells. In 1911, these five bells were augmented to six with the addition of a new treble. All six bells are hung in an oak frame by John Warner & Sons from 1866.
The treble was cast in 1911 by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough. The 2nd, 3rd and tenor were cast in 1866 by John Warner & Sons of Cripplegate. The 4th and 5th were cast by Thomas II Mears of Whitechapel in 1830.

6 bells, 9-0-13cwt in G.

The parish church of the village of Clavering in Essex is rather uniquely dedicated to St Mary and St Clement. The tower holds a ring of six bells, rung from...

12/05/2025

The Bells of Muchelney, Somerset.

St Peter and St Paul's church in Muchelney holds heavy ring of five bells. With the bells being hung on plain bearings they need pulling all the time, and we found that if you even slightly start to relax the bells will drop like stones. They sound magnificent with the treble having been cast in 1692 by Thomas Knight (of Closworth), the 2nd by Thomas Purdue & Thomas Knight in 1707, the 3rd being cast in 1847 by Charles & George Mears. The 4th is the youngest bell and was cast in 1872 by Mears & Stainbank, and tenor being the oldest bell was cast in 1626 by Thomas II Pennington and is listed for preservation.

From the ringing room, there is a good but limited view of the remains of the Abbey, situated next door. It gives you a good idea of the size of the site, which cannot be appreciated from the ground.

5 bells, 17 1/2cwt in E.

St Peter and St Paul's church in Muchelney holds heavy ring of five bells. With the bells being hung on plain bearings they need pulling all the time, and we...

01/05/2025

The Bells of Holme Hale, Norfolk.

St Andrew's church in Holme Hale holds a ring of six bells. The treble was cast in 1652 by John II Brend. The 2nd, 4th and tenor were cast in 1624 by John Draper, making them 400 years old this year. The 3rd and 5th were cast in 1746 by Thomas Gardiner. All six bells are hung in a large wooden frame, and with all the bells still retaining their canons, wooden headstocks and plain bearings, they are very hard work to ring and strike. The bells are seldom rung nowadays and ringing here is always a rewarding workout. The tenor weighs 14cwt and is tuned to F.

The tower houses a magnificent clock mechanism, as well as the remeenants of a chiming ''music box'' mechanism attached to it, suggesting that tunes would ring following the hour strike. The positions of the notches on the music wheel within the mechanism itself suggests that I likely rings ''changes'' rather than music or hymns, but this has not been operational for sometime.

6 bells, 14cwt in F.

St Andrew's church in Holme Hale holds a ring of six bells. The treble was cast in 1652 by John II Brend. The 2nd, 4th and tenor were cast in 1624 by John Dr...

21/04/2025

A Statement from Ringer Ollie on the Death of Pope Francis.

05/04/2025

The Bells of Fryerning, Essex.

St Mary the Virgin's Church in Fryerning holds a ring of six bells. The tenor, 5th and 3rd were cast in 1716 by John Thornton, the 4th in 1793 by Thomas I Mears, the 2nd being the oldest bell having been cast in 1590 by Robert Mot, and is subject to a preservation order. These five bells were augmented to six in 1919 by Alfred Bowell. In 1922, the six bells were rehung in a new steel frame, by Alfred Bowell, which some may consider rare in its own right as Bowell, for many years following this date, preferred building new frames out of timber. He also used plain bearings in his installations for some decades after other hanging groups started using early style ball bearings.

The name 'Fryerning' has become well known in recent years through the creation of 'Fryerning Surprise Minor', a method that seems to be rung much more frequently recently. Having rung the method many times, it is one of the easier Surprise Minor methods, especially for those wishing to ring the alphabet. It has Westminster Surprise backwork, with simple middle and front work variations.

Recorded during our spring tour of Essex 2024.
6 bells, 8-1-26cwt in A.

St Mary the Virgin's Church in Fryerning holds a ring of six bells. The tenor, 5th and 3rd were cast in 1716 by John Thornton, the 4th in 1793 by Thomas I Me...

19/03/2025

The Three Bells of Brighton (St Peter, Preston Park), East Sussex.

The church of St Peter's in Preston Park, a northern district of Brighton, holds a ring of three bells. All cast in 1906 by Gillett & Johnson of Croydon, they are hung in an anticlockwise rope circle and rung from the ground floor. The bells are all on their original fittings, and sound lovely. The treble and 2nd are incredibly light set, which makes for a fun challenge, but can be seen catching out the ringers every so often! They are hung in a wooden frame, of the same year, and are in fair order.

The church itself is vested in by the Churches Conservation Trust and houses some incredible wall paintings. If you are in the area, I'd highly recommend you visit this wonderful gem in Brighton!
The ringing featured within this video was recorded on Thursday 14th November 2024, during a ringing session to mark The King's Birthday.

3 bells, 6-0-21cwt in B.

The church of St Peter's in Preston Park, a northern district of Brighton, holds a ring of three bells. All cast in 1906 by Gillett & Johnson of Croydon, the...

15/03/2025

The Bells of Stonham Aspal, Suffolk.

The wooden-topped tower of St Mary & St Lambert church in Stonham Aspal holds a ring of ten bells. Six of the bells were cast by Thomas II Mears in 1826 (the front four and the 6 and 7). The fifth was cast in 1770 by Pack & Chapman, the eighth was recast in 1954 by Gillett & Johnston, at the time the bells were rehung. The 9th and tenor were cast in 1742 and 1745 respectively.
The bells are recorded as having been rehung three times in their history. The bells were a ten bell ring by 1750, as recorded by a peal of Grandsire Triples rung on the ''8 largest bells'' on 23rd February 1751. I believe they were made a ring of 10 in 1742, during which year the oak ten-bell frame was made and installed by John Williams. In 1826 the ten bells were rehung by Thomas & Joshua Hurry, at which time bells 1-4 & 6-7 were recast by Thomas II Mears. In 1884, the bells were rehung again, this time by George Day & Sons. The bells were rehung most recently by Gillett & Johnston in 1954, at which time they recast the 8th bell. Dove's Guide records that not all the bells were retuned by G&J at this time. The original bells were either quarter turned or 1/8th turned at this time.

The bells are rung from an upstairs ringing room, which is accessed by wooden ladder and trap door. The ropes in the small ringing room are guided, and are heavily drawn meaning not only do the bells drop, but the ropes grate on both the ceiling boss and the guide, makings very off-putting noises while ringing. The bells are quite odd-struck and difficult to hear in the ringing room.

Recorded during my outing to Suffolk in 2023, which was attended by my Norfolk ringing friends as well as friends from Sussex, London and Essex. A really enjoyable day!

The wooden-topped tower of St Mary & St Lambert church in Stonham Aspal holds a ring of ten bells. Six of the bells were cast by Thomas II Mears in 1826 (the...