THE BELLS ARE BACK!

The bells of St Peter's, Church Langton are back in the tower after spending months away being overhauled and retuned. The major restoration project which cost in excess of £32,000 has finally been completed and once again the bells will ring out over the villages of the Langtons.

The ring of eight, the tenor at 17 cwt, are all over 200 years old, the oldest bell being cast in 1540, have been re-hung on a steel frame. The decision to replace the wooden frame was the right one due to the serious infestation.

It came as something of a Christmas surprise when Tower Captain Betty Morley received a telephone call from Hayward Mills Associates a week before the big day to say that the bells and the steel frame were on their way, and to have the Church open and the kettle on! Five minutes later, the bells went past the vicar's window. The ringers had long since given up hope of having the bells back to ring for Christmas. Ring they did not - the tower floor was littered with bells and steel - but it was still a wonderful sight to see them back home with their new headstocks of metal, replacing the traditional wooden stocks.

Andrew Mills worked until Christmas Eve to get the main frame in place. This was necessary to allow the rebuilding of the tower walls in the bell chamber, which had crumbled badly through age, removal of the massive old wooden frame and placement of the steel frame. This task fell to local builder, Nigel Gilbert, and his team. Nigel is a nephew of Betty's and due to the holiday period was able to start work on Boxing Day! I need not remind Chronicle readers of the weather over Christmas. I went up several times, resembling something of an Eskimo. They said working conditions were pleasant!

The task of hoisting the rest of the frame and bells began in the New Year and thankfully everything fell into place beautifully and without any hitches; the whole thing resembles a giant Meccano set and I have to say, a work of art. The work will have been completed by the time this Chronicle is delivered. The ringers are itching to get their hands on the bell ropes, in order to lay to rest the curse of the bells of Church Langton, which were so difficult to handle. A trial ring is scheduled for Tuesday 14 January.

Whilst this is a joyous time for the ringers, they have lost valuable friends since the beginning of the restoration funding campaign back in June 1993.

Firstly, their President, Lt Col Derrick Hignett, who would have been delighted to have been proved wrong that the task really was beyond the capabilities of so small a group. Secondly, Tower Captain Deb Morley, who had done so much over a 20 year period to keep the bells ringable. It was he who had the vision and foresight to 'go for it', and it is a great pity that he was unable to participate in the restoration, something he was so passionate about. Thirdly just before Christmas, Eric Parkin, bellringer of two years standing and Churchwarden.

After the death of Deb it was decided to apply to the Lottery; as reported in the Chronicle, the ringers were awarded £16,900. Thanks must go to John Court, a ringer at St Peter's who acted as co-ordinator between the Lottery and the Church - his work was invaluable.

My message to all who read this article, "don't put off until tomorrow what can be started today". We had been debating for nearly 20 years whether it was within our capability to rehang the bells. When we did eventually decide to 'go for it', it was too late for those who had worked so hard to achieve it. Yes, new blood is coming along and it is hoped that now the bells will be easy to handle, more will take up the challenge to learn this ancient art. This is one of the few pastimes that have gone unchanged down the centuries, a thoroughly traditional English hobby.

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